Nikki Sneaked Out Again !!!

26th February, 2009 - This evening, somehow Nikki managed to sneak out and wandered off on her own. The kids went searching for her but to no avail ! It was drizzling and their tuition teacher was already on her way ... so I called them in, leaving Nikki to her doggie sense of direction to find her way home !

Alas, she did came home after wandering for almost half an hour on her own out there, all drenched ... well, she managed to shake it all off ... just like she always do after a nice bath ^_^ The kids who were initially rather upset and worried that she might not make it home was overwhelmed with excitement when she finally sneaked back into the house through the gate which was ajar, purposely so that she can come back in. Well, glad to have her back !!!

Maid In Service

23rd February, 2009 - My maid is having some rest days ... sent her to the agency for counselling and so I had to deal with all the house chores and taking care of the kids' needs ...

Today, I cooked dinner for the kids, a simple 3-course : fried fish, mixed vegetables, pork-rib soup ABC style ... Jasmine was my little wok-helper, Dash was my little veg-cutting helper and Bob was my little set-the-table helper !! Ha ha ... we had a wonderful dinner actually, with the kids ended up telling me : Ku ku, I give you 10 marks :-) and I went : 10 out of how many marks huh? Jasmine beamed and exclaimed 10 out of 10 ! Wah, so nice and knowing it came out sincerely, I felt kinda proud ya ^_^ Bob said : I give you full marks ! Then, Dash said : can I deduct marks for the soup being too hot ??? He he he ... they made my day ^_^

After dinner, it was dish-washing time, then laundry and ironing ... before I retire to bed at 2 a.m. !! Phew ! At least, I retired to bed happy and satisfied :-) Dozed off almost immediately ! Actually, reflecting on the event of the day, I counted my blessings that Mom had taught me well ... Mom made sure we girls are trained to do all the house chores such as cooking, cleaning up, sweeping, mopping, dish washing, laundry making and sewing too. Thanks ya, mom !!! You saved my life in times like this ^_^

Master Your Mind

22nd February, 2009 - After 3 days of intensive Master Your Mind seminar which was awesome, it felt good to be back, knowing very well that I'll be applying what I have learnt in my day to day life ...

• The 2 most important animals in your life : The evil wolf and the bad wolf who fights each other. Who wins? The one you keep feeding


• There is only MY economy & MY economy is growing !


• Nothing has meaning except for the meaning I gave it


• Everything is nothing until you make it something


• Choose to look at everything as awesome. Why? Because it's better & healthier for us


• The Universe only knows one word : YES


• You are the cause of everything that happens to you


• From now on, I am going to be extra nice to me for the rest of my life no matter what I do or what I don't do


• Happiness is a HABIT

4 techniques to get rid of negatives :

• Cut it off - the instant you recognise a negative, thought, cut if off and insert a totally different thought



• Observe the negative - immediately label it "it's only a negative thought" : negatives only have power over you if/when you react to them



• Exaggerate negatives into ridiculousness



• Counteract the negatives with the exact opposites

It's funny that after all the memorizing work during school days, I still have to memorize at this age ! Well, when we are forced to memorise something, we'll remember for life ! How true ! Here it goes :

MONEY

• I am a multi-millionaire


• My income and wealth grows quickly


• Money comes to me easily


• Lucrative opportunities always come my way


• I earn a massive passive income


• I am financially free

HEALTH

• I am in perfect health


• I have abundant energy


• I am fit and in great shape


• I am at my ideal weight


• I eat healthy and nutritious food


• I live long and strong
  

RELATIONSHIPS

• I create positive and supportive relationships


• I treat everyone with kindness and respect


• I spend quality time with people I enjoy


• I connect deeply with the people I love


• I give my love unconditionally


• I love myself

HAPPINESS

• I live with purpose and passion


• I live in joy


• I am positive and optimistic


• I appreciate everything I have


• I choose to be happy right now


• I love my life

CONTRIBUTION

• I share my gifts and talents


• I add value to other people's lives


• I enjoy contributing and being of service


• I give generously from my heart


• I get rich helping others


• I make this world a better place
  

SELF

• I am kind and loving


• I am patient and understanding


• I am calm and peaceful


• I am focused and persistent


• I am confident and courageous


• I am a powerful creator

The following created by Douglas, one of the participant says it all, with a special thanks to T Harv and his amazing team : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZXh9yyP2eI

Well, well, well .... overall it was an amazing experience especially the "It's Your Time" session where I was the lucky one on that fateful 22nd February, 2009 :


There I was, standing on stage in front of >1,000 participants, each and everyone of them showering me with their blessing on top of their voices ! It was such an overwhelmingly awesome experience, it's probably my "once in a life time" ! Thank you so so much !!!

Nice Painting

17th February, 2009 - Saw and kinda fell in love with this painting hanging at a friend's house patio ... been a while since my last painting session, really. Suddenly, I felt the urge to paint again. Planks of used wood (antique in a few years' time, I guess) arranged together with old paint being retained, adding a touch of once upon a time, long-long ago, at grandma's house built on tilts near the sea side ...

Perhaps I could still salvage these kind of wood planks and try my hand at using these materials .... my backyard certainly could brighten up with a self-painted one ... ^_^

Nice Photo

16th February, 2009 - Today, a close friend emailed some of the recent photos taken ... this one here was taken during a CNY visit to her colleague's house together with Jasmine, Bob and Max. Ain't he a beauty? Nice, thick and soft fur, very huggable and friendly ... needless to say, very pampered too ! He is, according to the owner, 7 years old, meaning 49 human years ! Wow ! Didn't know about the X 7 thingy until I adopted Nikki. Guess I do still have a lot to learn about pet dogs ^_^

Most of my neighbours have pet dogs, from Chi Hua Hua to Labrador to Golden Retrievers to what not. Some really are so cute, with short legs, furry ... some with ribbons, some owners even dyed their fur ! Even at pasar malam, some girls would actually walk the night market with their little darlings, all made (groomed) up (hair accessories, clothed, and all) ... Sometimes when I bring Nikki out for a walk, little doggies would yelp! yelp! with excitement and Nikki would go sniff! sniff!

Hmm ... nice to have a doggie around, especially on days when I prefer to have a listening partner (who doesn't talk back!) ... he he ^_^ Well, sometimes silence IS golden !

Valentines Wedding

14th February, 2009 - Today, I attended another wedding dinner back in Tg Sepat ... a cousin of mine got married. We used to tease him with a nickname : Second Hand ... ha ha ...

It was a merry affair and cousins cheered 'yum seng' and 'yum seng' on top of their lungs so much so that I too got caught in the excitement ! Well, it was really nice catching up with aunts, uncles and cousins, not to mention the sumptous Teochew dinner dishes, come of which can hardly be found in KL ... especially the first course, braised duck ! So yummy, I had to indulge ... forget about my low carbo diet ah ... he he ... ok lah, after all, it's time to enjoy some good food ya ^_^

Oh yes, before I forget, HAPPY VALENTINES DAY !

Creative Time

12th February, 2009 - Today, the kids got creative, played with playdough given to Bob as a gift by his classmate. Nice isn't it? Hmm ... Childhood memory crept in now ... years ago, I used to stay with my grandma in Tg. Sepat inside a 'jungle' where my uncles operated a pig farm. There were lots of tanah liat which we kids would dig out and make doughs to create all kinds of stuff just like the ones here, only thing is that it's all grey in colour !

How colourful these are compared to those grey ones. Nevertheless, we had lots of fun just playing with those tanah liat for hours on end and of course, we end up very very dirty indeed ^_^

Nikki Got Sticky

4th February, 2009 - Today, Nikki followed us into the house uninvited and climbed up the stairs for the very first time ! Guess she must have wondered how it is like up there ^_^

After that, we had a tough time trying to get her out of the house ! Hmm ... sorry Nikki, we can't have you in the house, your fur is too much to handle ya ... will spend more time with you near the fish pond ok ... ^_^

Another 2 Kilos Down !

12th February, 2009 - Yup, you heard me right again ! I have today, after 7 days shed 4 kilos, that's close to 9 pounds ! Hmm .... time to stop slimming lor since I have achieved my target ... yeh yeh yeh ! Today was my last session at Unisense, save the rest for next year I guess. Total cm loss was a satisfactory 25cm, all in 7 days, it's like WOW WOW ^_^

Some friends and family members were kinda worried over the drastic drop and well, I am kinda used to taking my slimming treatments seriously. To me, if I wanna do something, give it a 100%, save time, save money and a job well done at the end of the day. Now I can go on low-carbo diet. With some exercise (pray that the swimming pool is ok to use now ...), getting physically fit again (not that I am a flabby or whatnot .. ha ha ..) is my next target. Wanna join me, anyone ??? I know my kids will lor ... he he ...

Temptations

9th February, 2009 - It's Chap Goh Mei and also a day of offering to my demised grandpa. Mom cooked many delicious dishes and asked all of us to over for dinner. Ahhhhh ... looking at the yummy food on the table made me so hungry, I had to swallow my own saliva leh ^_^ Luckily I am a disciplined person when it comes to my diet which at the moment I am still following rather strictly. No point giving in to the temptations only to regret it later, right? My target is only 1.5 kg more to go and I am already so close to achieving it ^_^

It sure was a cheerful dinner with most of my family members around and well, it kinda reminded me of younger days when my grandparents were still alive ... during their anniversary celebrations, all their siblings and the 100 odd grandchildren would gather in the big ancestor house, together with invited guests and relatives ... hmm ... those were the days when we children would always try to peep into the giant cake and get all excited with each one of us eyeing for the biscuit flowers !

2 Kilos Down !

8th February, 2009 - Yup, that's how much I have shed within 3 days of my 1st slimming treatment. I am so happy when I stood on the weighing machine this afternoon. And my urine test showed a +3, meaning I have been following the right high-protein diet. Ha ha ... way to go ! Looks like it's gonna be an easy target to achieve, just another 1-2 kilos more to go, meaning I should achieve my target by another treatment, max ... yippeee yeah yeah !

My diet for the last 3 days : soya bean milk (unsweetened) or organic meal (mixture of flexseed, sunflower seed, oat, black sesame and lecithin) for breakfast, glass noodle soup with fish slices + fishball + beancurd + lots of vegetables (no sugar, no fruits, no oil) for early dinner, Vitamin C & Lecithin E (When I feel kinda full) ... hmm ... lots of temptation these 2 days actually, what with the sumptous dinner at Christine's house, lunch and dinner invitations ... guess I am simply a strong-willed lady ya, determined to stick to my high-protein diet, just can't let the treatment go down the drain, so to speak ^_^

Time to exercise and tone up now ....

Time for Slimming !!

5th February, 2009 - It's time to slim down a little ! After all the heavy meals, ever since pre-Christmas till now, it's no wonder why my waistline is getting broader by the weeks ..... arrgghhhh !!!! Ha ha ... literally put on about 5 kg since my last visit to Unisense in 2007. So, today, I checked myself in for a near 3 hours session at the Ampang boutique. Been with Kelly, the consultant cum nutrionist since year 2000. Back then, I still looked like 6 months' into my pregnancy even though Dash was already 10 months old. A shopping trip was like a nightmare, looking at myself in the mirror, I just felt so so so ugly with my heavy lower parts, yah ... bulging tummy and huge thighs, urrgghhh !

A close friend recommended Unisense after her successful treatment, even came up as the 3rd winner in the monthly competition ... so, I ended up signing for a slimming package and guess what? Lo and behold, I lost 10kg within 6 weeks and ended up as the September 2000 winner, photos taken and appeared in the newspapers :-) with 50% cash refund on my total treatment costs and another 50% rebate in the form of more treatments (I used these free treatments 1 month after Bob was born ... didn't want to look plump/fat anymore leh) Phai seh, phai seh ... then, also emerged as a consolation prize winner in the Dramatic Difference Contest Grand Final. Can you guess which one is me in the above photo (downloaded from the Unisense website)?

So, there I was, this morning ... trying to get into shape again with the help of modern technology. This round, I am targeting to shed 3-4 kg within 3 treatments ... so, friends, don't tempt me with dinner invitations, okay? Ha ha ... will be on high protein diet for a week, then low carbo ... meaning also, no sugar nor oil in my diet. Hmm ... will go on organic breakfast recommended by Bea ... Oh yes, gotta start my swimming sessions again. Wish me luck !

A Day of Heavy Meals

4th February, 2009 - It's really a day of heavy meals ... started with a in-the-car 3 slices of bread spread with Goobers peanut-grape butter, then, sat at a breakfast meeting with the School Board/PTA members at the mamak stall. Had Nescafe & Capati with 2 half-boiled eggs ! Ooh ... heavy ! Ha ha ... suddenly had a craving for the high protein combination of Capati and half-boiled eggs ah ^_^ Agenda for the meeting : resolving some issues regarding the recruitment exercise for external BM teachers as well as updating of current issues to be addressed within the next few days, good meeting I would say, with clear directions now. Feels good that I am able to contribute in whatever little ways I can and along the way, got to know the other active members better ... eh, as well as brushing up on my knowledge in the Chinese education system and the language itself, learning here lo :-)

Next meal was a heavy lunch at Tropicana Golf & Country Club : Spring Garden, on a client's invitation to have lou sang with the rest of the staff and partners. Emmm ... another yummy yummy ! Black pepper venison meat, very fresh steamed whole patin fish, yam basket, deep fried prawns with salted egg, sweet pea stir fried with asparagus and ended with longan sea-coconut + pancake dessert (my favourite!!!)

The day ended with another success : I managed to secure a new job after a short meeting with this new client referred to me yesterday. Way to go girl ! The Year of the Ox certainly smells promising in terms of prosperity YEAH ^_^

Giant Shrimp

1st February, 2009 - Last week, dad gave me 6 giant shrimps (3 shrimps per kilogram) and I really don't quite know how to cook them ! They were humongous, never seen such big ones before ... so I had to call for help ! Ha ha ha ... ask and you shall get :-) After all, if don't ask, how would people around you know you need help? Rather than wasting such beautiful special food, I gave a call to a close friend who is known for being a good cook and so on this fateful day, I was lucky enough to witness his cooking skill ... a big wok of fried beehoon and deep fried shrimps, so simple and yet so so so tasty ! YUMMY !

Ha ... had a real good dinner together with 2 other close friends. After a few rounds of sparkling juice, we were so full, I told myself : time to go for slimming sessions lest I become a fatty boom boom ... ha ha ha ^_^

Open House

31st January, 2009 - It's Saturday at last, the day I had my CNY open house, just for my high school friends. With merely 1.5 hours to go since I reached home from Tg. Sepat, tired as I was, I was in high spirit as I have been looking forward to catch up with these bunch of close friends together with their lovely children :-)

Delegation of duty was the way to go : Kakak to help in the kitchen and prepare 2 dishes, Jasmine to cut fruits, Dash to set the table, prepare drinks and arrange CNY cookies whereas Bob to arrange the serviettes ... and me, just hang around? Of course not ! Ha ha ... I picked up Jelly-O cake from Aroma Platter, pick out the longan jelly from the moulds, made tuna sandwiches and arrange them nicely on plates, cover them with cling-on wraps and chill them in the fridge.


As it turned out, the food was just nice, enough to feed the guests ... the kids all love the spaghetti, many of whom had 2nd and 3rd helpings :-) Ended with pots of green tea while nibbling away at the cookies, all seated at the living hall ... on the carpet ! It was a good hour of reminiscing over those memorable high school days as well as recent happenings in our lives ... hmm ... a few more years, would we still make it a point to gather? I would think so !

Visiting Relatives

30th January, 2009 - This afternoon, on my way to a lunch meet, I received a call from Mom, asking me if I'll be going back to Tg. Sepat to visit relatives there. Next was a call from Kelvin, my youngest brother from Tg. Sepat, asking me the same ... Ah ... thought I can postpone my trip, alas ... started feeling guilty, so, despite already having 2 gatherings lined up and dinner appointment already made with another close friend at my house .... I, I, I er ... just had to make that 2 hour trip else I would disappoint many loved ones leh, including mom, Kelvin, nephews, nieces, aunties and uncles there, some of whom I have not met for months (years??) ^_^ Furthermore, Kelvin's wife is planning to cook dinner for us, especially mom ! How can I say no, right?

So, after my girls' day out at KLCC, I had to take leave after a very satisfying session ... with a heavy heart leh, but at the same time, looking forward to meet my relatives ! So, a friend was kind enough to fetch my kids and mom to my eldest sister, Janet's place so that I didn't have to waste time going from one house to another to fetch all my passengers. Thanks ya, friend (he he ... you know who you are :-) It was 6:15 by the time we hit Duke highway ... a slow crawl !!!! but we were all in high spirit, all 11 of us in my car ! Ha ... thank God my passengers survived huh :-) Reached Tg. Sepat at 8:30 pm ... lo and behold, what a sumptous dinner awaiting us on arrival ! 9 dishes, all cooked by my sister-in-law ... albeit some weird but nevertheless tasty dishes like the one Red Chillies fried with Lap Cheong and another one, Bittergourd fried with Lap Cheong ... hmm ...

In the midst of enjoying the braised duck and chicken feet, mom's sisters and brothers dropped by ... could see mom was very happy to see them and started chatting like old time, all emersed in the simple merry making till late into the night .... hmm ... glad I decided to make the trip, happy ^_^

The next morning, we went visiting to all the relatives' place ... 6th uncle, 5th uncle, 3rd uncle, youngest uncle from dad's side and there's 3rd uncle, youngest uncle and deceased 2nd aunt's family from mom's side ... lots of cookies and angpow exchanges and it goes without saying, the kids were the happiest ^_^ Also managed to have my hairdo at 2nd aunt's saloon, all ready for the night's dinner gathering back home with my high school friends ... then, hit the highway again at around 2pm, dropped sis and mom at 3:45pm, reached home at about 5pm after shopping for some food, ice and cake, in time to prepare dinner before my first guest arrived at 6:30pm ! Phew ! What a day ! For the next episode, stay tuned to the next blog entry ..... ^_^

Girls' Day Out

30th January, 2009 - It's Girls' Day Out today ! Had a good catching up lunch with a friend who came home from Bangkok together with a few other multi-national friends (India, Burma, Canada) all of whom I got to know since I started working with NGOs. By the way, the teh tarik with fresh cow's milk was YUMMY ! First time had this and I liked it very much ... smoother and richer in taste compared to the normal teh tarik ... hmm ... must try again next round :-)

After that, I rushed to another gathering at KLCC's Kinokuniya Coffee Club (by far, the most conducive place in KLCC to meet over a cup of beverage :-) ... with my college girlfriends ! Haven't met them for months. All were looking good, hmm ... who would ever guessed our real age huh? Me, all dressed up like a "Barbie Doll" - LoL ... that's what my NGO friend called me when she first saw me this morning! Well, it's a compliment lah, heh heh ... phai seh, phai seh ... I was in my new pink bareback disney princess shirt, bright pink long pants, 4 inch-silver-colour Lewre high heels and a matching silver handbag ! In fact, when I changed into this feel-young pinkish outfit, I laughed out loud at myself and had to ask for Dash's opinion ! It was his "Mommy, you look so young and beautiful today" remark that made me feel so so good ... ha ha ^_^ Hey, ok ok ... I felt fresh, young and beautiful, so ... ahem, my friends' compliments confirmed that ya ^_^

It was a very good session. We moms left the kids at home, kinda get-away happy get-together session. Giggles and laughters can be heard miles away, bet ya ! Especially Angela's and Odelia's ^_^ Some who could not make it called to drop their hellos. Ah .... it was so good ... hey, let's do this again ya :-)

First Day At Work

28th January, 2009 - While most of my friends and family members are still celebrating CNY, I got back to work today ... he he ... for a short half day, simply because it's my AUSPICIOUS Day ! Yup, call me superstitious and what not, I got an email telling me Roosters should start work on the 3rd day of CNY ... by the way, actually, I have got nothing better to do lah ...

... and well, my neighbours' alarm kept triggered off yesterday, so much so that I had to call the guard to investigate ! So, better not stay at home and be frustrated with the irritating alarm blaring away .... for hours leh, no joke ah ... gotta take care of my ear drums !!!!

The day before, I went shopping for something white to wear on my first day at work ... ha ha ... white/beige, apparently is my 'ONG' colour, so, there I went to Mid Valley, the car park was almost full ! Ha ... luckily I managed to get a 'ONG' parking space ! You see, the universe conspired with me again ... heh heh heh ... powerful huh? Alas, after spending about 3 hours, I managed to get more than a blouse ... a simple white cotton working t @ 50% discount, a simple elegent beige beaded shirt @ 50% and OMG! Mickey Mouse specialty shop was on huge sale ! So, in I went and got myself a green sleeveless minnie mouse shirt, a sweet pink sleeveless disney-princess shirt and a very sweet pink bareback disney-princess shirt ... all at 70% off !!! Feels so fresh and young now ^_^

My First CNY in KL

26th January, 2009 - It's my first ever CNY in KL ! With the children all gone to celebrate with their dads, I had the whole house to myself ... and well, I thought it's gonna be a quiet day where I'll get to relax and just laze around the house, enjoy watching the koi and go for walks with Nikki. Alas, I ended up reading, reading and more reading, as though I have not been reading for ages !

Sidney Sheldon is still my favourite author of all time I guess. This time, it's his "Are You Afraid of the Dark" ... read the whole book in one session leh ^_^, something which I have not had the luxury of time to do till now ...

And then, there's the whole lot of Archie's Digest comic books ! Just could not put them down, and guess what? Even Dash, Bob and Jasmine also got interested in reading these books especially Dash ^_^ and well, Mommy is quite happy for that coz the English is very well written. After all, Dash and Jasmine are teenagers now ... yup, Dash kept reminding me that he is already a teenager ! My, my, my ... time sure flies and I am reliving my teenage days through these reading pleasures, now sharing them with my own children ! Hmm ... happy mom today !