When Mama was Away...

 
This school holiday mama took a short break from my Little Sprouts. Joining Ah Ma and mama's side family to Taiwan and its provinces was such a luxury that papa'd offered, it was like having a dose of muscle relaxant( not exaggerated at all)! 
*All the tension mommies, quick! Sign up for holiday trip now(laugh)!

Frankly, at first mama didn't have much faith of papa nursing the sprouts(not that I didn't trust his capability, but mama worried the sprouts might have got on his nerves as they usually did). So many "What if.." has lingered in my mind, moreover the internet reception was so 'unpredictable' in Taiwan, it worried mama deadly when mama didn't get to contact papa! Nevertheless, the trip was awesome, especially to someone who likes hawker and pasar malam(night market) food. It was
fun and exciting to decide what to get for the Little Sprouts too(glad they like what mama have got them)!

So, what happened when mama was not around...
 On Wednesday morning, papa brought Ah Gong and Little Sprouts to Cameron highland. They had bundles of fun plucking strawberries(RM20 per pack).

 Big red strawberry, yum!

 Apparently papa brought them back to the Big Red Strawberry park... glad they enjoyed it!

 Fish watching, kids' favourite hobby!

Unfortunately, there was also big trial for papa, that evening Xuan fell sick with hay fever and rashes. Kudos to papa who nursed him relentlessly, his fever subsided on Thursday(Clap Clap).

On Friday Morning, papa brought the sprouts to the Proton Power of 1 Car Exhibition at Bukit Jalil.

 On Saturday, papa, Ji Be De and the sprouts went to the 4th Putrajaya International Balloon Fiesta.

On Sunday, it was Juan Juan's turn to fall sick... poor papa... despite all the commotion, papa still manage to brought the sprouts to the airport to fetch mama! Thank you so much! Most appreciated!

*p/s: So did the Sprouts miss mama?! Yes, they kept asking for mama when mama wasn't around, and these few days they are sticking to me like super glue, perhaps this is what we call "Absence make the heart grows fonder!"(wink)

Sharing Holiday Program and Montessori Classes (in Singapore)!

Hi all, it has been quite some time My Little Sprout stayed MIA from blogsphere(well, it still kinda inactive now). Wish everyone is doing well and have great holiday with your beautiful family!

Speaking of school holiday, most modern moms might have scouting holiday programs for their little ones, perhaps to keep the kids occupied and create less headache for the in laws or caregiver. The other day, I'd came across Contended Mom's blog and found her school offers some interesting Montessori classes and holiday program(only available in Singapore).

I would have sent my sprouts there if I stayed in Singapore or Johor, thus I'd like to share the detail of the classes here with my Singaporean and Johorean friends, sorry for the other blog pals!

Words from Contended Mom:

"Sadly, I feel that the younger generation may be displaying some signs of rigidity in their thought process, perhaps due to the education system in this region. They are trained to just focus on their exams and nothing else matters.  In my view, they are definitely much less creative vis a vis our generation!  We used to do a lot of fun activities during our earlier years! We played all day in the garden, we explored the world around us and sky was the limit, literally. We climbed trees, we engaged in cricket fighting games...etc etc
Hence, there is a need to break this trend of plain" paper-chase". 
WorkPlayz Montessori can help our children achieve their fullest potential by providing them with a conducive and vibrant environment while they work at their respective pace.
WorkPlayz Montessori is a newly set up enrichment centre at Telok Blangah.

At WorkPlayz Montessori, the child works at his or her own optimum level – in a COZY environment where BEAUTY and ORDERLINESS are emphasized and appreciated. A spontaneous love of "WORK" is revealed as the child is given the freedom (within boundaries) to make her own choices.

Children's activity is referred to as "work" because it is believed that play is the important work of early childhood. Great value is placed on the children's activity by describing and treating them as work. With this in effect, a child's work becomes not only an effort a child makes or a process a child follows, but also an activity a child finds enjoyable, interesting and valuable in itself for that reason.
.


It is an ideal enrichment centre for parents who prefer a smaller playgroup which would minimise the risks of infection due to the general weaker immunity of the younger ones. "


Montessori classes - (Pre-schoolers)
- Montessori classes from Monday to Sunday, various time slots are available.

Parent and child session - available on Saturday (for the younger ones who are still very much attached to their parents. This would provide them with the comfort that their parents are still with them as they explore their world in the Montessori way)

Tuition classes (max. 6 pupils)Tuition services are available for P1 to P3 pupils (English, Math, Chinese).

- First class will commence on 1 April 2012.
The Montessori way of teaching will be adopted. This would ensure a lively and engaging session which would enhance learning multiple times.
- For Chinese, the emphasis is on  the 4 main areas of Chinese literacy (听,说,读,写),

Phonics classes  - First class will commence on 1 April 2012.
March Holiday Camp 2012 (12 March 2012 to 16 March 2012)
 - Please call for more details!


Find out more at : www.workplayz.com.sg   Or call : (65) 9771 2764 / (65) 9763 3766 . Please pardon some grammatical errors at the website. They will be amended in due course.
**Note: This is not a paid post, it's mean to share information with my blogger friends!

Best Homemade Pancake Ever!

It's an awesome morning, especially when mama got to know mama's favourite Masterchef contestant- Callum Hann is launching his 1st cook book next week! See the picture on top, it's the pancakes recipe from his cook book. Couldn't wait for any longer, and mama gave it a try early this morning and the outcome is spectacular, best ever pancakes mama has made in life!
Callum's maiden cook book: The Starter Kitchen, will be released on 1st of March!
 Click here for Callum's official site, and here for Callum's book interview.

 
 Here's a sneak peek of recipe from Callum's book: Mother's day special pancake! (Click here for original recipe)

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups self- raising flour
1/4 tsp sodium bicarb/ baking soda
2 eggs
11/4 cups milk
3/4 cup castor sugar( I reduced the sugar to 1/4 cup)

Topping: Up to you flavour, mama prefer whipping cream and chocolate shedding.

Step 1: Mix and sift flour and bicarb. Make a well to avoid lumps forming.

Step 2: Whisk egg, sugar and milk together, then pour into the well to combine with flour mix (Kids can actually help to stir and pour the ingredient, and they are more than happy to help).

Surprisingly this recipe didn't require any oil or butter, how ingenious!
Step 3: Heat the non stick pan over medium low heat. Add 1/4 cup of batter and wait till it bubbles, carefully flip to the other side for a min or so before remove from pan.

Thanks to Callum, perfectly brown pancake!

 Drizzle with honey and top with whipping cream and chocolate shedding, yummmm!
*How I wish I could have Callum's 1st recipe book for my Birthday present, hinting someone(Stuck tongue out)!

Top Chat of the Week: Big Book Sale!

Holy cow, there goes our monthly allowance again!!! It was a traffic packed Tuesday morning, but nothing could stop us, not after Mamarazzi informed us there was a dai dou lan(super worth it) books warehouse sales in town. Thanks again Mamarazzi (Here she blogged about the sale)!

The Big Book Sale was held in Subang Avenue, the building is located right beside Carrefour Subang Jaya. Pic: Bird view from 2nd floor, the book sale is on Ground floor (Date : 10-19 February 2012
Time : 10am - 10pm
.)

 Fantasy and some romance fiction, RM5 each.

Home Improvement booklets, each for RM1!


 Assortment of recipes(RM1 each).

 Valentine special, Disney clubhouse, Minnie's Valentine for RM2 each.

 Stationary...

 Kids' activity books, range from RM1-RM3.


 Various titles of Teens' novels, RM1 each.

 Peter & Jane, RM7 each.

 Palm size kids' storybook, RM2 each.

Enid Blyton hardcover storybooks, RM7 each.




After (mama and Ah Xuan) spending 2 hours scouting for books, we had Chinese Dim Sum at 2nd Floor.
Mama ordered fish porridge(RM6), but it was too plain and tasteless... yuck!
Ah Xuan ordered Honey BBQ pao(RM3.50), but the filling was too little and the skin was too thick...
We also ordered Ha Gao(Prawn dumplings)(RM3.50), the filling wasn't fresh at all...
The only tasty Dim Sum were these little Siu Mai, the prawn was juicy and the filling was abundant!
 Here's our book loots:
Some fiction and non fiction for mama(RM3-RM5 each)
Something for Ah Xuan(RM1-RM3)
Mama's choice of cook book, RM1 each.
Books for Juan Juan, RM1-RM6.
Total expenses: RM98nett

We Read, We Blog and We Gather!

My oh my, we sure had vanished from the blogging atmosphere for quite some time! It seems we had missed celebrating X mas, New Year and worst Chinese New Year with dear all(*guilt guilt)! ... Yeah, at least we make it on Thaipusam(Well, actually a day after the big day)!!

Yesterday we had a CNY gathering among a few good friends(Mamarrazi, Auntie Cleffairy, Auntie Chee Yee and their family) at Yin Her Seafood Restaurant, Kg Baru Sg Buloh. Since Little Brother suspected having Chicken Pox, he got grounded at home.


The alfresco dinning aisle ....

The indoor air-con dining room. Thanks Mama Kucing for the pre booking!

 
Salmon Lou Sang, "Huat Ah~!!"


Butter fried Sotong(Squid),  fried to the perfect temperature, not too chewy, just nice!

Fried egg with seafood, yum!

Fried You Mak with fermented bean curd, slight spicy, tasty!

Lemon chicken, crunchy at the outside and succulent at the inside, perfect!

The signature dish, Nyonya style Tilapia! Delicious!

While the mommies had their book- chat...

... the kids turned into impromptu kiddo rappers( and a ballerina)!


The little ones chilling out by the fishing pond!

P/S: Thank you ladies for all the wonderful gifts and Red Packets! Most appreciated!
Yin Her Restaurant
AL-114, Jalan Welfare,
Kg Baru Sg Buloh 47000,
Sel

Contact:
Tel/ Fax: 0361565876
Amy Chew: 012 2981889

Business Hour: Mon- Sun(11am-10:30pm)

Her 1st ever Doll House!

Hello all! Firstly, gonna wish you all a happy school holiday(especially to teachers and daddy or mommy with cutie pies)! * nod nod Yes, we have indeed slack in blogging(since mama has been miserably busy these days)... anyway, this is our latest project: Little Sprout's Paper Doll House.

 
Again, to parents who have little kids, don't throw all the paper boxes away... it's quite resourceful, certainly a really good material for making toys!

 
Mama patched up and covered the printing on the box with kitchen rolls. To exempt such fuss, you can actually use a print free paper box.

Juan Juan helped to paint the 1st layer, she requested 'pink' as the wall colour. Mama helped to paint another 2 layers after each layer's paint dried.

 
The paintwork outcome....

Mama bought some adhesive wallpapers(RM3.60 per roll) from Mr DIY(hardware-outlet). The wood-grain's slightly cheaper, sorry... can;t recall the price.

The doll house's interior after pasting the wallpapers...

A little touch-up... such inconspicuous difference!

 
The interior: McD holder arm chair, tissue box bed, cardboard shelves and cupboard. It took mama approximately 2 days to furnish the house.

A little surprise for Juan Juan: Her 1st little Barbie dolly and some kitchen appliances. She actually slept with her doll and had her company wherever she went.

 
Juan Juan's new toy and she loves it!

 
 My beloved girl happily playing with her new set of toys!

p/s: Sorry for not being able to blog hopping regularly, wish you all a lovely week ahead!