Balancing Act

"Where there is a will, there is a way." - proverb

I received these pretty amazing photos of human determination through email the other day and I thought I would share them here...

















I couldn't find these images on the internet, so I am not able to give credit to the photographers for these photos.

Where Is The Love?

pic from cuteredboi78

What is the world coming to? Yesterday I read in the newspapers of thieves stealing a donated van from a home for underprivileged children in Petaling Jaya. Nowadays robbers not only target the rich, but the poor as well. And I ask myself, “Isn’t there any goodness in a person’s heart anymore?”

The moment we set eyes on the newspapers, the headlines scream at us: Murder! Suicide! Robbery! Assault! War! Price Increase! Really depressing, don’t you think? News about kindness and generosity somehow just doesn’t generate much interest. Students are encouraged to improve their command of language by reading newspapers, but with all these kinds of news I’m not so sure it’s a good idea after all. If you want to give your children nightmares, no need for them to watch horror movies…just get them to watch the news on TV!

Today as I was driving I witnessed a scene that restored in me a little faith in humankind. A middle-aged Chinese man was riding his motorbike coming from the opposite direction when he went over a road bump and lost his balance. He wobbled for an instant, then both he and the bike crashed to the ground. It’s a good thing he was wearing his safety helmet. Before I could do anything, an Indian man just stopped his car in the middle of the road and rushed over to help. I suppose he figured that a person’s wellbeing is more important than a little inconvenience to the long queue of cars behind him. Seeing that the Chinese man was a little shaken but not injured, I drove off with a good feeling in my heart. Kindness and mercy do exist after all, not bound by prejudice. This is what I try to teach my children – that people are the same inside no matter what they look like on the outside; that it is good to have friends of all races….MUHIBBAH….I like that word.

Wash + Car = Thunderstorm

pic from timothy_gumbaris

There is this strange phenomenon…I don’t know why it happens, but every time my husband sends his car for a wash it will start to rain not long afterwards. It could be a hot, sunny day and the moment the car comes out of the carwash all sparkling clean…dark clouds will appear!

So I try not to hang anything out to dry in the sun on the days that he gets his car washed. It even happens when he washes the car himself! Thank God it doesn’t happen when I send the car to the carwash (I never wash the car myself, I only drive it!)…maybe just once in a long while.

If anyone needs some rain, let me know...I will get hubby to send his car to the car wash!

Homemade 3D Glasses (links)

I notice a lot of people dropping by to view my homemade 3D glasses, so I thought I would just put a few links here for those who would want to make their own 3D glasses:


http://www.tv3.co.nz/Portals/0/Admin/showimages/Medium/TVT7904%20Medium%203D%20glasses.pdf

http://terraweb.wr.usgs.gov/kids/glasses.html

http://www.daleh.id.au/3d_glasses.html

I hope these are helpful...have fun!

Playing Drums

My son had always wanted to play the drums, and after taking lessons for about a year my husband finally bought him his own drum kit. I was looking at videos on the internet the other day to watch how people play drums (and trying to pick up a tip or two...well, moms can learn to play the drums too!) when I stumbled upon this hilarious video on YouTube: Rowan Atkinson doing what he does best...a comedy routine...



from DarkBlood614

Sunbirds in Our Garden Part2

A few weeks ago a pair of sunbirds flew into our garden, inspecting the empty nest that was left behind by another pair of sunbirds and their offspring. Naturally, I was very excited. Last week the female sunbird decided to 'move in' and I was quite sure that there are eggs in the nest. My husband decided to set up our videocam to capture the sunbird's movements and we were so pleased to have captured this on camera:

Am looking forward to seeing little baby birds soon...

Keep Them Green

Whenever leafy green vegetables are blanched, I notice that they turn an unappetizing yellow. I even tried adding green food colouring! (but it did not work) I always wondered how the restaurants keep their vegetables so green and appetizing after cooking and I stumbled upon this little trick by trial and error…all I need to do is add a tablespoon of cooking oil to the water when I blanch the vegetables…that’s all!



For added flavour, I also add a ½ teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of sugar to the water.





There...beautiful green blanched vegetables!

Son & Daughter

My daughter, Miss PreTeen, is tired of people always commenting that she looks like her brother. She says that even though they may look rather similar, she is the total opposite of Mr CoolTeen. I know that siblings usually differ in personality and taste, so I decided to do a comparison.

Mr CoolTeen's favourites:








Hair gel is very important!






Miss PreTeen's favourites:















Hmm...do you see a theme here???

I guess Miss PreTeen is right, they are 2 very different people indeed!

Miss PreTeen's Banana Sundae

My daughter Miss PreTeen loves ice cream and since it is rather expensive to go to the restaurant for ice cream all the time, she has decided to make her own sundae, complete with whipped cream and all.





1) Cut up a banana




2) Add 2 scoops of ice cream



3) Add some whipped cream




4) Add some colourful sprinkles and...

VOILA!

'Cause Today I Am Online

I found this amusing poem at Heart 'n Souls, a website with a collection of heartwarming stories and poems.

All moms need a break now and then, and this is how I feel sometimes...


pic from Alie004

'Cause Today I Am Online
Author: Mom2mean@service.emailfactory.com

I don't wanna do the dishes
I don't wanna do the wash
I sprinkled the clothes a week ago
And now my iron is lost!

I don't wanna rattle pots
I don't wanna rattle pansI
I see the mail light flashin'
I wanna chat with friends!

Oh the tables need some dustin'
and the floor could sure be mopped
But I know if I get started
There'll be no place to stop

The closets are so full
things are falling off the shelves
I wish for cleaning fairies
and magic little elves.

They could sprinkle fairy dust
and twitch their little nose
The windows would be sparkling
I would have no dirty clothes

Oh I know that I'm just dreamin'
My head is in the sky
I must cook that meat that's greying
and bake that apple pie

The Hubby needs a bath
Doggy needs attention
Oh.. the other way around I mean
My brain is in supension

I am runnin' round in circles
I am gettin' nothin' done,
I keep thinking of my web
I am missing all the fun!!!

Well I know I'm not addicted
though I hear that all the time
But I guess this stuff can wait on me
'CAUSE TODAY I'LL BE ONLINE!!!

Nightmare Piano Lesson

When my daughter was learning the song 'Fur Elise' on the piano, she wanted to watch someone playing this song, and found this funny video on Youtube. Now she can even play the song in 'chopping motion'!


from HirnW

She is also learning to play 'The Entertainer' and she's grateful her piano teacher is not at all like the one in the video!

Names...don't laugh!

A man interviews some people for a job. A very beautiful woman enters first and the boss asks her:
“What’s your name?”
“Lily,” says the woman.
“Why Lily?” asks the boss.
“Because when I was born, a lily fell on me from the sky.”

Then enters a second woman, more beautiful than the first.....
“What’s your name?” asks the boss.
“Rose,” says the woman.
“Why Rose?” asks the boss.
“Because when I was born, a rose fell on me from the sky.”

Then enters the third man, hideously ugly......
“What’s your name?” asks the boss.
“Piano,” says the man.
pic by Xae-Xae

Sometimes I wonder if parents really give careful thought when naming their children. I have come across Chinese names that would make the poor child a laughing stock in school. Chinese names, when pronounced in Mandarin or other Chinese dialect would sound lovely, but when pronounced by a non Chinese-speaking person, would just make everyone burst out in laughter.

Ker Sing (as in 'cursing')
See Fatt (Cantonese for ‘buttocks’ )
Swee Ting (such a ‘sweet thing’)
Shit Yee (you get the idea…)

Also very popular are names of fruits:

Apple
Orange
Strawberry
Hmm…I wonder if anyone is named Durian?

I have some friends with rather unusual English names:

Janex
Clyster
Aclyn

Also worth mentioning are combinations of English name and Chinese surname which become rather amusing:

Ada Looi = have money (‘ada’ in Bahasa Malaysia = ‘have’ ; ‘looi’ in Cantonese = ‘money’)
Michael Tan = sell eggs (sounds like ‘mai kai tan’ in Cantonese)
Summer Tan – well, this speaks for itself

I have met a little boy who used to introduce himself like this:
“Hi, I’m Michael, and meet my brother, Jackson.” And they could even dance!
There was also another tough looking pre-schooler I met named Rambo…it’s a name which would either bring fame or ridicule to the little fella!

I used to dislike my given Chinese name (pronounced 'ching' but my friends called me 'cacing' - Malay word for 'worm') until my mom told me its meaning…it actually means ‘clarity’ but my mom says it means ‘evergreen’ when paired with another Chinese character (everyone loves to stay young always, right?) Looking at the wrinkles appearing on my face now, I sure hope I live up to my name!

Homemade 3D Glasses

The Disney Channel on Astro was showing the Hannah Montana 3D concert sometime end of last month and it was advertised that we could redeem 3D glasses from MPH bookstores in Kuala Lumpur. But these glasses were so popular that by the time I took my daughter to MPH, they were out of stock. So we decided to make our own 3D glasses instead.


Materials needed:

Cardboard
blue cellphane sheet
red cellophane sheet
staples

At first we got the colours wrong way round (blue for the left eye & red for the right eye) and discovered that it became X-RAY GLASSES...!




JUST KIDDING...

Anyway, this is how it turned out:

 

Miss PreTeen took this photo of herself wearing the 3D glasses

Maggi Mee with Cheese

This recipe is for all 'chicken flavour Maggi mee' fans, a blend of East and West…Asian instant noodles with cheesy sauce! Personally, I am a big fan of Maggi mee so I haven’t tried this recipe with any other brands of instant noodles.

Firstly, boil water in a sauce pan. Then add the Maggi noodles.


Add the soup seasoning plus a slice of Cheddar cheese. (sorry the pics aren't so clear, had to cook and take photos at the same time...almost melted my camera lens by putting the camera too near the pot!)


Then switch off the flame and stir until the cheese melts.
Pour into a bowl and garnish.


Enjoy!!!

Anything or Whatever?

When I was (very much) younger whenever my parents brought me to the coffeeshop, my dad would ask me:

Dad: What do you want to eat?

Me: Anything la (I was always a little undecided).

Dad: There’s no such food called ‘Anything’. You need to decide.

Well, Dad, although there isn’t food called ANYTHING, at least now there is a drink with that name. I saw the funny advertisement at 7 Eleven the other day, and they even have WHATEVER. So I decided to buy both of them because I am always game for something new and unusual.

See the advertisement here…go to the website and click MEDIA…very funny!

http://www.anything.com.my/

It's a Singaporean product. ‘Anything’ is a carbonated drink whereas ‘Whatever’ is non-carbonated…and you don’t know what flavour it is until you open the can and drink it…so beware!

I opened ‘Whatever’ first and it says on the can that it could be either of these flavours:
Ice lemon Tea
Apple Tea
Jasmine Green Tea
White Grape Tea
Peach Tea
Chrysanthemum Tea

I was hoping it wouldn’t be Peach tea (not my cup of tea…pun intended!) but guess what…it was!

Today I opened “Anything’ and it doesn’t say on the can what flavours are available, so it was SURPRISE! hmm…tasted strange…can’t quite figure out the flavour. I did some research and these are the flavours available:
Cola
Cola with Lemon
Apple
Fizz Up
Cloudy Lemon
Root Beer.

I think I’ll just stick to familiar drinks; RM1.80 is a bit too hard on the wallet for a surprise flavour, and hopefully it's not made using NEWater (eww)!

School Craft

"I know how to do anything - I'm a Mom." ~Roseanne Barr

My daughter, Miss PreTeen, came home one day with a few pieces of wood and some nails in a plastic bag.

“It’s a class project and I need to assemble this, it’s supposed to be a letter holder,” she told me.

I looked at the rectangular pieces of wood in various lengths. It looked easy enough although there weren’t any instructions. I got my hammer from the toolbox and sat down on the floor, laying out all the pieces.

“Mom, are you sure you know how to do it?” Miss PreTeen asked, not confident of my carpentry skills.

“How about using super glue?” I asked. I didn’t have any confidence in nailing pieces of wood together either.

Daddy wasn't around to help so… BANG BANG BANG both mom and daughter hammered in the nails. When we finished it didn’t look too bad, except that perhaps the bottom piece was a bit off-center…oops!

“We need to paint it too,” Miss PreTeen said.

I took out a can of leftover blue wood paint from our store room and Miss PreTeen started painting the letter holder. The paint didn’t stick very well to the wood, so I suppose either the wood was of poor quality or the paint was past its expiry date. The paint didn’t dry properly even until the day before Miss PreTeen was to hand up the letter holder for the teacher to see.

This called for a bit of creativity, so I fished out a little container of silver glitter from our craft box and just lavishly sprinkled glitter all over the painted letter holder to remove some of the stickiness…and it worked (phew!)

This was the end result:



Another craft project done recently - a dragonboat made out of egg shell carton and people made out of egg shells. We ate enough eggs to send our cholesterol level shooting up..!

Recycling...doing our bit

One thing you can't recycle is wasted time - unknown



With all the publicity about ‘going green’, I thought I would give recycling a try since it was the least I could do for the environment. I’m not much of a green thumb person, more of a ‘black thumb’ because even cactus shrivel and die under my care! Collecting household stuff that usually gets disposed of…now that shouldn’t be too difficult, right?

So at the moment I have 3 large garbage bags – one for plastics, one for metal and one for glass bottles. I probably need to buy 3 containers and place them in my kitchen permanently. I’m often amazed at how much plastic containers we use in a month…usually about 2 kg in weight. I found this recycling centre in Taman Cuepacs, Cheras…actually it’s just a little stall beside the road leading up to Cheras Awana. I find that they buy recyclable items at quite a good price, compared to Alam Flora (which has recycling centres at certain shopping complexes in KL and Selangor):

Plastic – RM 1.00 per kg
Paper - 35 sen per kg
Aluminium cans – 7 sen per can
Tin cans – 80 sen per kg

They also buy household appliances (even is it’s not in working condition) and all kinds of things we need to get rid of, except for things made of fabric, wood or glass. I send my glass bottles to the Alam Flora collection centre but they don’t pay a sen for it either.

Today I carted my 15 kg of old newspapers, a big bag of used plastic containers and some aluminium cans over to that place and got RM 7.90 for them. Well, it’s better than throwing them away. Even my children know that they mustn’t throw away the plastic containers after having their McD’s ice-cream or the aluminium cans after finishing their drinks. “My mom sells them,” they would tell our relatives and friends, making them feel guilty if they throw anything away!

My next mission…using my own cloth bags when I go shopping, instead of plastic bags…yup, we moms CAN make a difference for the sake of our children’s future.