Full Moon Give Away

full moon give away set!

we ordered this set to be given away on our babies full moon.

on the real day, we have to be in inlaw's house so this was ordered in my house and they were distributed by hubs and dad to friends and family on our side.

whereas in hub's home, we had a party so there were no such give aways :)

the set comprises of red hard boiled eggs, nasi kunyit (yellow glutinous rice), curry chicken, and ang ku (red tortoise cake)

the Ang Ku Kueh is special in this case.

it symbolizes the gender of your baby.

if you have a baby boy, this kueh will be round.

if u have a baby girl, they will be in the shape of a peach.

i am a Hokkien by the way.

eat the curry chicken with the glutinous rice.

these days, modern parents would prefer to give away Ayamas or pizza hut or kfc voucher, or cakes or other not perishable items.

with this type of meal set, you need to distribute them fast!

knowing me, i'm a traditional lady.

hence i opt for this, to keep the tradition alive. :p

chinese usually has their confinement for 30 days,

whereas some do it for 40 days.

i opt for 40 days.

malays do it for 44 days.

after full moon (30 days), im still watchful over my diet.

that photo shows what i ate.

MUST NOT eat 'cooling' food.

can begin to eat 'neutral' food :)

confinement red dates tea

my red dates tea throughout confinement.

comprises of black dates, red dates, dang shen, and the herb (dont know the name) and a little ginger.

sometimes she'll add in some longan. longan is very heaty so i did not drink it everyday. mom reasoned that the baby is still jaundiced - heaty- so i shouldn't be too warm inside.

preparation of this water or tea is superbly easy. just chuck the entire plate above into a big pot of water and boil it.

some recipes i checked online uses more red dates but when i double checked with mom, she actually uses more black dates.

for the entire 30 days, i drank warmed red dates water.

my mom has a thermos flask shaped like a teapot, instead of the common bottle shaped thermos.

this teapot thermos can hold quite a lot of water, (forgot to check the size) but those who knows me, water is my life. i drink lots of water so this teapot thermos is really handy.

my mom does not need to refill that often. at most twice a day.

the only exception of me drinking plain warm water was when i was traveling, as we flew back to the West and the entire journey took approximately 8 hours. and that was on day 14 of confinement. 

being a scaredy cat, i felt insecure having no red dates water. lols. so i only took sips of plain water to wet my mouth and satiate my thirst :( 

some people also drink Rice tea during this period. i have not tried this rice tea before.

i think it is more cumbersome preparing the Rice Tea before u need to fry the rice with ginger.

anyway, i have no idea why red dates tea is more popular amongst my family and friends.

 Bentong Ginger

they are spicier and more fragrant than our usual ginger.

since SIL is from bentong, mom called up and asked them to help us to buy 3 kg:)

double boiled chicken essence

i did not take the bottled chicken brand at all.

neither during my pregnancy nor now.

best would be home made double boiled chicken essence.

MIL prepared for me everyday when i was back in her place when i was 6 months pregnant. 

and now mom cooks this essence with kampung chicken every other day.

was told that i should drink at night before i go to bed.

my usual confinement meal

sawi with minced pork

turmeric grilled fish

pig's trotter in black vinegar

this is a close-up view of the pigs trotter

i LOVE this dish.

mom dont usually cook this during normal times.

so during confinement, i always have appetite and we (both mom and i) will usually put on weight.

hubs always teased me that I put on more weight than when i was pregnant.

hah!

menu from sandra boynton's book!

 saute onion and garlic in olive oil and butter

 add milk and blend

 broccoli stew

 eat with rice!

yum!

i prefer a more diluted and smooth thick soup but papa chef likes to cook it this way.

i love pumpkin soup which could be whipped up in the thermomix in 20 mins but no one else likes pumpkin besides me.

hate it when hubs is a picky eater this way.

his excuse is that he can eat or  he will eat anything (not exactly everything) that i cook, but it is just that he does not fancy eating those certain food.

since im a healthy person,

i need to compromise a little.

i dont cook bittergourd at home for example.

so i eat them when we eat out.

smoothies today: sawi, 1 red apple, 1 orange, 0.5 inch ginger, few cashew nuts soaked, 2 large dates, half avocado, brazilian nut milk.

too much variation so the concoction tastes weird but who cares? as long as it is nutritious!

i dont care.

hentam saja.

kj gets half a cup if the drink is not palatable.

i do need to be sympathizing.

albeit saying YUCK! not good.

he will still obediently finish it.

:)

bioavailability of turmeric and what green smoothies has done to us

today's smoothie: 1/2 small beetroot, 1/4 lemon, 2 banana, 2 cubes frozen coconut milk, 1 green apple, 2 cups sweet potato leaves, 1/2 inch turmeric.

just today i learned that we should add oil/fats in combination of turmeric to make it more bioavailable, as reported here.

hence coconut oil or vco?

this tastes GOOD!

hubs asked for more.

whenever he asked for more, i know ive nailed it!

besides, his divulgence about both his and his son's poo are not smelly anymore which could be due to the smoothies helps tremendously in boosting my enthusiasm.

i always treasure such feedbacks.

he also pointed out that kj's mouth was not foul smelling anymore ever since we started on the smoothies.

also, he feels more energetic.

well, another power booster would be the son drinking them!

usually he would say not good!

however upon constant urging, he would down his share.

 there is nothing more pleasurable than that! :)

oh, some mommies shared that sweet potato leaf is a galactagogue!

needless to say, we will be consuming more of these now.

dont forget.

more vegetables, less fruits.

and ROTATE them.

best would be to incorporate 60% vegetables and 40% fruits.

this blog pretty much explains everything u need to know about green smoothies.

there is a debate about how a high power blender being able to break down the cell walls of the vegetables and fruits, thereby releasing all the nutrients and minerals which the body can readily absorb.

do share with me if u ever come across any other conclusive or reliable resource on this.

our thermomix serves us well to this point.

2 combs of banana for ONLY TWO RINGGIT!

u should have seen that victorious smile on my face that day!

felt as though i had won a lottery!

banana is a great companion.

tips: freeze it! they should be in your hands anytime u need it as a thickener or to mask a strong tasting veggie.

what is a sharpener to a toddler?

KJ 3 yrs 3 mths

May 2013

motor skill activity- wrist turning : sharpening pencil

introducing a Sharpener

aim and insert, push deep into the sharpener, twist  

more practice needed.

he could recognize a sharpener when we were out in the stores.

"mammy, we have this at home ah?"

no swimming lesson

two types of floats,

bought by ah gu, Uncle in hokkien, means my brother

 somehow we manage to reunite here in KK, which is really rare.

 afraid of the water yet excited to go in to the pool

 his ah gu has the passion to play with kids,

so all kids love him.

tell me which kid does not!

 children's pool

ive made up my mind,

of not sending him to toddler swimming class.

what we should do is to bring him the pool as often as we can.

with no pressure (to be able to swim on his own).

there bound to be some especially when we go to the beach or when we wants to dive or snorkel.

when he is ready, we will know.

Taken June 2012
KJ 2 yrs 4 mths

Get healthy!

watermelon smoothie:

 mint , thats the amout that i use.

watermelon, mint, almond milk, 1 banana

 black strap molasses

get the unsulphured.

got this from BMS Organic.

You'll find significant amounts of calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium and selenium in blackstrap molasses. WHFood

Unsulphured Blackstrap Molasses Benefits: A Mostly Ignored Inexpensive Superfood

they claim that blackstrap molasses can also give you black hair!

i need to revert my few strands of white mane to black!

you can either take 1 tsb per day directly, or dilute in warm water.

some people add it into their coffee.

i started with diluting in a cup of water and KJ says mommy, see! i showed him and he goes No, i dont want, i dont want this. not good. he has not even tasted it.

sigh.

It's yummy! i like it! and cringed when he is not looking.

now i am taking it neat, i reckon it is more palatable this way.

A few interesting articles:

• Natural Fibroid Treatment (bms means blackstrap molasses). they mentioned about bms giving them black hair as well
• Fibroid Tumors - Has anyone had success reducing them with diet?
• Shrink Fibroids Apple Cider Vinegar Baking Soda Eliminating uterine fibroids naturally with powerful 3-Step System
• Endometriosis and fibroids using TCM

another must have is the apple cider vinegar. BRAGGS brand preferable, because it is raw.

u will see dirt and slime below the bottle but that is what we want, they are the goodness.

i use filtered acv (apple cider vinegar) to wash my hair though.

you'll see a bottle in my bathroom, i use it to rinse my hair after shampooing, if i have time.

acv acts as a conditioner. and also other lots of other goodness to our hair.

have been using it since pre-uni days.

 three aust avocados for RM 20!

how extravagant huh?

hubs brought them to be weighed and he asked me to guess the price.

and he says he aint eating them.

-_________-''

why do we wanna buy imported stuff when we can get local avocado?

only in sabah people!

dont be envy :p

see how beautiful our local avocados are?

the 2 green ones at the bottom are the locals whereas the top black one is from Australia.

compare the sizes.

local ones are WAYYY cheaper and bigger!

 smoothies for today:

beetroot, half lemon, potato leaves

this is how fresh beetroot looks like

whole beetroot

ive never seen this in the west (Msia).

however you can easily find them everywhere here.

i added in half avocado hence the smoothness.

bananas can do that too.

DOM during confinement

DOM Benedictine

im drinking this during my confinement.

some people drinks hard liquor? 

albeit fully breastfeeding, i drink it neat.

means i drink straight, undiluted.

in small amount. 2 gulps is all it takes.

some sources postulated that we should steam the liquor before consuming, so that all the alcohol will evaporate.
whilst more sources were found to suggest mothers drinking the alcohol and to wait for a minimum of 2 hours before breastfeeding.

some also claims that alcohol can reduce breast milk.

someone told mom that it will be useless if u steam off the alcohol, might as well don't drink.

well during my first pregnancy, i started drinking this beginning in the 2nd week.

at that time i diluted it with my red dates tea.

and i drank triple the amount of this!

according to my godmom, i should drink till my cheeks flush!

unfortunately not.

i did not have rosy cheeks after the confinement, neither do i this time.

confinement #1: 4 bottles
confinement #2: 1 bottle

my sweetiepie is again jaundice this time so we (mom and i) delayed the liquor.
since mom did not mention and did not bring out the DOM, i kept quiet about it too.
furthermore, i think mom did that because i was operated?
or was it because baby is jaundice.
yes, this time round she is armed with more knowledge.

so my confinement lady served me this after my confinement.
yes, sweetiepie is still jaundice till today, 2 months old.
ruled out everything: LFT, UFEME, hyperthyroidism. all negative.

diagnosis should be prolonged breastfeeding jaundice.

im not an alcoholic, but it is a dilemma of whether or not i should drink this for my benefit or drop this for his benefit.

the father was concerned.
asked me to pump and discard my milk after my drinking session.
no way i would do that.
sorry honey.
my breast milk are just too precious. i aint gonna do that.
he relented and gave the green light.

i have made my choice.
what is yours?
;)

Introducing scissors to toddlers

do not be afraid to allow them to play with scissors

preferably to start them with a child-friendly scissors,

which is safer than our normal ones that has sharp pointed front.

old people are too mindful whenever they see children going near a scissors.
fear not!
having exposed my child to the use and precautions of a scissors, i was relaxed when he found scissors in my mom's house whereas
ah ma frantically rushed to him and seized it.

he needs to use both hands...which tells me he is in progress

see that Gang Nam Style shirt?

under my roof, the shirt is strictly for sleeping. ONLY.

yet he loves it so much that he wants to wear it everyday, at one point.

i told the aunty that this is to be worn as pajamas. ONLY.

*snicker*

aiming to cut on the line?

the product! :D

he cant sustain for long in one activity.

at most, it takes 5 - 10 mins max and he'll start to wander, loosing focus.

anyway, keep it up sweetie!

both you and me! :)

KJ 3 yrs 3 mths

toddler learning numbers

 got this idea from Pinterest.

asked the dad to help to cut the circles.

used 50 cents coins to trace on coloured papers and cut.

did this in May 2013.

i thought since he likes ice cream, this mathematical toddler activity would interest him.

Math activity!

see what he did?

isn't it cute :)

obviously he is sorting the ice cream by colours =)

just let him be. do not correct.

urm, i did try to hint and hint that he should glue according to numbers and not colours.

the i realized i should keep my mouth shut.

sorry sweetheart

KJ 3 years old 3 months