Plan B

Warning: Rant and quite a long-winded post.

Those who know me should already know that I would be sending Kenzie to stay with my parents starting next year and we can only bring him back to stay with us during the weekends, and then, back to my parent's place again on Sunday evenings. 

And those who read my blog regularly would already know the reason is because Kenzie will be attending his kindergarden. I have to depend on my mum (who stays in Cheras) to takecare of him and send him to the kindergarden nearby my mum's (and not send Kenzie to the kindergarden nearby my house) because we have to leave the house early in the morning and cannot make it to send him every morning.

Because of this, I am having sleepless nights. Not to mention how many times I cried too.

I am actually very reluctant to let go of my boy and only see him during the weekends. I am ready to make sacrifices, which include resigning from my job (and find something nearer to home) so that I can still fetch Kenzie around and not be separated from me.

God then showed a way.

Plan B.

Previously, I did not choose the kindergarden (let's just call it Kindy K) which is just nearby my house because of the morning timing. They operate from 8am onwards. School time would be from 8am-12pm. Daycare starts from 12pm-7pm. But the problem is, the hubs and I need to leave the house by 6.45am every morning because of the distance+location+traffic problem. Nobody was willing to take in my kid and open the door for us at 7am. The earliest they offer is 7.30am. I checked. I called. I asked.

But the day before yesterday, I didn't know why, I called the principle of Kindy K again (I first called her about half a year ago, but Kenzie was too young then to be enrolled). We chatted and I told her my problem.

She suggested to me. Why not:

1) "Transit" Kenzie at the current nursery at our usual time, meaning 6.45am (which is located just downstairs of our condo), and she will pick him up at 7.30am to bring to her kindy (meaning Kenzie waits at the nursery every morning for about 45 minutes). A small fee will be charged for this I am sure.

or

2) Send Kenzie to baby G's nanny (I send baby G down to the nanny's at 6.30am daily and then, go to work right away), let him stay there for about an hour, she will come to the nanny's house to pick him up at 7.30am and bring him to the kindergarden (in this case, I do not have to pay for Option # 1)

Long story cut short, we went to Kindy K to see the principle yesterday and we have decided to send Kenzie here because I didn't want to be separated from Kenzie. I am happy that God made a way for me when there seemed to be no way. 

Fees is still not cheap though, have a look. 

I don't like to reveal too much or personal stuffs in my blog, but look at what the grandma said last night. Grandma hung up on my call too. She made me feel like I am doing a very wrong thing and not good enough for my kid.

Short "Jail Break"

Finally I can post something on shopping and eating out. Ever since having baby G, I have been staying at home on most weekends and public holidays. With two kids around, it's hard to go shopping, let alone eating out. When we need to buy groceries and house stuffs, one will stay at home and take care of the kids, while the other goes out (and shops in peace). In my case, I'm the one staying in.

Anyway, one fine weekend, my mum offered to (try) and takecare of the two kids and asked us to go dating. 

Went to Ikea, bought a sofa cover, bathroom mat, baby chair tray, some Swedish meatballs, chocolates and some house goodies at Ikea, but forgot to take any pictures because the hubs took the loot back to the car before we crossed over to Ikano for lunch. 

Anyway, here's my little loot from Daiso, Ikano ~ a cute flower mug, kitchen sponge, dust cleaner for clothes and two washing nets (I could have bought more, because once I enter Daiso, there's no coming out, I would be trapped inside for hours).

Then, lunch in Bubba Gump restaurant. 

We ordered a plate of clam chowder soup & Cajun chicken strips with Bleu cheese dipping for appetizer.

Hubs had the Cajun grilled chicken, and I had the burger with onion rings and mash (instead of fries).

Overall, it was a fruitful outing. Managed to buy things for the house, had a good short date and a nice lunch. Think I should do this more often and take more advantage of my parents.

The 3 Botaks

The 3 botaks having dinner at Craving's @ Tesco Cheras because the hubs wants to try their popular "sang har mein". The last time we went, we saw almost every table with this, so we make it a point to try this time.

Kids eat free here, yay! Yeah, call me Aunty Kiasu, but I always look out for kids-eat-free restaurants when we dine out, heh. So it's always an advantage of bringing Baby G out too, so that we get 2 free kiddie's meal (but accompanied with 2 adult's meal la). 

Free kiddie's meals: Craving's fried rice and fish and chips (picture of the fish and chips not taken due to the kelam-kabut-ness on the dining table when all the food come together). Each kiddie meal is accompanied by 1 vitagen.

I ordered the famous crispy chicken chop burger (with mash instead of fries), and the hubs had "sang har mein".

*Oops, forgive me. I dress Kenzie boy in pink again. Well, at least Baby G is wearing a pastel violet romper, haha.

So, back to the post's title. Hubby went for his hair cut last week and he looked like a monk / military soldier when he came home. I was surprised to see his almost-bald head. Need some time to get used to his new look, haha. 

After he came back, he immediately took Kenzie boy out to the same shop to have his hair cut pulak. So both of them have the same hair style now. Baby G is still hairless now at 7 months. Ok, he has some strands of hair, but overall, we can still see his scalp, so, he is considered still botak. 

I so need to post this in my blog, coz I think all 3 of them look cute. Ok, not 3, but just 2, haha. Kenzie boy and Baby G look really cute and adorable, don't you think? Ok ok, I know, Baby G is wearing a pink romper again.

From Hero To Zero

I suddenly thought of someone, so I decided to write about him.

Someone's wife took control of his money starting this month. He will only have RM500/- a month, for 20 working days or; RM25/- per day. 

I asked him:

Me: So which option did you choose? RM500/- a month or you have to ask for RM25/- everyday?

Him: Up to me

Me: Cheh, still want to talk like you are so powerful like that. What about weekends?

Him: Weekends can claim how much I use, if I go out with friends

I don't know what's the reason, and I don't want to ask the reason behind this money-control thingy. He asked me not to tell others as he didn't want to let anyone know about this. 

If you are a guy, would you let your wife control you like that? And, if you are a lady, would you control your hubs this way? 

And let me warn you, if you do this to keep your hubby from straying or flirting, please, let me ASSURE you he will still have his own way of doing it even if you control his everything, even his life! If he likes that girl, that young sweet thing, then there's always a way - nomatter how you control him. 

*If there's a will, there's a way*  

He frankly told me he feels like a bird without wings now. But I prefer to call it ~ From Hero To Zero.

I'm Not A Health Maniac

I made a not-so-healthy dinner for Kenzie boy and I kinda felt guilty about it because I just dumped in whatever I could find from the fridge. But the thing is, he finished the entire bowl of noodles. 

This not-so-healthy bowl of noodles consist of: Half yee-mein, 1 mini chicken sausage, 1 meatball (from Ikea), leftover chicken soup which was in the fridge for 2 days and 1 egg.

I have a confession to make and I hope I'm not offending any mummies out there. I'm not a health freak tiger mummy who insist to always have (very) healthy and organic food for kids. And I'm not one of those who serve millet and red rice for toddlers. When it comes to food, they eat what I eat.

I have seen parents cooking organic rice, organic meat, organic fruits and organic vege for their toddlers, and even buy organic baby clothes, duh. Then, they go eat fried lekor!!?? Wtf?

So if I don't use organic stuffs, means I'm not a good mummy izzit?

Visit any forum or toddler groups, and you can observe, there's this trend going on with the (organic) millet, quinoa, red rice, brown rice thingy to serve to toddlers. If I serve baby G with white rice porridge, does that make me a not-so-good mummy as well?

Say what you want. I serve my toddler with nasi lemak, chips, Twisties, cakes, kuih, KFC, nuggets, sausages, Coke, "tong sui", tau-foo-fa, luncheon meat, ice cream and other non-organic stuffs. So?

Balls

No, not testicles you hamsap! I know what you are thinking.

I invented some creative meat-balls made from: minced meat, mashed potatoes and apples. 

Mix everything together and marinate with soy sauce, pepper, Lea & Perrin's and McCormick's all-spice powder. Shape into balls and bake at 180 degrees for about 45 minutes. Dab a blob of butter on every ball before baking.

Good for kids who doesn't take fruits or vege. Of course you can add in more stuffs, like brocolli / chopped carrots / onions / cheese, it's all up to you. Can trick the kids to eat whatever they are not eating.

Be More Aware

Baby G is 7 months old now. Look at how time flies. I remembered not long ago, I just gave birth and breastfed him. He doesn't take the breasts now and I missed the feeling of him suckling my breasts.

I remembered after about a week giving birth and breastfeeding, lumpy milk ducts formed on both my armpits. Yes, you read it right, on both my armpits. It felt like "soft marbles" and it could "move around" when I squeezed on it. When I squeezed them, hell, it was painful but I wanted to know what was inside, so I squeezed harder. White-yellowish milky liquid oozed out. I believe it was breast milk, no? The lumps stayed in my armpits for more than a month. After confinement, they miraculously dissapeared. Did I think about that big C word? Yes I did, for a moment.

A friend of my sister's is only 30, mother of 2, breastfeeds, has no family history of cancer, yet, she was tested positive for breast cancer at 3rd stage recently after a "milk lump" didn't go away after a few days. 

So be more aware of your breasts. Wearing a pink ribbon is just not enough. 

If you know of any warriors or survivors, somebody wanted me to create awareness and spread the word that AXA AFFIN, in collaboration with National Cancer Society Malaysia (NCSM), are supporting cancer patients currently undergoing treatment under their program. For every blog posted by one blogger, AXA AFFIN will fund the NCSM daycare usage to one cancer patient going through recovery for one day.

If you are interested to blog about this and want to know more about how this blogger campaign works, you may contact her.

Disclaimer: This is not a paid post and I am not in any way related or working for AXA, but I am just sharing what I think every women should be aware. It could happen to you, whether you are 13 or 31, and whether you have family history of cancer or not. 

Would You?

When Kenzie boy was still a baby, I told myself that I would not do these, not until he reached 1 year old:

1) No TV 

2) No Tab or Ipad (for games, etc)

3) No YouTube

But, I broke all my own rules when he was just as young as 1 month old!

1) I let him watch the TV when I needed to do house chores

I strapped him on the bouncer, on the DVD, and he would quietly watch until I finished my house chores. Each time I let him watch the TV, I felt guilty, but I needed to do my chores and have some me-time too. How?

2) I gave him the Tab when we went out for dinners or eating out in restaurants. 

That way, we could eat in peace for at least half an hour or more. Before we decided to bring the Tab out, he would not sit still when we were eating. The hubs needed to carry him and walk around, while I hurriedly ate. When I was done, I would carry him around and the hubs would eat. We hated attending wedding dinners because we really could not enjoy the dinner with a toddler around. Not to mention the long hours, from 7pm-11pm and the couple only marched-in around 8.30pm. The toddler would get pretty restless by then. 

The Tab solved everything.

3) Kenzie boy started watching YouTube as early as a few months old because he saw us watching the YouTube. So he was curious and wanted to know what was it, and not long after that, he could swipe and select his own programs from the Tab. Now, Kenzie boy types on his own what he wants to watch.

Example: He types "Wheels On The Bus", and all things related to the song will appear. 

He even knows the developers such as "Muffin Song" or "Hooplakidz", so when he types those words, all nursery rhymes and programs developed by Hooplakidz will appear.

Not bragging, but just for my own record:

1) He knows his (complete) phonics by 10 months

2) He knows his numbers by 14 months

3) He knows how to recite A-Z by 15 or 16 months

4) He knows how to write (on the doodle) A-Z and 1-10 by 24 months

5) He can now type, spell and read! Write anything on the doodle, he can read it out. Even "Maggi mee kari" or "Selamat Hari Raya". I tried letting him read Peter & Jane 3A, and he reads like they are peanuts.

And from where and how did he know everything? 

Yes, YouTube.

So, would you, like me too, let your kids play with the Tab and watch YouTube?

I know it's not good to let them start young on this kinda gadgets, but: 

Would you, like me too, give in, when you wanted to do house chores or rest or need a break or have some me-time?

Would you turn to the gadgets for help when you want to have a peaceful dinner or when you are eating out?

Would you let them learn from the YouTube so that they could learn more? Or would you, like me (initially), insist that you can teach them yourself, read stories to them and teach them ABC's and 123's every night after coming back from work.

Sorry for my long-winded-ness. but here are my two boys, age 2.5 years and 6 months, watching the YouTube yesterday. I was down with flu, the hubs was not around, I felt giddy, but I still needed to do house chores, wash clothes and hang clothes and mop and vacumn and cook. How? 

Would you have done this if you were me? 

Dinner

The Way To A Man's Heart Is Through His Stomach

Haha, actually it's just another cooking post. But just to add some freshness on the introduction, chewahhh...

Feel like posting something "relaxing" and no need to use brains to think what and how to write kinda thingy. 

Braised chicken and mushroom with sesame oil & ginger (mayau keong tungku gai)

Stir-fried "pear" melon with "har mai" (dried shrimps), fried fuzhuk and fish paste
*The melon looks like a pear, and it's not "see kua" or "jit kua" or "seng kua",
so I also don't know what "kua" is this*

Minced pork steamed egg

"Harm choy" ABC soup