While waiting for our son's grand arrival, Deardo and I constantly have sometimes funny and crazy discussions about what kind of education we want to give to our future son, both at home and in school and I'm pretty glad that we both seems to have the same thoughts in this area.
I think when we talk about education at home, we look up a lot at parents around us, especially our very own parents.
While I believe no parent is perfect, including my own, I do believe that there are many good parenting examples I can pick up from my parent that have shaped my siblings and I into who we are today and that are essential when bringing our future son up.
#1 Be Less Judgmental
Note that I said 'less' cos I think no human being can be so perfect that they don't judge people at all. Let's admit it, even when you don't say it out loud, you will somehow think about how someone is fat or ugly in your heart, secretly.
True, growing up in a typical Chinese family, our parent sometimes use darker-skinned people to scare us by saying stuff like "Ah, you don't wanna listen to me then that 'ge leng nga' uncle will take you away ah...". But honestly my parent are the two persons on earth that I know are the type of people who would scold us kaw kaw if we judge someone or call people by names. For instance, we are never allowed to say our friends are smelly, ugly or even their spouses' are ugly; or even calling people 'dua pui' (fatty) or 'siao cha bo' (crazy woman) unless those are the nicknames already given to that particular persons. Of course, their fear is superstitiously that Karma will drop back on us but still, it is a good intention and a very good teaching.
I think Ducum and I have both took this one level up in our lives. We have bunch of friends from different backgrounds, be it races, cultures, family backgrounds, religions or even sexual preferences. I have to admit that studying journalism has taught me a lot too to see things/treat people fairly and open-minded-ly. I truly believe that not all dark-skinned people are bad people, not all Muslims are terrorists, just like not all Chinese are con men. You just have to be careful when making friends and not have the stereotype from the second you meet the persons.
Judgmental words are especially harmful to kids who aren't ready or experienced enough to take them. It really pains me whenever I read news about teenagers or young kids killing themselves because of bullies at school calling them fat, ugly, faggot, gay or whatever it is even when they might not even be one. I'm sure those kids didn't think that simple words like those could become such dangerous murder weapons when they blurted those words. Everything starts from home, so if you teach your kids not to judge people and I don't too then imagine how beautiful the world would be like without those harsh-bashing words flying around them!
At the end of the day, we are all human and if you can be less judgmental, you will actually be much happier and most importantly, have more friends who may be helpful to you in any stage of your life.
#2 Be Kind To Each Other
I must say sometimes my parent are just too kind I think it is wrong.
Papo and Mamo's belief is that no matter what people do to you, you must learn how to forgive and forget. They like to use this Chinese phrase 以德报怨 (treat people well even though that person has treated you badly). Oh, I tell you, until today I find it super hard to do this cos I'm a person who is very 记仇 (have a good memory of anybody treating me badly) and am constantly thinking of ways to get my revenge or at least, do something to proof you wrong.
I think the basic thinking of being kind to people are nevertheless, right, as in you should help whenever possible or at least be kind and polite, but don't overdo it cos in this very generation and society today, you must learn how to be kind, yet to protect yourself at the same time or people will take advantage of your sincerity.
I've been trying myself and will try to tell my son to be kind to people whenever necessary and to give back to the society once in a while, just like his Ah Gong and Ah Ma always do. :)
#3 Giving us a Loving Family
We've been very lucky as we were born and raised in very loving, fun and sometimes, cool families. Of course, there are disagreements here and there, but no big dramas yet like what you see in TVB drama series because I can see how my parent and their siblings are willing to let go and eventually fix problems very peacefully. And I believe that has been passed down to me and my sisters whom despite not always approving of each other's actions, managed to stay as very close siblings who can talk about almost everything when we get together.
I think this is very important because it shapes a kid's character and their belief in love. The closeness my siblings and I have with our aunts, uncle and cousins (especially Mamo's side) have made us all very happy and cheerful kids. In fact, we got whole loads of help from them when we first arrived in KL to further our studies sometimes I feel like crying every time I think about how 4e drove all the way from PJ to Wangsa Maju before I came to KL just to make sure where I was going to study and where I was going to stay were okay. What did I do to deserve this? I don't need to do anything because simply, she is my aunt and I am her niece. Full stop. Even until today I have no doubt, if we need any sort of help they will help us too. In fact, now that we are old enough, I'm glad to say, we are helping them back in many ways! :)
I think It's important for kids to feel like they are always loved and cared by people around them, especially close relatives, just like I always do. Hence, I shall pledge to make sure my future son will feel very much loved by not only his parent, but people around him too!
#4 Be Happy because of the Simplest Reason
Point #3 brings us directly to point #4.
While Papo and Mamo had their moments of being angry, sad or the non-stop mumbling that we hated, I find that the five of us laugh quite easily at every single small jokes or stupid matters. It's true! Deardo is always left speechless when we can laugh like crazy at something that he thinks isn't funny at all!
My point is, there is no way in life that everything can be so perfectly perfect, just like the way you want it to be but when you frown, you cry or when you take things too seriously, you are just making things worst. I mean, I'm sure Papo and Mamo went through tough times in their lives, especially bringing us three up, but they have never failed to make dumb jokes (I'm telling you, the older they get, the lamer they are now okay), laugh and in turns, make us follow their footsteps and always carry a positive vibes with us. And when you have that positive vibes, people love to be around you more!
Every single night now whenever I pray for our future son, I pray that he will be a happy kid cos I think that's easily one of the most important characters anybody should carry with them. :)
#5 Give Back to Your Seniors When You are Capable Enough
See, I grew up looking at Mamo and Ah Ma fighting over paying for a meal, like literally almost every meal we had outside. Mamo and her siblings too, 'practice' this 'ritual' a lot that it is so scary that one of them (normally my mum lar, who else) would sometimes pretends that she was going to the loo but actually went to the counter to pay in advanced so nobody else can pay before her.
I strongly believe this act of sincerity, especially out of respect to your seniors is very important. Imagine, these are the people who have been paying everything for you since you were a baby - pampers, baby clothes, meals, up till university education! Now that you are old and capable enough, won't you feel there is a need to pay back?
I'm not saying you have to pay for everything lar unless you are dirt rich then that's fine. But personally, I feel it is a sense of achievement both to yourself and to your parents/relatives if you are able to give them simple treats like a meal treat or bring them on an all-paid trip somewhere. Most of the time when my parent are in town I'd make sure I pay for their meals but if they want, they can pay for coffee and desserts afterwards, which are often cheaper because duh, they are my parent who have probably forked out millions and millions of money to bring me up and gave me the education that I desired.
But what I vividly remember was my first treat to my 4e and Ah Ma back when I got my first official pay, when she said to Ah Ma something like how proud they should be feeling right now that their niece and granddaughter is capable enough of buying them a proper meal already! Wuah, I tell you, that made my day man!
Recently my lil' sister, Vivian had her moment too as she paid for a Korean lunch as a treat for the family since she just got confirmed by her company! Must have been a proud moment for my parent!
So I really hope that our future son would grow to become a successful kid, yet knows how to appreciate his parent and relatives who would be treating him well throughout the years and knows how to give back to them, at least once in a while. :)
#6 Don't Spoil Your Kid
I've heard of so many stories these days about kids who are unwilling to do some simple chores at work, so much so that they change jobs so easily, mainly because they have been spoiled their whole life without anybody asking them to do so at home. To put it simple, they were groomed like and to become a princess or prince.
Mamo was a 100% 'rapper mum' to us. Every Friday after school, she starts 'rapping': "soak your school shoes and socks, soak em' now or you will forget!" A day after she will then say "Wash your shoes and socks up, do it now and hang them outside or they will not dry off on time. Oi! Do it now!" Hahaha... It was so annoying but I'm sure you know what I mean! :p And she never spoiled us in any ways - we had to help clean the house, clean the toilets, cook, do gardening, clean the car and even sometimes paint the gates under the sun whenever needed too.
And I'm really proud to say that all these house works have make us more independent and less spoiled. It makes things easier when we started working part-time during college and university time at restaurants especially where not only bosses and customers can be difficult, but the amount of standing, walking around, and the cleaning can be so tedious you feel like giving up. But to Ducum and I at least, we adapted quite well and we understand that these are just small things to sacrifice to finally get your well-deserved pay at the end of the day! In fact, until today where we work in an office, you still can't run away from doing some work that are possibly sounding a bit offensive for a degree holder to do but we still do it because those are not even the hardest things we've ever done in our lives!
In fact, it would be even better if my son can learn from his papa and become very 'resourceful', fixing almost every single stuff at home, from assembling Ikea furniture till fixing the toilets, etc. His papa is a REAL MAN in this sense and I hope my son will grow to become a REAL MAN too! *wink~*
Sure, I'll love my son a lot like he is my prince, but I want to learn not to spoil him at the same time, I want my son to be a capable man in the future where house chores isn't a problem and let him learn hardship at work is only necessary for a better future.
It is of course, easier said than done, but fingers-crossed I will be able to past some of these good values down to my son. :)
So what are some good parenting quality you have learn from your parents too?
Friday, February 27, 2015
6 Good Parenting Examples I've Learned from My Parent
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Good for Photo Opp @ Charlie Chaplin Cafe, One City Mall, USJ
So we were feeling a little adventurous one weekend and decided to visit One City Mall. The mall looks pretty grand from the outside but unfortunately inside it's a little sad, with very few retail brands but loads of food outlets to choose from.
We picked the most 'outrages-looking' one to try and that's the Charlie Chaplin International Licensed Cafe.
'Outrages' really can define the cafe's eye-catching design from the outside till the inside. With a classy European style concept, pretty lights, old-school decoration items, numerous photos of the great Charlie Chaplin, the place is perfect for photography addicts in terms of photo opportunities.
Their menu is a simple one-pager, no pork but they do serve wine. So we made our choices...
Vegetarian Spring Rolls, RM12. |
Chicken Chop with Mushroom Sauce, RM26. |
American Breakfast, RM19. |
Our Vegetarian Spring Rolls were very oily and it is quite obvious they are ready-made frozen spring rolls. And then came the Chicken Chop with Mushroom Sauce which looks pretty good in terms of presentation but it lacks the portion that we were expecting it to come in, both the chicken and the side dish. It tasted okay though, I especially love the very well done grilled capsicums! We saved the worst to the last as the American Breakfast arrived, we both burst into small laughter. The plate was really a laughable one with not-even-pretty-looking fried omelet, baked beans and grilled tomato, with some really oily and pitiful portion of sausage, bacon and hash brown, arranged in a strangest way ever on the plate.
Cappuccino, RM12. |
Chamomile Tea, RM15. |
We tried their Cappuccino and the very fancy Chamomile Tea, both turned out to be quite good, especially in comparison to their food.
Someone's looking stunned here when he saw the American Breakfast! LOL! |
I love their tea cup and saucer!!! Feel so 'atas' sipping tea with them! :p |
With a 10% service charge, the bill came up to RM92.40, which I would say a bit on a higher side but what bothers me more is the price definitely doesn't reflect on the quality of food. We were left very disappointed but the place should still be a nice place to hang-out, have a cuppa and snap loads of photos!
Charlie Chaplin Cafe
One City
Jalan USJ 25/1,
47650 Subang Jaya,
Selangor
Tel: 03-5115 0196
Sunday, February 22, 2015
To a Very Goat Year! :D
Hey guys! My apologies for greeting you all a little late (finally have some time now that I'm back home with proper internet), but it's still Chinese New Year anyway! :p
*Photos taken on 1st day of CNY with Deardo and our son in my tummy, who is going to be born in this goaty year too! *wink~*
HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!!!
Here's to a prosperous, peaceful, healthy and wealthy new year ahead!
*Photos taken on 1st day of CNY with Deardo and our son in my tummy, who is going to be born in this goaty year too! *wink~*
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Satisfying Japanese Dinner @ Sakura Sakura Jap Restaurant, Subang Jaya
Sakura Sakura Japanese Restaurant is one of those restaurants that are so close to home but we never took any initiative to pay them a visit... Well, until recently when we decided to have something new for dinner.
The restaurant was a little empty when we arrived but it became quite crowded after a while, with families and some Japanese expats whom I assume are working in the city. Service was quite good and quick while the place seems pretty cozy as well.We can see they offer quite a lot of choices in their menu, including those that are stated on a blackboard, mostly exotic fish sashimi, I'm assuming.But since the mummy-to-be can't eat raw food, we went for the
FOC appetizer with some burdock, carrots and potatoes which we finished them all! |
Edamame, RM12. |
Teppan Gyoza, RM14. |
Oyako Don, RM20. |
Yakitori Don, RM24. |
A very excited Deardo checking out his bowl of awesomeness! |
While I was excited enough just trying out new restaurant! |
Sakura Sakura Japanese Restaurant
No.4 & 4A,
Jalan SS12/1B,
47500 Subang Jaya,
Selangor
Tel: 03-5637 9185
Saturday, February 14, 2015
Home-cooked for the Hungry Mummy Shirlexia
Hi ya'll! Time for another round of Chef Shirlexia sharing her cooking adventure! No offend lar dear chefs out there, I know you guys don't like people calling themselves chefs when they are not qualified enough but this is just a nickname for myself when I blog about my cooking adventure lar, k?
So lately we have been trying to cook at home as much as possible cos eating out so much shouldn't be good for a mum-to-be I guess. So if we get home earlier from work I'll whip up a quick meal, most of the time porridge. On weekends too sometimes we just have porridge since Deardo wants to eat lighter dinners and he is finally in love with my porridge (now my future son will sure love mummy's porridge since it has gotten the difficult papa's approval too, hehe...), but I'll also cook something different occasionally.
So here goes...
#1 Chicken Porridge with Stir-fry Broccoli and Oyster Mushrooms
Most of the time I make my chicken porridge with Mamo's signature recipe, just cut chicken thigh meat and marinate them with soya sauce, Ajishio, sesame oil and a bit of cooking wine, then dump into the porridge with some Tang Chai (Preserved Cabbage) and that's it! Here I added some chopped carrots for some colours.
#2 Chicken Porridge with Stir-fry Water Cress with Goji
Here I also added some Shitake Mushrooms, which is Deardo's favourite. Also recently made all our porridge with unpolished rice which turned out to be awesome! And if you haven't tried frying your water cress then you really should start doing it! Get the younger water cress and I can assure you you will love the texture when you eat it! Water Cress is very high in iron okay! :)
#3 Tang Yuen in Red Dates & Ginger Soup
It was Winter Solstice so I bought some frozen Tang Yuen from the supermarket to go with some boiled red dates and ginger soup in stead of the usual sugar-made tong sui. Tasted pretty good though!
#4 Sesame Oil Chicken Soup with Bihun Served with Stir-fry Nai Bak with Goji
Recipe is almost the same as this, but with changes in certain ingredients.
#5 Complete Chinese Dinner V1
Stir-fry mixed vege (always my favourite vege dish), Lime Leaves Prawns, Fried Fish (first time frying fish at home and Deardo had to do it cos I hate frying stuff that have oil hopping out onto me), herbal soup and the oh-so-yummy 10-grain rice with Chinese sausage. Just slice the sausages and steam them with the rice and OMG the fragrant and the taste you'll get from your rice is so irresistibly addictive!
#6 Complete Chinese Dinner V2
Made the Chinese Sausage with 10-grain rice again here to go with Stir-fry sliced pork with mushrooms & black fungus, stir-fry cabbage and carrot with dried shrimp (first attempt at making this and it was a success! yay!) plus an old cucumber soup for a wholesome dinner yo!
#7 Yellow Wine Chicken Mee Suah & Herbal Chicken Soup Mee Suah
Well Deardo has been craving for some Yellow Wine Chicken so I said well I can make it since we have the yellow wine that MIL made but I can't take it since I normally add yellow wine into the soup once I turn off the fire (wine that are not evaporated in cooking are still alcohol to preggers)so I made some herbal chicken soup for myself to go with mee suah too! Smart, right? LOL!
Anyway, I didn't do any research on how to make a Yellow Wine Chicken Soup, it was done based on what Deardo said he wanted it to be. So I pre-marinated the chicken with soya sauce, Ajishio and some yellow wine, then add into a simmered bunch of sliced ginger, fried them a little and add water, then the goji and black fungus, plus a little salt to taste. As I turned off the fire, I added about another 3 tbsp of the yellow wine. I didn't try the final product but Deardo was definitely happy with that bowl of dinner so I guess it was a success too! :)
#8 Home Alone Stir-fry French Beans, Carrot & Minced Pork with Sha Cha Sauce over Quinoa
Sometimes I do enjoy cooking for myself a lot cos that's the only time I can cook whatever I like to eat and whatever that is healthier too! I'm a big fan of Quinoa not because it's healthy or expensive (insanely expensive in Malaysia) but because of it's unique texture I just love to chew on. So on a night where Deardo wasn't home for dinner, I indulged myself in this plate of awesomeness and a bowl of 'Bat Chan' Soup for a nutritious, balanced and healthy dinner.
#9 No Carb Dinner Platter
Very yummy oven-roasted HP Sauce (and other sauces) marinated chicken drummets served with a cob of corn and a side of Stir-fry Sha Cha Sauce with Okra. Quite a fusion dinner I shall say. *wink~*
#10 Homey Dinner for the Tan Sisters
On a night where Deardo had dinner appointment, I enjoyed some private time with my two lovely sisters who came over and had a taste of home-cooked food (after some time) that the big sister made for them. So we had a Stir-fry Mixed Vege, Steamed Egg with Minced Pork, Butter Prawns and Herbal Soup to go with some awesome Chinese Sausage 10-grain rice for dinner! :) Always nice to have them with me as they always help in preparing dinner and doing the dishes. :p
#11 Minced Pork Omelet Soup with Glass Noodles
Again, on a night where Deardo enjoyed his Yellow Wine Chicken Soup Mee Sua, I enjoyed one of my favourite dishes that my Ah Ma used to cook, done in around 15 minutes. You can get the recipe here, but I added Goji for some additional nutrition this time around.
Once again, thank you for watching!
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
2nd Letter to My Future Son
Hello baby!
I'll say, I'm a cute and sexy piggy mummy! :p |
Here's you so shy don't wanna show your face! |
I think I'm very lucky to have a bunch of loving, fun and crazy friends and family around me, reminding me that I'm not alone at all, and I'm quite positive that these people will love you like I do and that this will turn you into a happy, cheerful, fun, sociable and better person. :) Soon we will be going back to Taiping for Chinese New Year! Not sure how will you react in my tummy with the new environment but I'm sure it would be fun when all mummy's relatives who visit me may want to have some fun touching my tummy and feel you kicking, so don't be shy okay? Haha that reminds me of that grin on your 2e's face when she was so excited you kicked her the other night! It would be awesome to be around those fun relatives of mine over CNY, you little fellar! :)
Mummy's friends who are really nice and cool people! :) |
And here are 2e and 3e feeling really excited about meeting you, even when you are still in my tummy! :p |
It was so sweet of 2e to tapao this plate of Mee Raja for me cos I've been craving for it but papa hates going to the restaurant. :p |
Mummy enjoying a night swim! |
Best of all, I can see you will kick/punch me more after my swimming sessions. Haha, does that mean you enjoy swimming too, just like papa and mummy? Genetically speaking, you should be a very good swimmer in the future since your papa is one good one and mummy is not bad too! :p Ooooh... Can't wait to see you build up your hot swimmer body that will make girls swoon over you! Hehehe...
I still swim at night because although I don't think people will judge a preggers in a bikini, mummy's boobies are getting really huge so the bikini top may be a bit revealing already so we prefer to go at night so even if there are people at the pool, the darkness make it harder for them to see clearly. LOL. Large boobies is a huge problem cos some perverts will check me out on the street, until they realise I'm pregnant they might turn away in shame. Also, I've met some dumb-asses who won't take the courtesy to turn away while smoking when they obviously see me, a pregnant woman nearby. I even met someone who won't let me go first when the elevator doors open when I'm obviously pregnant! I tell you, guys these days can be very 'un-gentlemen', uncivilised and annoying. Baby, I'm sure you can do better than them! Hmmmmph...
Here's praying that my little boy will grow into a charming yet gentleman man! :) |
Look at that face of enjoyment munching on ice-cream!!! :p |
Papa and mummy brought you to your first beach-walking at Port Dickson the other day! |
You should see how excited your papa was when he opened the box to check out this car seat we bought for you! |
While we have been slowly stocking up on necessities for you, there is one huge project that we have yet to figure out yet, and that's naming you. It's a tough challenge not because we don't know what to name you but because you are not only my son, but your papa's too. I knew from the beginning what to name you, it's certainly a beautiful name that has gotten many approvals from friends and family alike, except for your papa. It's okay, I'm used to it by now, your papa and I have differences in thinking and preferences (cos I'm a cool mum and he is an old-fashioned dad :p) and that's very usual for a married couple anyway. We have got a list of names now and the list is expanding as time past too. I'm not sure who will be the ultimate winner but I'm really avoiding it letting it slack right now and let your last-minute papa think about it later.
Ok lah, that's all for now. My lovely baby boy, please continue to be a good boy and mummy loves you k!
XOXO From mummy
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