Before the mil left for Ipoh last Sunday during the Hari Raya holidays, she cooked a huge pot of brinjal with minced meat.
The brinjals were from hubby’s central kitchen as he cleared his fridge. He usually clears the fridges at his kitchen when there’s a long break.
The portion of braised brinjal with minced meat was so big that I ate it for 4 consecutive meals! Sherilyn and Cass didn’t really like it as they commented that it was a tad greasy. Brinjals are like sponges, soaking up all the fat from the meat. Unless they’re steamed plain, when cooked with fatty meat or fried, brinjals can be really cloy.
As I just hate to throw out good food, I ate the same dish throughout the Hari Raya holidays. Waste not, want not!
To minimize the effect of the grease in the dish, I plucked a handful of sweet basil from our balcony garden and transformed the dish into an aromatic salad. Now it’s not so cloy anymore and I managed to salvage the dish from being binned!
My dinner for 4 meals. This is how little I eat for dinner on most days, sans any rice or carbs.
Cuteness overload. Haru looked just like this when she was a baby. Who wants to adopt this cutie? Whatsapp me at 019-2627 887 if you’re interested.
Hubby’s friend rescued a litter of kittens yesterday and this little cream baby kept calling out to me. Hubs sent me videos and photos of the fur baby and asked if I’d like to have another cat!
What? No of course! One is enough for now. Another fur baby would mean more of my time and money. I also have an allergy to Haru’s fur. My skin would itch after carrying her. I’m totally not ready for another addition to our family. Plus we know Haru would be so jealous that her sibling stole her thunder that she’ll probably bully her sibling and spite us.
When Haru was several months old, I brought her to meet her mother but this ungrateful child hissed at her mother. I could feel how heartbroken her mother was. I still see Haru’s mother roaming the streets every now and then and she still remembers me. She’ll meow as if to say ‘hello’ to me. My heart breaks each time I see how forlorn she is. I’m just so tempted to adopt Haru’s mom so that both mom and child can be together! But that’s just wishful thinking. I am not ready to have another pet now 😐.
Alycia is back in Ipoh to visit her grandparents. She followed her grandma’s (mil) friend who’s driving back to Ipoh and there’s one more seat in her car for Alycia to tag along. It’s been more than two years since Alycia went back to Ipoh and has not seen my parents for this long. This is the perfect time for her to go back to Ipoh coz she will not have any break until August this year when she completes her Foundation program. After a short break, she will commence her first year in uni.
The journey from KL to Ipoh took them almost 7 hours, using the old trunk road (as directed by Waze). The traffic on the highway was a bumper-to-bumper crawl. She met up with her course mates who are from Ipoh who took her for dinner. The traffic in Ipoh has been insane because of the Hari Raya holidays with much relaxed Covid SOPs. It’s crowded everywhere and the roads are jam-packed with cars. By the time Alycia finished dinner, she reached my parents at close to midnight.
We had lunch at The Butcher’s Table @ SS2 PJ before we sent off Alycia and the mil at her friend’s house.
Crackling siew yoke (roast pork) with salad. Wild mushroom soup with warm sourdough toast.House-made sausage. The sausage cost Rm10.50 each. Very costly but very yummy!Roast lambSirloin steak with mashed potato and green peas.Iberico pork chop.After we dropped off Alycia and mil, we went to Barista Guild Asia for coffee and cakes, just Cass, hubs and I.
Sherilyn was at work at the cafe and couldn’t join us for lunch. She only works once a week, usually on Saturdays but she couldn’t work this Saturday because of a dance competition, thus replaced it with a Sunday instead.
As Sherilyn couldn’t work at the cafe on Saturday and weekends are the busiest at the cafe, Alycia covered for her. It was Alycia’s first day at work at the cafe yesterday and she very much prefers working at this cafe than at an international pre-school as a temporary teacher after her SPM last year. She totally didn’t like the job.
Our teenage chef is on a madeleine baking frenzy! She made two batches on the same day some time last week and it was a BIG HIT with everyone, especially Cass.
Cass even brought the madeleines to school for recess. She’s one stubborn fella who just wouldn’t want to bring any food to school despite me forcing, coaxing and even bribing her. I’m worried that she will not be able to endure an almost 24-hour fast with only water. But this super stubborn girl said that she’s not hungry in school as there’s no PE and she’s just seated at her desk from 7-ish a.m. till 3 p.m. in an air-conditioned class room. She says her butt and back hurt, and her muscles go stiff from sitting almost the entire day. Thus, when she gets home, she works out quite a bit. She’s a fitness junkie.
As I am typing this post now, chef S had a spur of the moment whim to bake madeleines again because Maria will be here today to help us clean up. I think she’s whipping up banana madeleines and some other new flavors. She loves creating new flavors.
Last week she made madeleines with different toppings – pistachio, hazelnut, blueberry and original. The batter is mixed with almond meal.
Pistachio and hazelnut madeleines.Raw pistachios ground using a traditional pestle and mortar to get the texture that she wanted, i.e. not too fine nor too coarse.Blueberry madeleines.
This cheeky pussy gave Sherilyn and me a major heart attack this afternoon.
She was playing her favorite game of ‘football’ with an Izumio cap when she accidentally swiped the cap under the fridge. While trying to retrieve the cap, Haru’s paw got wedged under the tiny gap between the fridge and the floor.
I saw her rolling on the floor next to the fridge and thought she looked super cute. It didn’t occur to me that her hand was stuck under the fridge as she wasn’t yelping. Moments later, Sherilyn checked on Haru and then ran to me and told me that Haru’s paw was stuck under the fridge!
Frantically, we tried to free Haru’s paw but she was yelling in pain, crying, hissing at us and tried to bite us. We were also worried that we may injure her hand whilst trying to free her paw. We were even on the verge of calling the Bomba (fire-fighters) to come to Haru’s rescue 🙀 when Sherilyn took out the torchlight to shine under the fridge. She saw Haru’s claw stuck on the fridge’s metal stand and pushed the claw and then voila, Haru’s paw was freed!
What an ordeal and heart-stopping moment it was for all of us!! I really thought that Haru would end up at the vet’s clinic again.
But this dare devil went back to the fridge minutes after she was freed and tried to retrieve the cap again!
Spookily, I met a friend at the supermarket this morning and was informed that her 12-year old dog had recently died of heart failure. She told me that her dog was cremated at the Nirvana Memorial Park and its ashes scattered at Tg Sepat. I asked her more details of cremating pets as I never knew that pets are also cremated at the same place as humans. And lately, I’ve been thinking about what I’ll do with Haru when she crosses the Rainbow Bridge one day.
Talk about superstition! That’s why some Chinese old folks don’t like discussing about death for fear of it becoming a reality.
Spoilt to bits by all of us.Haru’s meals and snacks, ordered from Lazada.
It’s finally Friyay! I can finally get an extra 2 hours of sleep for the next two days.
I’m going to make this post a short one coz I want to catch up on reading news that I’ve missed the past few days, do some online shopping and if I don’t doze off in front of my PC, I’ll start writing the first para of my next article, which I hope can be dished out for submission to my boss by Monday.
Sherilyn made Strawberry And Sweet Red Bean Mochi (Ichigo Daifuku). It was her second attempt and a success. She failed in her first attempt and discarded the dough. She tried making the dough again the next day and this time, got it right. Mochi filled with a huge sweet strawberry and homemade red bean paste. She used dental floss to slice the mochi for a neat cut.These Japanese mochi balls are almost perfect – soft and chewy; the red bean paste isn’t too sweet and the fresh strawberry gives the mochi a refreshing boost of flavor. It isn’t too difficult to make this dessert. If you have a potluck party to attend and want a dessert that will knock off everyone’s socks, try this Japanese mochi. These truffle-like sweet treats are really indulgent.Left – mochi coated with soy bean powder.Haru sits on my fitball and looks out, people and bird watching. When her sisters are in school and there’s no one to annoy her, she’s at complete peace, just like me 😬.
The bra is an undergarment that celebrates a woman’s individuality and uniqueness. It is a part of her intimate world and highlights her sensuality. As the bra is worn snugly on a woman’s best assets, it is like her second skin. Thus, choosing a super comfortable bra is essential so that she feels physically relaxed and comfortable with her true authentic self.
It can be daunting for some ladies to ditch the underwired bras, especially for those blessed with larger breasts as they’re worried about a saggy-looking front. Fret not. You can still opt for wireless bras with a hook and eye back closure, more coverage cups, longer bands, and adjustable straps, such as the AirWear Seamless V-Neck Soft Bra from Cosmolle.
Here are 5 reasons why wireless bras are better for breast health
1. Better Lymph Drainage
There are documented studies that warn that restrictive bra wearing may be correlated with increased risk of breast cancer. When worn regularly for prolonged periods, underwire bras can impede the drainage of lymph fluid from the lymph nodes, which are along the breast bone and by the armpits.
In the absence of proper and adequate flow of lymph fluid, our bodies can’t get rid of toxins effectively, which may contribute to an increased risk of cancer.
Wireless bras are without any hard metal that sits beneath the breast and constricts the flow of lymph fluid. With a soft and comfortable wireless bra, you no longer have the urge to remove your bra as soon as you reach home. Some wireless bras are so soft and comfy that you won’t even feel that you’re wearing one.
One of the top advantages of wireless bra is that it feels like a soft and supportive cushion, minus the irritating wire jabbing your ribs. You can even breathe easier when you wear a wireless bra.
3. Natural Contour
The gentle support and breathability that a wireless bra provides set you free. You can move freely and comfortably. Your body contours and curves appear naturally and are not over accentuated.
4. Cheaper and Easier To Care For
Wireless bras are often cheaper than wired bras. You often pay a premium in exchange for getting pinched on the skin and jabbed in the ribs. Wireless bras are also easier to care for and environmentally friendlier as there is no plastic or wires used.
5. Skin-friendly
Wireless bras are more soothing on the skin of women with eczema, contact dermatitis or other skin conditions. Imagine having a wired bra on your skin with itchy rashes or oozing eczema! Nothing beats a super comfy wireless support bra made of buttery-soft and cooling fabric without the irritating hard wire pressing on your sore skin.
No girl or lady should have to sacrifice health and comfort for beauty. And style needn’t have to come at the cost of comfort and practicality. That’s why Cosmolle is dedicated to redefining what it means to be sexy and prioritizing health and happiness above all else with its range of wireless support bra and thong underwear suitable for girls and ladies.
Our littlest darling turned 14 last Saturday – 9 April 2022.
She has definitely come a long way. For those of you who have been following my blogs way before Cass was born would know her medical history. She’s not 100% out of the woods yet and we’re still trudging slowly, but in no real hurry.
Cass has made great progress in how she manages her own health, fitness, wellness and studies. And I’m proud that she’s finally quite independent at 14, though still needs me to nag at her to do what’s really important. Because of her medical condition, I’ve always mollycoddled Cass, to which she absolutely hates. She doesn’t like it that I give her preferential treatment and still do things for her even though she can do it herself (she’s a dawdler which I’m not and this pisses me, the Super Impatient Mom). She also doesn’t like hugs and kisses or cuddling up in bed with me anymore. But she likes to blather and prattle to me about everything that happened in school, especially when I’m busy with work on the computer.
It’s chucking down heavily now as I’m typing this post and Cass just sent me a photo of where she is outside the school. She can’t find her van again. And she’s going to be drenched again! 😞
OK, I’m going to get her a foldable umbrella from Mr DIY tomorrow! The girls don’t like having an umbrella in their bags as it’s an added weight to their already super heavy school bags (>8kg) but Cass doesn’t have a choice now as it’s currently the rainy season.
Coming back to Cass’ birthday!
She got a big surprise birthday present from her dad, which I didn’t even know about it. It’s a brand new mobile phone!!
In this Covid era, having a phone is a necessity. Cass’ school requires the students to check into the school via the MySejahtera app every day. Students without a phone must print out a form to fill out every day. So having a mobile phone is not only a necessity now, it can be a life-saver too. It gives me a peace of mind too as I know where Cass is. After Cass sent me the photo just now, I called the van driver and he found Cass, with an umbrella in hand for her.
Mini Bundt cakes from hubs. He also bought several other sliced cakes from Plump by @taobakescakes, Bangsar but I didn’t manage to snap the pix coz the girls devoured them before I remembered about snapping the pix.A cheap Redmi phone at RM550. But it’s good enough for my super clumsy and careless girl.
Did I tell you that after hubs got Cass’ previous phone repaired last month, she dropped the phone again the next day? The cost of the repair was over RM300 and after the second damage, hubs gave up and thought it’s more practical to get her a new phone.
Sherilyn got Cass churros from the cafe that she’s currently working at on a part-time basis. The girls love churros aka Western yau char kwai / kuih cakoi. There were 10 pieces and I only remembered to snap a photo after the girls chomped down 7 pieces.We were all so stuffed from all the cakes, churros and seafood noodles from lunch that we cancelled our dinner plan. Instead we had the birthday meal 3 days later. Cass chose The Fish Bowl from The Gardens Mall, Grabbed to us.Salmon bowl with a variety of healthy veggies, nuts and seeds.Grilled chicken breast. This looks REALLY healthy with white breast meat but it doesn’t taste as bland as it looks. The chicken breast is well-marinated and is served alongside a whole bunch of veggies, beans, nuts and seeds.I pray for good health, happiness and abundance of blessings from God upon Cass always.
Most of us are constantly trying to find ways to cut down on our expenditures – from the monthly grocery bill to our children’s expenses, utility bills to our various insurance policies. For a family of five with two adults and 3 children, the typical insurance scenario is motor insurance each for the husband and wife, medical insurance for five family members, life insurance policies for the married couple, and education insurance policies for the 3 children. This will add up to a huge amount of money that has to be set aside every year just for the various insurance premiums.
Wouldn’t it be good if you could save some money from your motor insurance premium? And what if I told you that you can even pay for your motor insurance on a 0% interest installment for up to 36 months? You can have all these plus get free online insurance quotes from 10 insurers for comparison at Dreamshop’s .
PolicyStreet is an approved financial adviser and Islamic financial adviser by Bank Negara Malaysia. PolicyStreet aims to democratize insurance by making it simple, easy, and affordable. They break down complex insurance policies and provide consumers their rights to be adequately insured with deserving financial wellness at all stages of life.
PolicyStreet has now partnered up with Dreamshop so that you can enjoy 0% interest installment plans for up to 36 months from 10 banks when you renew your car insurance through Dreamshop.com.my.
The free motor insurance quotes feature from Dreamshop is very useful in helping you compare the different rates from 10 different insurers. Upon entering your car details, free quotes from 10 different insurers will appear within seconds. After you have browsed the different quotations and have decided which one to settle for, you click on your preferred insurer, enter your personal details, click on add-ons, choose your preferred payment method and proceed to pay. Payment options are varied and you can choose to pay via credit card, Boost, Touch N Go, or online banking if you opt to pay by monthly installment.
If your car insurance is about to expire and you have plans of switching insurers to enjoy a lower premium and an interest-free installment, you can try PolicyStreet. The first 100 customers to enterpromo code DSP50 when they renew their car insurance at will get a RM50 rebate off the premium on the spot.
In the months of April and May 2022, customers who renew their car insurance through Dreamshop’s PolicyStreet will also automatically be in the running to win Agoda vouchers worth RM100 and also a fashionable backpack worth RM69.90!.
Here’s a video of the registration process:
Paying for your motor insurance doesn’t have to be a stressful and dreadful yearly affair anymore when you can pay via monthly installment at 0% interest up to 36 months.
Sherilyn started her new academic year on Monday this week. She’s in Form 5 this year and will be sitting for her SPM in March next year. By mid of next year I will have a pre-U kid and a uni kid. Time flies! I miss the girls’ baby days😥
Cass was back to face-to-face classes last week. And this means my phone alarm is now back to 4.45 a.m. from Mondays through Fridays. Hello zombified days!
After almost 2 years of getting to sleep in till 6-ish a.m. almost every morning, it’s a pain having to wake up at such an ungodly hour in the morning now. One of the pros of the pandemic and lockdown is I get to catch up on my sleep. Now that our country is transitioning into endemic phase and lives are slowly returning to some semblance of pre-Covid days, I’m losing sleep and dozing off in front of my PC throughout the day again🥱 😴 .
The only thing that I enjoy about the girls being back in school is I have more quiet time in the mornings. I have lesser work to do in the morning as I have 2 less people messing up cooking in the kitchen. Sherilyn and Cass love cooking, baking and prepping their own meals and they leave behind trails of destruction for me to clean up. Now I have some peace at home until 3-ish p.m. when they return home.
On days that Maria comes in to help me, Sherilyn is allowed to cook more complicated and ‘messy’ dishes.
She made Japanese curry, chicken karaage and sushi when Maria came last week.
Chicken karaage + avocado sushi.My comfort food – porridge with fish maw, chicken and fish. SO delish!
This year is the third year that I’ve had a low-key birthday celebration, done at home. We were in lockdown the past two years and this year, though our country is now in transition to endemic phase, I still couldn’t go out to have a blast.
It’s a no-brainer guess. Darn Covid.
Alycia was tested positive last weekend while doing a routine Covid self-test and just as she was about to discard the test kit after 20 minutes, she saw the dreaded line on the ‘T’ window. It was so faint that I had to wear my glasses and use a magnifying glass to enlarge the kit to have a better look.
The moment we all saw the very faint line, Alycia quickly isolated herself in her room. Dutifully, she quickly updated her MySejahtera app and informed all her course mates who were in close contact with her to do a self-test.
The next few days involved everyone doing the RTK, me spending hundreds of Ringgit buying self-test kits, sanitizing the house, mask-wearing at home and doing room service for Alycia.
Thank God Alycia has been asymptomatic. If it wasn’t because of the routine pre-outing Covid self-test, she would not have found out that she was positive. Her daily RTK self tests since day 1 showed faint lines. On the third or fourth day however, the line got slightly more prominent but it was still not in bright pink. The line on the ‘T’ window was still faint.
Yesterday and today though, the line on the ‘T’ window was very faint again. I still could not see the faint line but Alycia, Sherilyn and Cass claimed that they could see it. Even with me wearing my glasses and using a magnifying glass and going out to the balcony to scrutinize the self-test kit under the sun, I still couldn’t see the line.
I wonder if my Presbyopia has progressed that badly? 🤨
I can only surmise that the zero symptoms and faint line have got to do with the low viral load theory.
Alycia has one more day of self isolation before she is released from HSO.
Surprise birthday cake from the girls. They know I love brownies and got me 9 large pieces of brownies in various flavors from Brownies Bar By The Accidental Bakers. They had the brownies Grab-ed to our condo from The Gardens Mall.
I had just gained 1kg from walloping almost the entire fudgy brownies that I ordered for myself last week, then lost that 1kg during the Covid drama last week through this week and I think I’m going to pile up the 1kg again with all these decadent brownies 😜.
What a way to celebrate my last 4-series birthday. I’m so looking forward to the 5-series next year!
Check out Alycia’s Covid quarantine meals at my other blog.
This time it’s Cass’ turn. She may be in close contact with a Covid positive index from our condo block. They were both at the gym on Wednesday night. On Friday, the lady who went to the gym tested positive for Covid. The condo Managment office was notified on the same day.
Today a staff from the condo Management office called to inform me that the Covid positive index was at the gym on Wednesday from 8.30 pm to 9.30 pm. As Cass checked into the gym at 9.30 pm, she’s required to do a Covid self-test as a precautionary measure.
Now Cass isn’t sure if she was near this lady when she was at the gym on Wednesday. She can’t even remember if there was anyone at the gym as it was already 9.30 pm and off-peak hours at the gym.
Gyms are a high-risk place for Covid to spread because of the equipment that everyone touches . And it’s air-conditioned, making ventilation poor. Cass remembered that she didn’t use the treadmill, water-rower, bicycle, or air-walker on Wednesday. She said she only brought down her gym mat to do floor exercises and used the weights. Now that’s bad enough. What if the lady sneezed and her droplets dropped on the floor? What if Cass used the weights that the lady used minutes earlier? No one wears mask inside the gym because of the nature of the exercise.
I told Cass that it is quite useless to do a Covid self-test today as it’s too early for any symptom to manifest. But this girl insisted on doing one and it’s negative.
According to WebMD, on average, symptoms show up in a newly infected person about 5.6 days after contact. Rarely, symptoms appeared as soon as 2 days after exposure. Most people with symptoms had them by day 12. And most of the other ill people were sick by day 14.
So we’re now counting down the days to day 14. Cass has another 10 more days of school holiday and I’ll get her to do another test on the eve of going back to school.
We can’t run away from the virus anymore. It’s ubiquitous and inconspicuous. The only thing we can do is to strengthen our immune system with nutritious food, regular exercise and adequate shut-eye. You may think that sleep is not important but it is just as important as nutrition, exercise and supplements, if not even more important. All our friends and daughters’ friends who were infected with Covid admitted that they had not been getting enough sleep prior to getting infected with Covid.
It’s 10 minutes to 11 pm now and I have to rush off this post to stack some Z’s. It’s going to be another early and long day for me on a Sunday tomorrow. Hubby has a function and has to be at his central kitchen by dawn. And I have to chauffeur Sherilyn to work at the cafe tomorrow morning.
Have a restful weekend, all and sundry!
Cass did this poster of Haru. She’s obsessed with Haru whenever she does a cat loaf 😻.
Yet another drama happened to Cass on Friday – she with her beloved Haru, which resulted in us at the clinic again.
On Friday night Cass put Haru inside a box and played ‘peekaboo’ with her. Cass must have put her face right outside the flaps of the box to “Peekaboo” at Haru. When Haru jumped out of the box, one of its paws punched Cass in the right eye, resulting in a bloodshot eye ball!
While Cass didn’t feel much pain in her right eye, the eye drop that I gave her stung her eye.
The next day we were at the clinic again, the same clinic that I brought Cass to after she was bitten by Haru right after her spay surgery about 4 months ago.
The doctor told me that fortunately, there’s no tear in the cornea. The bloodshot in the eyeball was a result of a minor graze. I was so relieved to hear that! My main concern was the bacteria from Haru’s paw causing inflammation to Cass’ eye, resulting in blindness!
Day 1, right after the minor accident – bloodshot eyeball, as a result of being punched / scratched by Haru unintentionally.Day 2, after antibiotics eye drops and eye ointment.
On day 3, the bloodshot was almost gone, except for faint streaks of blood. Thank God!
Cass loves to play rough with Haru, resulting in Haru always avoiding her 😹. I hope that Cass will be gentler with Haru and stop giving me heart attacks!
This cute Kleenex Special Edition Disney Tsum Tsum parcel really made my day today!
The package consists of a pack of boxed facial tissues x 4, a pack of 160 sheets facial tissues in soft pack x 4 and a pack of 50 sheets facial tissues in soft pack x 4.
Kleenex facial tissues are made from 100% imported virgin fiber, natural cotton extract and are dermatologist tested. The tissues are so soft and gentle for the skin, perfect for wiping the face and won’t cause abrasion.
The 50-piece soft pack is perfect for stashing in my handbag while the 160-piece soft pack is ideal for my car.
Kleenex Special Edition Tsum Tsum facial tissues can be purchased from leading supermarkets, Shopee, Lazada and other online shopping platforms.
Sherilyn got herself a part-time job at our neighborhood cafe to kill time during the 3-week school holidays. This is the third week she’s in the job. She only works on Saturdays and on certain week days when she doesn’t have tuition classes. The owners of the cafe are awesome folks and take really good care of Sherilyn and all their staff members. I hope Sherilyn gets to continue working at this cafe for the next few years on a part-time basis. She will most probably start college in September next year and can work part-time on Saturdays. The duties are basically what she’d normally do at home such as washing dishes, helping out in food prep in the kitchen, sweeping and moping the floor, with the added job of waiting at tables. I told her that she passed the probationary period at the cafe because she’s got really good training at home from an OCD mom 😬
The cafe owners, a couple, don’t mind irregular working days. All the waiting staff are college and varsity students and are paid on a daily basis.
This week has been in-person classes week for Alycia. She’s getting busier by the day with back-to-back meetings, assignments and activities every single day. I hardly get to see her these days. Today is the first day that she joined a dodgeball team in campus and she made a few new friends from other faculties. She only got home at 10pm, after dodgeball and dinner of Yakitori with her dad. I’m so excited for Alycia that she’s got such an exciting college life. If only we could swap places right now!! 😬
Cass will be going back to school on 30th March. Yay, finally!!! Staying home for so long without much activities is killing both Cass and me. She annoys me the entire day by hogging my computer (though she has a laptop and a desktop!), hogs my bedroom, my mobile phone (though she has her own), my fan, and even hogs the bathroom for hours every single day! I can’t wait for her to go back to school for I really need my space, my me time and my quiet time!
Here’s Haru saying “Meow-llo! Happy Weekend!”Not the gentlest cat, but very smart and adorable. She still likes to bite when we play with her. Her most favorite person is still her hooman dad and will only ‘manja’ her dad. She’s still trying very, very hard to win grandma over but hasn’t succeeded yet.
I have a vision for our middle child. As she has talents in baking, cooking and dancing, I told her that she should open a cafe-cum-dance center in future. The ground floor shop lot would ideally be a cafe and the first floor, a dance school. While she manages the cafe and teaches dancing, I’ll be the cashier at the cafe. The cafe would serve as the perfect waiting place for parents after they drop off their kids for dance classes. There’ll be cakes, healthy smoothies, juices, and mains on the menu. I’ve also encouraged her to take up a Degree in Business Management so that she can effectively manage her businesses.
But I doubt that this will come true as she has something else on her mind, which is remotely related to F&B and business. Oh well, we’ll see what God’s plans are for her 😇
Yesterday our teenage baker baked a lemon meringue cake. She has a thing with baking really complicated cakes. Never one who would bake a good old butter cake or a classic banana cake, she’d only choose recipes that involve 101 steps! I’ve told her many times that I crave for a good old plain orange cake or banana cake but she said NO, she would only bake cafe-style cakes! 🙄
The lemon meringue cake involves multiple complicated steps. First is the preparation of the lemon curd. Then the baking of 3 lemon sponge cakes. Next, preparation of the meringue. And finally assembling of the cake and blowtorching the meringue to create a light brown toast color.
A total of 12 eggs and 8 lemons were used. It’s a pretty costly cake!
In the process of prepping the cake, a snafu happened. While she was removing one of the sponge cakes from the oven, she accidentally dropped the cake on the floor! It was a mess but she quickly salvaged the cake and the top part of the cake was smashed on the floor! Luckily OCD me had just mopped the floor and since the floor was clean, the both of us scooped up the cake from the floor and stuffed it into our mouths… and ROTFL while at it 😆 .
She had so much fun blowtorching the meringue on the cake!Picture perfect, cafe-style cake. All self-taught from watching You Tube tutorials. Very lemony and yummy! But I find it a tad sweet, though she reduced the amount of sugar. I told her to reduce more sugar the next time she bakes this cake again.
This video is Sherilyn’s first You Tube dance cover, produced by her dance school. The filming was postponed umpteen times since last year due to the rising Covid cases and only shot 3 weeks ago at Tamarind Square, Putrajaya. She worked really hard to get into the dance group.
If you can’t spot her, she’s the one in cropped blue blazer and tennis skirt. She’s the shortest in the squad (and youngest) and has to wear soles lift pads to give her a slight boost in her height 😆
Our dancer’s next project is another dance competition in 2 weeks and there will be lots of practices with her group mates in the coming days.
Follow
