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Wei, got update on a Sunday la! Figured I”d share a recipe for those who are trying to figure out what to cook for Sunday dinner

Inspired by Fieran’s post here, I set out to make us some Chow Mein Noodles. I love the word Chow Mein. I can say it a hundred times and it tickles me for some strange reason. Chow mein chow mein chow mein chow meiiiiiiiiin!

Chow Mein means fried noodles, which is how these noodles are cooked for this recipe. Incase you haven’t picked it up already.

The hubby pointed out the term “Chow Mein’ noodles is such an American thing, because we hardly use that term there. He is such a smart ass sometimes.

Moving on, ingredients as follows:

Packet of egg noodles. I got the flat type.

1 chopped medium size white onions

4 clove garlic, chopped

1 chilli chopped

Chicken cubes

Half chopped cabbage and carrots

A handful of bean sprout

2 eggs – fried and put aside.

Seasoning: Now I ALWAYS have issues with some seasoning recipes. They usually call for too little seasoning, while I prefer to have alot of sauce in my noodles. After doing some extensive research (I’m so lifeless!), I combined these and wala, it wasn’t too bad at all! Not THE best like you get in restaurants, but will suffice

6 tablespoon oyster sauce + 6 teaspoon light soya sauce + 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil + 1/2 tablespoon sugar + 1/2 tablespoon dark soya sauce + 2 tablespoon sweet soya sauce (kecap manis) + pinch of chicken stock granules = mix with some hot water.

Pepper and salt to taste.

Spring onions, for garnishing.

Steps:

1. Boil noodle in hot water until soft. Drain in cold water and set aside.

2. In a pan, fry onions, garlic and chilli until aromatic.

3. Fry the chicken until light brown and throw in the cabbage, carrots and bean sprout. Cook until vegetables are soft.

4. Dump in the noodles, add in seasoning followed by black pepper and salt to taste.

5. Garnish with eggs and spring onions and WALA:

CHOW MEIN NOODLES Y’ALL!

Just sooo soooo easy to make and the perfect dish to whip up on a lazy sunday evening! Helps that it taste good too Even the toddler approves. Try it.

What’s your easy peasy go to dish on a lazy Sunday evening? Share! Who knows, I might cook it next

You know, it’s been a while since we made any impromptu trips to Malacca. I do miss Malacca for its food, esp Portuguese / Baba Nyonya food! Please go read all my previous foodie experience in Malacca here. I still crave for Amy’s till today!

Being tied down to KL for a simple reason, Simply Mel’s is our favorite go to place when we have such food cravings. They are relatively new in the foodie business but save to say, I don’t know of any place in KL that serves better Portuguese / Baba Nyonya food than them. Actually, do we have other Portuguese restaurants in KL?

This was our third visit to Simply Mel’s!

Their signature sirap bandung. I LOVE sirap bandung. Their version wasn’t too sweet yet very satisfying.

Little one was eyeing the bandung but at the end we gave her plain water coz we’re mean like that

The simple but cozy interior. It’s really like eating at your parent’s place. Really! Since the owner Mel herself cooks these lovely dishes.

Mama Mercy’s Fish Croquette

Chicken Pongteh, which is slowly cooked with potatoes in a shallow and black bean paste gravy. If you can’t stand spicy food, this is a must try.

Mel’s Devil Curry – sinfully spicy! The way we like it. But be warned if you can’t take spicy food. This would literally sting you But it’s soo good.

Mixed vegetable – something I could whip up at home also but the vegs were cooked perfectly, not too hard, not too soft.

Another spicy aubergine dish that went oh so well with rice.  My mom has this habit of attempting to re-create whatever she eats when we’re out so she did challenge herself to re-create this and we can’t wait.

First time visit for my parents – they loved it! Just by what we ordered you can tell we’re Indians

For dessert I went with the sago gula melaka which was divineeeee, it’s a must have on my list if any restaurant has this on their menu.

Mom went for the Bubur Pulut Hitam, which is also my favorite. Obviously the men didn’t do dessert

Overall, food here is obviously above average. It’s like eating good Malacca food in the vicinity of KL. The entire bill came up to approx RM100. I like how Mel, the owner does her obligatory meet and greet with the customers once you’re done with dinner. Restaurants who give out a homely vibe and home-cooked meals always gets my vote.

Mom modelling my new mustard bag that came in the mail on Friday, hehe. I’m actually on a mission to collect bags in every color possible :D, IF that’s a possible thing to achieve.

And believe it or not, I only paid RM50 for this inclusive of shipping. It’s so BIG (bigger than what I expected it to be) and definitely of very good quality. No one believes me when I say it’s onleh RM50. I walked into Coach in Gardens the other day with this bag and no one snubbed me, heh

And also one of my good buys last weekend is this: sorry for the blur pic, my kid is constantly snatching away my makeup!

These are none other than the Revlon Lip Butter which every damn beauty blog are raving about at the moment. Feel free to google the reviews to see the beautiful swatches! I got it in Macaron and Cherry Tart for RM25 each and just ADORE them to bits. It’s by far one of the better drugstore lippie product out there. It goes on bloody smoothly like err butter, is super pigmented and layers well, staying power is not too bad, moisturizing power is off the hook and I can’t help re-apply this just coz I love how it feels on my lip.

Now I feel like collecting every color available, grr. Yea, I’m obsessed with collecting things in every possible color lately, lol. Must-resist-temptation!! Unless anyone wants to sponsor it for meee?!

What’s your cheap but very happy purchase made recently? Weird how some affordable products can invoke such a HAPPY feeling in you

A liberal education is at the heart of a civil society, and at the heart of a liberal education is the act of teaching. ~ A. Bartlett Giamatti

I obsess alot about Sairah’s education. You can say I want nothing but the best for her. Which is why her father thinks moving to Australia would do her wonders, where education is concerned. Anyway, as parents we all just want the best where our kids are concerned. Geez, I sound like my parents now!

I’ve been contemplating on which is the best age to send her to pre-school. I definitely believe she will benefit alot out of this since she has the knack to learn but I don’t want to start her off too soon as well coz I”m afraid she might end up being ‘bored’ of school.

Pre-school aside, we went ahead with a trial lesson @ Musikhaus in Sunway Giza Mall. Musikhaus is an enrichment centre which focuses on over all child development. Yup, sure, it’s a bit further away for us to travel but they are so far the most affordable @ RM350 per term / 10 lessons. Which breaks down to classes once a week for 2.5 months. Totally do-able!

Mom, I’m going to an enrichment centre?? Thought you said we were heading to the MALL?

We arrived early which was a good thing coz that gave baby girl some time to warm up and play for a bit.

Cutting up some pizza slices, lol

We attended the Musikhaus for Babies which cater to bubs of 0-18 months though I really can’t imagine babies of under 6 months going to enrichment centres.

Didn’t take too many photos of our session out of privacy issues and respect plus I didn’t see other parents whip out their cameras. They probably dont have blogs me think. Basically it was a 45 minutes session of singing, dancing, teaching kids how to play with toys, drums, balls, teaching them words and motions….

A friend once  told me there’s no point in all this because you can ‘re-create’ the same at home. Why pay money for this she said. But I disagreed. Because at home, it is just you and familiar faces for the child, in a class like this, a child learns how to socialize, be comfortable with strangers and above all, learn how to play with others. They develop social skills this way and in the process, learn new things too. It’s about pushing the boundaries and familiarizing a child outside her comfort zone. You absolutely cannot re-create this at home. At all. Well unless that is, you manage to get your hands on their handbook and make sure you have at least 6-8 kids around at all times then count me in please! Most importantly, must be free la hor

Each session requires one parent. But since we were under the trial, both of us joined in…

Lil drummer girl in the making

It’s interesting to see how kids react to what the teacher had to say/do. Some cried when the toys/props were taken away, some were so chilled out while some didn’t even care what was going on, lol….too cute! My little one was quick to repeat some of the words and actions showed by their teacher. But she did cry when she packed away the balls, infact she started crawling towards her so she could grab one, lol. She did play nice with other kids which I’m pleased, even shared her toys with those babies (well except for the drum, she didn’t want the BIG ones but the smaller one pictured above) AND I LOVE the clean up song where it teaches kids to put back their toys after play-time (something which I never took notice of until the class coz people have the tendency of cleaning up after me, ahem).

As a mom, I definitely did learn a few tricks from that class and I’m convinced Sairah did too. So we did the first step and registered her for future classes which is a non-refundable deposit of RM60. We didn’t commit to the package yet because classes cannot be carried forward, only replaced within that week as they teach new things every week. Since our weekends are packed until March/early April, we’ll be dropping by and paying walk-in fees as and when we can make it. You may check out their pricing and schedule here.  You can choose to do half term if you want.

But if you know of any cheaper place then holla. Look at me, want the best in education but want the cheapest, lol.

You also know a class was a good one when your kid knocks out in the car after her first lesson! I definitely can’t complain

Here she is @ Republika for her favorite noodle lunch @ Eat Village.

As for her outfit, I wanted her to wear something BRIGHT for her first lesson. Something that says Hi everyone, it’s my first day of class and I’m so bubbly and approachable, please beeeee my friend! LOL.

‘To have a friend, you have to BEE a friend’ Geddit???! That’s what it says on her tee. Yea I got it from Manila and the belt buckle adds a nice touch to the outfit. Wearing a comfie outfit that enables a baby to move effortlessly during class is a MUST

And as of Sunday, she can officially say ‘SCHOOL’. After I drilled that word a million times into her head. I was aiming for enrichment centre, lol but thought it was a bit too much, ahem.

Enrichment centre! Say it child!

Totally random, we briefly dropped by A&W in PJ since I had some vouchers to use. As we were leaving I noticed these kiddie rides. Man, they look like they’re at least 30 years old!! A true classic, a real antique! I might have probably sat on it as a kid coz we used to frequent A&W…….good times and memories.

I put Sairah on one of it, put in a 50 cent coin and that kid got scared after a while and wanted to jump out. Hmpf, there goes my coin but at least she got to sit on something her mom probably did, manyyyy years ago

I wonder how many people have actually stopped to admire these rides? Truly a reflection of the past and good childhood memories.

We decided to go someplace nearby last week in view of the LONG weekend. So Genting Highland was the chosen place.

But it never occured to me that the rest of the city folks would also decide to go here coz let me tell you that GH is best avoided during super peak season! Car park was a bitch to find, we had to park in some slope and WALK, theme park rides were also insane with a minimum of 15 minutes wait each time (we’re the impatient kind you see),  restaurants were massively crowded with long lines and slow service,crowds were pouring everywhere with all types of  people , including an idiot of a grandfather who stripped his grandkid down and made him pee in the DUSTBIN at the indoor theme park.  I was tempted to take a photo but was afraid he would ‘aim’ his grandkid at me, haha.

That said, we still had a good time. At least, we know for a fact Baby Sairah did because she was all smiles and full of curiousity and I think that’s what matters the most.

Stayed at the Theme Park Hotel coz the husband hates First World for its pigeonclaustrophobic  sized rooms. And I’ll tell you GH ain’t cheap during super peak okie!

Here we are about to check in. Only good thing was they accomodated our early check in @ 12ish. Promptly texted us that our room was ready as we ate lunch. That’s because it’s not First World Hotel the hubby said, lol.

Everyone at home lectured me to make sure baby was kept warm at all times. Geez, place was cool but not that cold during the day.

Nevertheless, Sairah wore:

A pink penguin tee – YES I realized that kid  hardly has proper tees to go out with coz her wardrobe is filled with dresses. So guess who’s going shopping soon

Leggings with skirt attached – Jusco. Can’t get enough of this!

Sport Shoes coz I”m such a sensible mom: Baby Kiko

Pink hoodie Sweater: From Manila.

Back View.

Making our way to the indoor theme park. Twas a long walk esp when you have a toddler insisting she wants to walk too.

HAPPINESS! The look that made the trip ALL WORTH IT!

Bought our indoor theme park tickets and baby was more keen on the rides that she didn’t want to pose with her old lady

First stop – the reindeer ride!! I almost cannot believe we sat on this ride. It was soo damn slow. And even this stupid ride had a line. Yes you are limited to specific rides in a theme park when you take your toddler along. But of course, there was no denying this trip was all about her and not to satisfy us so….reindeer ride it is!

My hair is SO F*cked!!

OMG Ma, this thing is moving so fast, lol.

Next stop, the mini train! That took us a short 3 round rides after a 15 minute wait, grrr.

Wow mom, even this goes super fast…..:eek:

Baby girl kept eyeing this ride for the longest time. She would point up to it and go oooooo. I guess the bright bold colors played a huge part in attracting her.

So of course, like good parents, we had to line up for another 15-20 minutes for it. In-between she made friends with these two chinese girls who kept holding her hands and stroking her hair like as though she was their sister too. All together now, awwww!

Yay for my dream come true ride!

And the final stop was the Carousel!

I’m so fabolous dahllingggg

Again, being miss friendly with another child.

She was afraid to go on the horsey so both daddy and daughter ended up in this carriage, LOL. Swear the husband looks so stupid sitting on it, like he’s waiting for his prince charming to pop by. Things a dad would do for his lil girl

Toh dah eeh maeiiii

Took a stroll outside for a bit. We didn’t go to the outdoor theme park coz hubby was too cheap to buy the tickets coz we knew we wouldn’t have enough time to cover both theme parks plus the lines to go to the outdoor themepark was MASSIVE.

Baby girl trying to see if she can blow some mist, LOL

Walking on the way back to the hotel to grab some coffee and scones and a quick NAP!

OKAY, all set for dinner!!

I love this outfit on her, kept her warm and it’s almost simliar to what daddy wore, well almost. Sairah made friends with these three old grandparents while we were searching for a restaurant to eat. Promptly shook their hands and what not. That kid does not discriminate I tell ya.

A quick stroll outside to experience some cold since weather in KL has been insanely hot. Try 38 degrees that weekend!

Finally adjourned to the room around 10pm. While the hubby read MY magazine (I sure hope he picked up some good tips there)…

Baby kept her self busy watching a movie. It wasn’t even a horror movie so I don’t know what’s with her expression

This was the morning after……..sorry baby, there is no room service here I think.

Yup, we took her little potty allll the way to GH. When she grows up one day and sees this, she will hate me. Heck, she might even disown me.  Meanwhile enjoy this photo of my baby girl taking a dump in the morning while reading my magazine

Mommy says must-do-big-business before we step out of the room coz she hates cleaning me up in public toilets. Lazy woman that one.

Breakie time before we go back HOME.

She was ‘reading’ some medical journal, haha.

Sigh, I wish that woman would bring my milk soon.

Trip to Genting:

Room: RM200

Food: Approx RM120 for three stinking meals (note to self: bring own maggi/food or just don’t eat next time)

Theme Park: RM60

Total: Close to RM400.

Worth it to go during super peak season? Well NO.

Worth to see your child smile and be happy throughout the trip: WHY YES, in a flash we’ll do this again if we have to! Actually wait, preferably non-peak season that is!

When it comes to cooking vegetables,  a bottle of oyster sauce is truly my best friend :D  I almost don’t know how to cook vegetables if I don’t have oyster sauce in it.

So the other day a little light bulb came on and I wondered if I could make green curry with egg tofu mixed with medley of vegetables. I’m a genius.

I boiled the vegs before hand to make it soft and did the usual to derive my green curry. Nothing to spicy coz my baby girl was gonna have this for lunch too and wala, here’s the end result:

She loved the curry with cauliflower to my surprise. And indeed this was a good change from the usual oyster-sauce-based vegetables :D  And green curry with chicken for that matter. For some reason she wasn’t a fan of the egg tofu but I read most kids don’t usually like it for some strange reason. No matter how much I tried to ‘hide’ the tofu with the cauliflower and rice, she’d eat everything else and spit out the tofu.

That’s when I found this other recipe for tofu. And it worked like a charm because that baby ate her damn tofu and even asked for more!

Using 1 pack of extra firm tofu, cut them into small cubes and pat dry. Season with some corn flour, salt, pepper and garlic salt. Fry in oil until brown and keep aside. Even if you want to stop at this stage, it’s no biggie coz it taste pretty delicious already! In a pan, chop 2 clove garlic, a small 1 inch piece of ginger and mix one tablespoon soy sauce with 1 tablespoon sesame oil. The recipe called for vinegar which I used but found it a tad salty (it went well with rice though, just a tiny bit salty on its own) so you may omit that. Throw in tofu to mix with sauce and this is the end result:

And I digress, here’s a photo of my soon to be 17 month old baby with her thick mop of hair taken during her dad’s b’day dinner. Looks like she has inherited my fast-growing-hair genes coz her hair seems to grow EXTREMELY fast, something which her father wish he could inherit, he he.

My future Doctor. Oh hai, I’m Dr Sairah – your doctor today. I really oughta prescribe you a slice of chocolate cake a day for nothing makes the heart and soul happier than a slice of rich chocolate cake. True story

It’s scary how some kids can be so vain….

And so good at mimicking their moms. She watches me put on makeup and now she knows how to pretend to apply lipgloss, put on eyeshadow and heck even blot her face with my oil blotter. The father keeps telling her she’ll never need all this coz she’s a natural beauty, unlike her mother

Moving on, I also made some Indian style potatoes to go with rice. I know right, carbs with carbs – don’t judge!

It was fairly simple and easy. I used 2 russet potatoes which I cut and boiled until soft. In a clean pan, dry roast cumin seeds (about 1 teaspoon, more wouldnt hurt!) until brown and aromatic. I used a spoon to smash it down further to form an almost powder form. Keep aside. Once the potato is boiled, mash it down with a fork. Heat pan, and fry 3 clove chopped garlic, half chopped onions and 1 chopped red chill. Add in a handful of cherry tomatoes (cut in half) and then add in potatoes and mix with some salt, pepper and roasted cumin. Garnish with spring onions.

Sinfully carbilious!

Both these two recipes are courtesy of this site I made slight changes to the recipe.

This is what the hubby brought to the table. Curry derived from a PASTE packet!! But he went on cooking and pretending like he was some chef  whipping out a new recipe. So annoying. More annoying when he went ‘mmm soo goood’ like as though he cooked this up from scratch. MEN!

And among all that food, this is a photo of Sairah after her hair cut  given by the most awesome hair-stylist – ME It’s becoming increasingly HARD to even cut her hair in an even manner coz she cries the minute any one of us touches her hair! It’s so hard to give her a straight even fringe thesedays.

Am not pleased with my side swept fringe woman!

This is what I have to say about mom cutting my hair!

Awesome tutu from BB Luvs Me online store, incase anyone is keen

YES I shall RUN away from that wicked witch the next time I see her coming at me with her scissors. I’ll run run as fast as I can and take me where my legs will take me to…..

Le sigh, any recommendations for a good kiddie hair dresser?