What Is In This Little Mind…

Recently I notice when WH is playing with his toy cars, he likes to line them up in a straight line. He will do it in a particular order, each time there will be a different order. He would patiently redo everything is any of the car is out of the line. He can occupy himself with these cars for a good 1/2 hour all by himself. I wonder what is in his little mind….

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We were having problem buying him a new pair of shoe which he has outgrown the old pair. Not because we could not find the right size, but he just refuse to put on /try on any new pair of shoe. Wanted to get him a new pair when we were in S’pore, but he threw up a big fuss while we were at the departmental store. I wonder what is going on in his little mind… I have not seen any kids so loyal to a pair of shoe.

We finally got him a pair from Sunway without letting him to try on. After that half force and half distracting him, we put on the new pair for him. After that he stick on to that new pair of shoe and didn’t want anything else. Again, what is going on in his little mind….

Recently I digged out a few pair of JS’s old unisex shoes which is just the right size for WH now. Wanted him to alternate wearing the new and old shoe, but he refused and kick up a big fuss again. I wonder what is going on in his mind…. why so loyal to a pair of shoe????

Kid’s Favourite Dish

Just a record of my kids favourite dish since they are sick of porriadge already. Wanted to keep track, because they are not really keen on rice with dishes and i have to crack my head each day to think of what’s good for them and what’s their preference. (Yee…not easy to be cook of the house, what the adult likes doesn’t mean that it’s suitable for them or up to their preference…)

JS was a very fussy eater, I used to be very stress and tense when comes to her meal time, (always worry if she’s having enough …etc etc) a lot of shouting and yelling at her, but I’ve noticed some very promising improvement lately. Though there’s still certain food she’s still quite picky like vege, generally she’s much better. It’s WH turn now as he’s approaching 2, and most time he refuses to open his mouth wide though he’s mush more experimental with food compare with JS. It takes a very long time to feed him now. But after the first experience, I’m less stress with WH, I know it’s just a phase that he will eventually grows out and as long as he’s snacking on healhty snack in between, it should be alright. Going places and eating out become a much delighted affair without having to worry about the kids meal. (used to be very fussy and insistent that I only want my kids to have home cooked meal without aji and salt)

Here’s what they like

• Annable Chicken Sausage snails
• Flavour chicken rice
• Hawker Stall’s Hainan chicken rice
• Kid’s pasta
• baked macaroni cheese
• baked penne pasta
• baked rice
• French fries
• simple fried noodle
• mashed potatoes
• Tau Yew Bak
• Chicken stew
• Fish dish (preferably cod, salmon, threadfin and bawal)
• Home made fish and chips

They prefer pasta, noodles than rice…..

I know some of the dishes I can cook more and freeze it for the next time, but I really don’t like the idea of my kids having overnight food, I want them to have freshly cook food each day and this is hard work to come up with different varieties they like daily, twice a day sometimes…. 

What do you cook for your pre-schooler and toddler daily (lunch + dinner)? What’s is simple and fast to make with easy obtain ingredients and still pack with all the nutrients?

No Longer Bob, But…

WH is just so cute. After a few days of being “Bob” , he has finally decided he wanted to be something else…

Now he calles himself “KorKor” (big brother) He decided to switch suddenly and he has been going around telling everyone to call him ‘korkor’ and wanted everyone to acknowlegde him as ‘korkor’

How he’s decided that, I’m not too sure…. I just mentioned to him “you must finish your milk then only you can be tall and strong and play ball and cycle with all the abang outside” after a few sip of milk, he proudly call himself ‘korkor’….

JS asked “yee..how come no more bob the builder?”

WH: “korkor, korkor”

and they can go on fighting with each other

JS: “Bob”

WH: “no, korkor”

JS: “Bob”

WH “korkor, korkor”

They can go on and on until WH gets irritated and raise his voice and insist on his own views. They always fight in this way and JS always likes to tease her brother and makes her brother cries.

Simple Fried Noodle For Kids

Another “lazy man” dish for the kids

• Birthday noodle
• Chicken fillet (alternative can use thinly sliced sausage)
• Frozen mixed vege (alternative can cube carrots and celery or any other vege)

1. Cook the noodle in boiling water until soft
2. Drain. heat oil and fry chicken and vege, add noddle, add oyster sauce

Voila…done.

Hub’s Not Well

Hubby wasn’t feeling well yesterday after he got back from work. He was having a really bad migrain. I blamed it to the interrupted rest by being stirred from an inconsiderate phone call at the wee hours.

Each time he’s not really feeling well he tends to get worried but after a while and most of the time he takes his health for granted. Though he doesn’t smoke nor drink but hub has a very unheahtly lifestyle. He doesn’t exercise and the way he pigged out is really alarming and in the eyes of a  health freak, it’s unapproval on the way he eats and he spent almost 10 hours a day in the office. But he just doesn’t seem to care. He’s not those very strong healthy kind of person, he falls sick easily ( I guess it’s due to MIL’s different school of thoughts that he hasn’t been given balance nutritiounious food when he was young)

He has piled up a lot of weight over the years, the chin has gone and with a big bulgy tummy at his young age. He complaints of occational chest pain, the migrain and the daily lethargic but he’s not doing anything to it.

I try to hint but I don’t want to be seen forever nagging and I don’t want to be seen as ever controlling him. I don’t know what to do to change his lifestyle. I don’t know what I can do to help or at least motivates him. It’s his life and I have no control over it. There’s no point talking, because at the end it will end up in arguments and he always has his reasons. He just don’t see my point of view.  

Sometimes I blame myself, because I can’t help cooking his favourite unheahtly food to sastify his tastebud. I want to cook something more healthy, but I dont want to end up seeing unhappy face at the dining table and the ordering of supper later on. I want to please him and pamper him and maybe I’m doing him more harm than good. I’ve been put in such a difficult position and I don’t know what to do. Even my parents and my relatives (yeah..my family are all health freaks) have been hinting to me that he should watch out his diet, but I know he would never take it seriously from me. Hub’s family has a very different school of thoughts. They think that being able to eat is having good life (吃得是福), my in-laws over indulged hub with food from breakfast to lunch to tea to dinner and supper, from snack to dessert there’s always ample food for him to munch. They just pampered their son/bro with food. He has this habit of munching eventhough he’s already full and he always tends to overstuffed himself. They have forgotten about doing things in ‘moderation’. Hub is not getting younger and I suppose one metabolism rate slows down when they aged, hence having a full stomach and go to bed will put a lot of strain on the body and will tend to overwork the organs. But my hub doesn’t believe this.

He doesn’t bothered to find out about his family medical history. I only know that FIL has got high blood pressure and is on daily medication and all FIL’s brothers died young. So I’m actually contanstly worrying about the silent killer (heart attack, stroke).

I’m constantly and secretly worried and I’m praying daily for him to have good health forever. I try not to think of the negative side, but I cant help to feel worry. The kids are still young. We need him badly and I can’t imagine of the unthinkable consequences of him not taking care of his health. I try hard not to think about it, but denying it doesn’t mean it will never happen….

I feel heartbreak each time he’s not feeling well. I feel helpless that I cannot help him in the least mean of prevention and taking care of his health. I feel frustrated that he doesn’t see my fears and worries.

Why not take care of oneself now and avoid suffering later. When one is sick, not only he himself suffers but all the loves one around suffers together as well.

Sometimes I feel like wanting to scream at him “If not for your own sake, please take care of yourself for the kid’s sake”

More On JS

Whenever I put on a stern face in front of her, this is what she would say…

“Mummy, smile at me la” 

Whenever I’m firm with her with a strict tone, this is what she would say..

“Why you talk like that. Not nice. Talk properly”

She’s expecting to be forever talking to her in a nice sweet tone and with a smiley face.

She’s always seeking my attention

“Mummy, what do to now huh?”,

“Mummy, what shall we do?”

“Mummy, come play with me, I got no friend, you are my friend”

“Mummy, you never play with me. So boring la”

She still gets very jealous when I spent slightly more time with WH. WH and me can get very rough and physical during our play, mainly because he’s very light and I still able to hold him up and swing him…. Whatever I do to WH, she’s expecting the same, same kiss, same hug, same talk, same cuddle.

JS would go “Mummy, do the same to me la” “mummy, you never do that to me also” “Mummy, so long you never do ….”

Whenever I sing to both of them, but having more eye contacts on baby, JS would protest

“Mummy, you never sing for me also”

JS’s also very cunning. Whenever she wants something be it watching TV or eating her favourite snack, she would go

“Mummy, didi wants to watch TV/wants jellybean”

“Mummy, elmo (or whatever softtoys she has) wants to eat Mentos”

I’m Bob…

WH used to call himself baby. He would pat his chest and say ” baby, baby”… but over the weekend he changed…

He call himself BOB (watch too much of Bob The Builder). Each time he heard us mentioned the word baby, didi or WH, he would quickly correct us with “BOB”, even when we call him names other than Bob, he would quickly pat his chest and say “BOB” , “BOB, BOB”

Baked Penne Pasta

Ingredients

• 2 tbsps oil
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• cherry tomatoes, halfed
• tomato pasta sauce (frm supermarket)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2 tbsps tomato paste
• 1 tsp italian mixed herbs
• beef/chicken sausage, fried and cut into pieces
• penne pasta. Cooked and drained.
• fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1 cup grated cheese

1) Heat oil in pan, saute onion and garlic. Stir in pasta sauce, water, tomato paste, mixed herbs, tomato and mushroom.

2) Simmer uncovered till suce thickens slightly

3) Perheat oven at 190C. Combine tomato paste mixture with sausages and pasta. Spoon into a heat-proof dish. Sprinkle with cheese.

4) Bake for 20 mins or until top slightly browned.

 (this is the left over. Too hungry to gulp down the freshly bake version b4 taking picture)

My Garden

We have a very spacious compound but with no landscaping. Just patches of green and yellow soil. It really looks very ugly. When we first shifted in, we wanted to turf the lawn, but the owner not willing to share the cost, (and boy it’s not cheap) so we gave up because we won’t be staying here for long and it’s not our own place.

And I know nothing about gardening….but thanks to my ever “rajin” maid, she took up her own initiative to do turn part of the compound into a garden. She would collect whatever seeds or beans, dry it and sow…

Now we have chillies, pandan, lemongrass, basil, pumpkin, kaffir lime in our garden…there are more that she has planted ..sunflower, papaya, legumes  (which haven’t really grown) Should get her to try planting vege…so can have homegrown vege to eat .. 😀

Now at least our compound dont look that ugly….

Baked Macaroni Cheese

Ingredients

• macaroni
• butter
• plain flour
• milk
• grated cheddar cheese
• chopped fresh chives
• salt & pepper to taste

Method

1) cook pasta in pan of boiling water. Drain

2) preheat oven at 240C,. Meanwhile melt butter in a pan, add flour, cook, stirring until mixture bubbles and thickens, gradually stir in milk. Cook, stirring until sauce boils and thickens

3) Stir cooked pasta and half the cheese and chives in sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Pour into a shallow ovenproof dish. Sprinkle remaining cheese and baked until cheese browned.