Double chocolate banana cupcakes

A rich double chocolate (dark and white) banana cupcake. Absolutely delicious though it meant some additional laps to work it off :)

Happy Go Lucky

At times, I must confess, I do admire N's "happy go lucky" perspectives of life. She would leave everything to the very last minute, be it homework, tests, or piano.

Occasionally, I would ask if she has learnt her "tinxia" and here goes our dialogue

Me " Nicole, when is your tinxia?"
N " tomorrow"
Me " have you learnt?"
N " kind of "
Me" What is "kind of"?"
N " Oh, I mean I browsed through it already"
Me " Oh? Browsed through it? So, does it mean you have learnt it?"
N " well, not quite. I will learn it tomorrow morning"
Me " Why cant you do it now?"
N " It is ok. I have plenty of time tomorrow morning. I only need 5 minutes"
Me " Ya, precisely. why dont you spend 5 minutes on it now?"
N" Oh...I have something more important to do now"
Me " Such as?"
N " I am doing colouring"

At this point, I knew I had to give up asking and trust that she would spend 5 minutes to learn it the following day :(

Lovely curtains

We sold our other property and we needed to clear the unit up before we could hand over the keys. We disposed off the electrical appliances (European made, and almost brand new) at dirt cheap prices and we also removed the curtains since the buyer did not express any intention of keeping them though we would be happy to leave them behind. The worst case scenario is, if the curtains were left behind and they end up in the trash! That would be a $2,800 trash! They didnt come cheap. We invested in it for the sake of the first tenant.

We tried to make use of them at our residence instead. We paid a little alteration fee (relative to that hefty $2,800 if we were to make another set) to have it refitted. Well, we are happy with the outcome. Now, our bedroom is almost 90% pitch dark when the curtain is drawn and this means, we can stay in a little later without being greeted by the early morning sunshine at 7am! Thank God for his seamless plan!

A day at the beach

After reading much about Pooh and his kite flying day, we thought it would be great for E to experience it on his own~. He was absolutey mesmerised when he saw his kite flying higher and higher.

N and E then proceeded to have a taste of salt water. N was sturdy enough to withstand the strong incoming wave but not for E, quite evidently. He got himself soaked in salty water and insisted on changing to a set of dry clothes but we didnt have any. He was meant to change to his swimwear before heading for the beach but he did not. So, he ended up having to wear his swimming trunk home and there were millions of reluctance! He was so self conscious that he kept pulling his shirt down :).

Very original indeed.....

Me " Nicole, did you say you are having a test today?"
Nic " ya, Chinese writing test"
Me " Have you prepared? "

Nic " Err....no..because there is nothing to prepare. The teacher will give us a picture and we are to write some sentences to describe it. I dont know what the picture is going to be, and so, there is nothing to prepare "

I just had no rebuttal :(. I lost.

This is how N tackles exams and tests......though I may not necessarily agree with the approach. Apart from careless mistakes, it has "proven to be an effective way" for her. Phew! I really pray hard that she would put in more "minutes" (not hoping for hours) as she progresses.

I have not seen her "study" for any tests or exams in the past 10 months. She claims that she does it in the mornig when I am at work. Rose confirms it but she says it is only for 5 minutes or so.

Outing

We had an almost perfect outing if not for the not so pleasant parking experience in the mall! Picked the kids up and off we went for lunch. As expected, the parking area was very congested as it was lunch time. I circled up to the 5th floor and finally found a lot. Well, I knew I would have a problem reversing it in at the 1st attempt as the car was not positioned at the optimum turning point. I tried again....and still I was out by 2 to 3 inches. Then the driver in the car behind wasnt at all helpful or forgiving. He gave me a horn and I got really agitated. I just drove off!

Then I found another one, right next to the exit. Again, the traffic was heavy and I just gave up until I saw a perfect lot for a nice straight head in! haha.

The kids had a good lunch, followed by some shopping and we headed for bowling thereafter.

The evening concluded with a nice swim in the pool before it started to pour. Poor Ethan only got to soak for 1 minute before he was greeted with a heavy downpour, as he joined in much later. Overall, the girls had a good time together, despite a minor bruise on N's knee when she tried to balance on the waveboard.

I promised myself I would do better at parking next time! I know I can, with more practice!

We are looking forward to another gathering! This time, we are going to bake with the kids and bring the bakes to a park for a picnic. How lovely!

BBQ Pork/ Char Siew Recipe

500g of pork (pork belly or marbled)

Seasonings:
2 tablespoon of oyster sauce
2 tablespoon of light soy sauce
1/4 cup sugar (to adjust to your liking)
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine
1/2 teaspoon 5 spice powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey
dash of pepper

1. Wash and dry pork
2. Marinate with seasoning for at least 3 hours or longer.
3. Transfer pork and seasonings into an aluminium foil and wrap it up loosely.
4. Bake at pre heated oven at 220C until the pork is beautifully caramelised.
5, In between, turn the pork to ensure even coating of the seasoning.

6. Enjoy the juicy char siew!

Movie outing

Since N doesnt have to attend school for 4 days next week, I decided to take some time off to keep her company. I made plans with a friend of mine whose child is in the same ballet class as N. We are going to head for a movie, followed by an early dinner.

Instead of driving, we plan to take the bus! Nic is all excited about the bus ride. She has been pestering me for one for the longest time!

I am so looking forward to our outing!

Soft potato buns

Super dee soft potato buns with various fillings - choc chip, rasins, cheese and cranberries. The kids simply adored them :) Each brought 2 pieces to school. Nic ate her share while waiting for her school bus!

Homemade hamburger meal

100% homemade hamburger meal, starting from the buns to the chicken patty to the oven-baked french fries, which was otherwise highly discouraged in this household.

It was the kids' best dinner, so they claimed!

Share or not to share

E can be such a cutie. He came home with 2 "piggies" and couldnt wait to share them with Nicole. As soon as N appeared at the doorway, he went running towards her.

E " Che che, I have 2 piggies from school. I share 1 with you. Here you go, you like the pink piggy right?"
N " ok, thanks"

However, within split seconds, he changed his mind.

E " Mummy, can you tell che che to give me back the piggy? "

I was like...errr.....you offered to give it to her and now, you want it back?

Thank God, he changed his mind again and they ate their piggies together happily ever after..... :)

Hopscotch

It was almost 11pm and the 2 were still chatting away, while I was half way through my dreamland. I could still hear half the conversation.

E " Che che, do you want to play hopscotch in the bedroom? "
N " How? it is so dark"
E " Just hop on the bed and we can bounce"
N " No, mummy is here and she will scold us"
E" We dont tell mummy, we do it quietly"
N " Hello! She is just right next to you"
E" Mummy, can we play hopscotch please ?"

(I didnt answer)

N " Mummy is asleep already, I think"
E " alright. Let's sleep too"

Within minutes, there was complete silence! Both batteries went completely flat after such a long day!

Kiddo dialogue is just so pure and full of life!

"D" again

When it comes to achievements, Nic has bagged many.

She really surprised me with her piano results. As I have mentioned many times, N simply dislikes repetitive work. She drags her feet to the piano 3 times a week for just 15min each (the least I impose on her when her teacher encourages a daily practice of 30min each for her grade).

We went to the counter to retrieve her results and when I saw it, I was literally speechless.

Then, I asked N to read for herself.

Me " Nicole, can you see your name and grade?"
N " Yes "
Me " Do you think you did well?"
N " I dont know"
Me" What did you score?"

N " D....did I pass?" (This little girl assumed that A was the best grade and obviously D was something quite bad)
Me" So, D is for Donkey?" ( I was pulling her legs. Nic kept very quiet)
Me " No sweetie, You did very well! You passed with flying colours! You scored a Distinction again! Good job!"

N " Really? I got a distinction? hahaha... you tricked me! " (still in disbelief)

There she went hummning about and jumping with joy! The first person she wanted to share the good news with was her grandma! Then, she remembered our promises to her. She would assume L 's ipad and I would get her a pair of roller blades! She definitely deserved them all!

Well, I will have to speak with her teacher to assess if she would be ready to take on the next challenge next year - Grade 5 that is! Regardless, I think N has done a fabulous job, as always and we are thankful for the blessing!

J's birthday

It was a belated birthday celebration for Jeremy! I baked a chocolate cheesecake for him :) We had a mini celebration at his home with his cousins, including 3 who came to visit from HK. The three little ones really looked up upon him and adored him. They insisted that he should feed them and bring them to the loo. J was so proud to assume the additional responsiblities of taking care of his little cousins.

Re-election

N was truly over the moon. She couldnt wait to broadcast the good news. As soon as she got off the school bus, she ran straight to the bathroom. She needed to do her big business and she just couldnt wait. She "summoned" me to the bathroom while I was busy getting her dinner ready.

N " Mummy! Come! I have something to tell you"
Me " Yes, 5 minutes, after your shower. I am getting your dinner"
N " No, Now...I must tell you now!"

Me " Ok. ..what is it then?"
N " I was re-elected as the class monitor for term 4 and I am shortlisted as 1 of the 6 pupils to be nominated as a P2 student leader next year!"

Me" Wow! Congratulations! You must have done a wonderful job in term 1"

N " Ya, initially Mrs V said to keep me as the class monitor for 1 year but she changed her mind. She said she should give other pupils a chance, but now she changed her mind again because she said I am better. The other children are not carrying out her instructions well and she ends up getting me to do the job anyway. So, I am the monitor again"

I was like....wow!...there are so many little steps to becoming a P1 class monitor...

Good job Cutie!