Snippets

So much have happened and I have done quite a lot. Perhaps, to catch up with all the moments I have missed out for the past few years when I was away…

Nick Vujicic in Singapore

One of my favourite author. I first got to know of this inspiring man as an author. I was captivated by the book cover of his first book, “Life without Limits” which I first saw in Shanghai. He went on to become an evangelist and a motivational speaker. His life is simply inspiring. At 10 years old, he was thinking of ending his life because he saw no hope in his future but the thought of sending his parents into depression just made him live on and like what they always say, “the rest is history.”

Recently, he was in Singapore and I brought the whole family to watch him speak. Kai was very inspired by him and I believed, he was touched by him.

 


Jason Chee, the navy guy who lost three limbs in a nasty accident was also present. Our very own hero. A strong man with a strong determination to live on in spite of. Ms Aishah Samad, SEA shooter, bronze medallist, who lost four limbs to bacterial infection which she was infected when in China. These people, really put some able-bodied people to shame.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/video/limbless-speaker-nick-vujicic-inspires-044642011.html

 
Mobbed by a crowd

 
His first book which opened my eyes to a whole new world of possibilities
Some gems from listening to his talk…

• FEAR – false evidence appearing real but FAITH – full assurance in the heart.
• If you don’t see a miracle, be the miracle. If God tells us everything, we won’t need faith
• Faith is facing a potential which we cannot see…

Wedding

That’s the thing about coming home. You are with friends and families and weddings and gatherings and everything else which involve people you love and care about.

Just sitting down, waiting for the wedding couple and dinner to be served is really boring. We had out pictures taken by professional photographers. Apparently, this is the latest fad at wedding dinners. Hmmm, we are indeed behind time. Time to catch up!

Gathering

Two girls came back from overseas and we, the ex-SCGS girls met up again.

 
Girls and food and chats, they made the perfect trio!

and the others…

The next few weeks will be a busy time. Kids will be having their final year exams. Since July, I have been attending the parent facilitator training. The course is ending soon, a presentation coming up and a reflection report due next week.

It has been an eye opening course. So many of our kids are suffering and so many parents are so lack of knowledge in dealing with their kids. One most upsetting case which was shared by my trainer was this 16 year old girl. She is not just your ordinary girl. She is a very rich girl. She has a personal driver who sends her to school and picks her from school. She has money to buy anything which only some girls can dream of. However, she loves to steal. Every now and then she will steal something from a shop. It is not that she doesn’t have the money. She is rich. Her wallet is filled with cash each time when she was caught. Her parents were at a lost and sent her for counselling. My trainer took up her case. After many rounds of counselling, the young girl finally opened up and revealed the reason for stealing.

“It is only when I steal, the school will call up both my parents and it is only in such occasion, I can see both my parents.” Sad.

Both parents are successful professionals and travel very often. They hardly have time for their only child.

Today, in IMH, many children, as young as seven and eight years old are roaming at the courtyard. It is indeed very sad. This society has been completely blinded by the rat race.
I hope to be able to train other parents to see their children as kids and not a commodity to fulfill their (parents)  lost dreams.




When all is over and done, I am looking forward to the year-end family holiday where we will hit the road. Melbourne-Sydney-Gold Coast. Down under, here we come!

The nastiest of all

This week has been a very ‘turbulent’ week. Ann was sick. Very sick. One of the nastiest virus attack ever. Three years in Shanghai, she has never missed school for a week. At most two days and she was up and running. Yes, she is basically a very healthy and strong girl.

Parents, when your kids are sick, don’t pump them with panadol and send them to school or any classes. This is so irresponsible of you. Last Saturday, one of her classmates from her ballet class was not feeling well but was still present in class. Her mother had told the teacher that if she was not well enough to dance, she could sit by the side to watch. In less than 15 mins, her mother decided to bring her home because the little girl could not even watch by the side line. Clearly, she was so ill.

By Sunday morning, Ann was running a low-grade fever. On Monday morning, it shot up to 39 C. Then it was non-stop. On top of that, she had prolong nose bleed, lasting up to thirty minutes. Saw the family doctor but no improvement. Finally, went to see a specialist and did a blood test. The result came back, she had low count for the white blood cells. White blood cells play an important function in our body. They are the commandos in our body who put up fierce fight against virus that attack us. They also play an important role in helping our blood to clog. With the low count, Ann’s fever never completely subside and her nose bleeding takes a long time to stop.

Being an active child, staying at home means she is bored to tears. I decided to go and pick up some work from school for her but warn the teacher that it is unlikely for her to finish the work because she will only do if SHE decides that she is well enough to do. Yours truly is no tiger mum! She is only a lioness. *wink*
Surprisingly, Ann completed half the homework in one sitting. See what I mean, she is a tough cookie.


Full concentration

Kids are doing well

Kai was asked to share to the whole school on his thoughts on a story which all students must read. It was his first time, addressing to the whole school. It was a good opportunity for him in building his self-confidence.

He is also doing well for his creative arts workshop. If he does well for the school selection, he will move on to a mentorship programme.


I am an open-minded parent. In fact, I think all parents should approach their kids with an open mind. Their education should not be about fulfilling your wishes and unaccomplished dreams. Well if your wishes are his interests, great! If not, please allow them to pursue their love.

Being a writer may not give him a Merz or a condo or earning millions but I know one thing for sure, it will make him a very happy person.

Ann is also excelling in her own way.
 
Excellent results from her. She also sat for English and Math, waiting for the results.

Honestly, I just let her sit for the assessment with no added stress. Today, she is sitting for the GEP assessment. No studying, no prep class. Just go and do her best. Sometimes, I think, this works best for the kids. Learning requires energy. Piling them with tuition and countless assessments books may not help. Yes, some kids strive under stress but seriously, most kids just want to be …yes, KIDS!

Foodie on food

It has been sometime since I blog on food. No, I have not stopped cooking or baking, I just put them aside. So, here they are…


This meal is re-made using all left-overs. Any time better and healthier than the Macs


I didn’t make this. It is a rhubard pie. Always wanted to find out what it taste like. Been watching British Bake-off and it is a favourite dish to do among the contestants. When I saw it, I must try. Verdict…good for those who like sour-ish pie. Not exactly mine kind of pie.


With all these, I whipped out three different types of tiramisu for the great reunion

 
Durian, Bailey’s and semi-bitter sweet tiramisu.


Ann was off school for two days because of the PSLE oral exams, we did the Shanghai dumplings, it’s her favourite.


We went Moroccan. This is really easy. Whether you are a FTWM or SAHM, this is a very nutritious meal for the family.

 
Put all ingredients in and pop into the oven. You can do whatever you want, spend time with your kids. If you are a FTWM, get a slow cooker. Even a very good one doesn’t cost more than a $100. Do it in the morning, by evening, everyone can eat together.

 
Oxtail with couscous. We were first introduced to couscous by a friend, was an Asean-scholar, who went to Morocco to do mission work. In Morocco, they will cook a big pot of couscous. Then a pot of stew. The cooked couscous will then be placed in a big serving plate, the stew will be poured over it. The whole family will then use their hands to eat from the same plate. Yes, it is community eating.

When this friend came back from Morocco, she brought with her some couscous and invited us over for a meal. It was ‘eat at first sight’. Both the spouse and I fell in love with it. We search for it and found it. When the kids came, we introduced it to the kids. Ann, especially, loves it.


Here is a picture of community eating.

If too much white rice is unhealthy and brown rice, the family find hard to eat it, try couscous. It is a healthy staple. According to some nutritionist, couscous is more than just “the food so nice they named it twice”, it also has a wide variety of health benefits, including the ability to prevent certain cancers, increase heart health, prevent bacterial and viral infections, promote normal metabolism throughout the body’s systems, controls fluid levels in the body, improve digestion, help weight loss efforts, heal wounds, build muscles, and boosting the immune system.

From Morocco, we went to Japan.

Cured my own salmon. All these for just $13. You won’t get this price if you eat outside.

 
Brought out the bento box and we had Japanese food. The family loved it so much.


Wonder what is this? A great dipping sauce for anything. Recipe shared by a very long-time friend.
Cilantro, green chili padi, garlic cloves, blend together. Thai fish sauce, sugar and  lime juice, whisk till sugar dissolve.  Add into the blended mixture. Goes well with practically anything.
Like what Ann always say, “easy peasy, lemon squeezy”. *Wink*

A super long weekend

Hari Raya Pusa and the National Day were just side by side. Plus the weekends, we had four holidays in a row. I think, this must be the first in my lifetime. We decided to have a short holiday but not too faraway.
A good friend of mine gave me a special package to Batam. The last time I visited Batam was way before even Kai was born. That was a long time. I wasn’t expecting much but just a few days of taking life slowly. What really amazed me was this bunch of staff at the hotel was simply out of this world. I think I wrote my most appreciative comment ever in Trip Advisor. The hotel is Holiday Inn Resort, Batam

My family and I spent 3 days 2 nights( 8 to 10 Aug) at this hotel recently. We have been to many places and have stayed in many hotels but we all agreed that Holiday Inn Resort, Batam wins hands down in terms of staff work attitude. The time we were there it was a long holiday in Singapore and Malaysia. The hotel was running at 100% occupancy rate. All the F&B outlets were running at full steam yet, the staff served with such great attitude. They continued to smile and chat with us, they cleared tables quickly so that the later guests could have a clean place to eat. Even their F&B Manager, Mr Leslie Tan was busy clearing tables. Very often, behind a team of good staff, is a very good leader. He led by example. At the front office, the staff served with a smile. Helping guests to open the door was their GM, Mr Frank Schoenherr. You will probably now understand why this is such a great team. From the GM to the Manager to the staff, everyone was doing their bit to make their guests happy. Transportation service was 1st class. The shuttle was on time to pick us at the ferry terminal and was punctual to fetch us there on the last day. Housekeeping was punctual and the amazing thing is that in spite of a huge crowd, no one staff was without a smile. 

The place is a bit old, the décor is a bit outdated, it definitely needs some touch up. For a start, I would suggest that they removed all fabric sofas from the rooms and replaced them with PVC ones. That is the cause of the musty smell as mentioned by some reviewers. They have served their time, time to let go. However, it is still a clean, proper room for sleep and shower. We booked the 2 bedroom suite and it came with two bathrooms and it was useful. Teppanyaki dinner is a must try. BBQ dinner was excellent with very fresh seafood served!

In spite of the rooms, I will still give this hotel the two thumbs up. Rooms are just bricks and mortars, it is the people who give it life and soul.

You know how housekeeping always slack when hotels are running at 100% occupancy rate. Here, housekeeping was punctual even though all rooms were packed to the brim. Who has the best workers? No, it is no longer China. It is Batam. Hats off to them.


Nice comfortable ferry to Batam. I was really out of time. I didn’t know that so much have changed. Book through Batamfast.com. It was a breeze.

 
View from our room

 
View of the whole hotel. That white slide was awesome!


From the front of our room. Reminded me of the desert in Arizona

 
Yummy seafood bbq. You can imagine how fresh they were, the sea is right at the doorstep

 
 
Do everything at your own risk, I find this so ticklish. Just do what you want to do lah, don’t blame the hotel if anything happen!

   
Towel counter. Cute!


 
Go kart time!

 
 
Don’t mess with this girl, she is rock solid!

Then we headed for a kelong lunch, well, not exactly a real kelong but still, it was a seafood lunch.

Then I witnessed this…

   
They threw plates and plates of left-overs into the sea to feed the fishes. Oh please, do fishes eat chilli-crabs. When there were no more left-overs, she took white rice from the pot to feed the fishes and the adults made no attempt to stop her.

Ok, Singaporeans are not perfect. We are kiasu, kiasi. We are termed the ugly Singaporeans but seriously, we know our limit. Do we defaced people’s historical artefacts when overseas? We are so kia cheng-hu that we obey rules like there is no tomorrow. I am not xenophobic but with such behaviours, it is really difficult not to keep my distance.


The amount of food that have been left behind. The crabs and the clams were literally untouched. Scary, right. *Haiz…*

The dinner at night was more enjoyable.
 
These two chefs were so cheery. They were under tremendous stress. They had to feed about 60 guests but they held the fort professionally!

 
These two “chefs” look terribly familiar!

   

Lobster


Salmon


Squid

A short but fabulous getaway…well, not exactly a getaway!