Little notes that made my day

Here's one of them....

My elder one loves to scribble. I would find small notes in her bag or pencil case. I let her pack her own bag normally, but occasionally, I'll do spot check. And there's where I found many post-it notes sizes of notes, drawings, scribblings, etc.

Recently, I also saw a sorry-note from her to Daddy on her desk, for being naughty. I believe Hubby's heart melt too after seeing it, especially after he's given her a good scolding. It's amazing how kids her age are so creative and innocent. I really love this child of mine, she can melt my heart and make my days much brighter.

The Amazing Wonders of Kefir

I was first introduced to Kefir (pronouced as in keh, in kettle, and fear) by a dear friend, who not only shared with me the ways of making it, but also gave me a bottle with fresh kefir grains inside as the starter. This special friend has a way with home-made stuffs, and I can't stop feeling grateful for all the wonderful tips she has shared with me.


I don't plan to list down all the benefits of kefir here, or it'll fill up my whole post. You can easily google about it, and I can safely sum it up as - it has everything to make a person healthy. Its main players are the probiotics, which are five times more than yoghurt, so this beverage is certainly a good candidate to clean the intestines and boost the immune system. Apart from that, it is also claimed that kefir helps to relieve skin disorders and sinus problem. I was probably more intrigued with its ability to treat gastritis, ADHD, and those recovering from a serious illness like cancer, AIDS or being treated with antibiotics. And the best thing of all is that it's suitable for all ages.


What's more amazing is that, despite it being made with milk, it's also suitable for those who are lactose intolerant. Surprised? Yes, due to the fermentation process, it is already predigested, that's why.


Kefir has a pH of about 4.0 and due to its acidic nature, it tends to react with various metal, so try not to use metal or stainless steel products to strain, stir or store Kefir.


Making Kefir is really easy and does not require any machine whatsoever. Here is the Kefir kick start instruction provided by PS to me:


What is needed? 
- Glass bottles (1 bottle for brewing and 1 for storing the strained Kefir)
- Nylon or plastic strainer
- Plastic or wooden chopstick (for stirring)
- Handkerchief or cloth to cover the bottle, and a rubber band to secure the cloth
- Fresh milk and Kefir Grains (1 Tbs of milk kefir grains (which look like cauliflowers) is enough to brew 1 cup (0.25L) of fresh milk)


Brewing Instructions 
- Add the right amount of Kefir grains and fresh milk into a clean bottle.
- Cover with cloth or hanky and secure with rubber band to keep out the crawlies.
- Let the mixture sit on the counter top, away from the sunlight.
- After 24 hours or less (~15-18 hours), the milk will turn sour with curd and whey (clear yellowish liquid), indicating that it is ready for harvest.
- Stir to mix the curd and whey before straining. Strain the ready Kefir with the nylon strainer into a glass bottle and store in the fridge.
- It is ready for consumption.
- Measure the strained Kefir Grains to get the right amount and put it back into the glass bottle with fresh milk to make a new batch and keep repeating the process.


If you did not get curd and whey after 24 hours (meaning it is still water sour milk) strain it anyway, and throw away the milk and repeat the above process for another 24 hours or less until you get curd and whey. 


Caution: Kefir brewed less than 12 hours is known to have a milk laxative effect and kefir brewed more than 48 hours may cause constipation. 

My Kefir bottles - ready for consumption!

Initially, I noticed that after taking the Kefir for a few days, I experienced not-so-smooth bowel movement. Maybe I brewed it too long, so I shorten it to a 12-hour cycle (before this was normally 24-hours). Well, it didn't really improved, so I stopped for a few days, and even weeks. I recently started consuming it again, and I didn't have such problem anymore. Not too sure why myself :)


One good thing about this Kefir-making is that when we're bored, we can take a break. However, we still need to feed the Kefir grains, if we plan to make them again next time. I personally like the Kefir grains better than the liquid itself. The texture is rather nice to chew on, springy a little.



Taking a Break (Storage) 
To take a break from brewing, store the grains in the fridge as follows: 


Milk grains - cover grains with milk (50:50 ratio) and store in a glass bottle with lid. They can be kept in this manner for a week, then take them out for milk change. 
Brew as normal on counter top. You may drink the strained kefir. 


Please note that for prolonged cold storage of grains may weaken your grains eventually. So, be diligent and brew regularly if not daily. Brew only to the amount you need daily. That way, your grains get the food daily. 


For more information on Kefir, here are some good websites for your reading pleasure: 

http://www.kefir.org/kefir_manual.htm
http://www.helladelicious.com/our-food/2011/01/the-amazing-health-benefits-of-kefir/
http://www.yourkefirsource.com
http://mykefirworld.com/#/kefir-health-benefits/4542665251

The Struggle Within

There are times when I felt like giving up, especially when I kept stumbling and no help came. There were also times when I couldn't help questioning Him, why do I have to go thru all these. Well, this morning, I got my answers.

"There's a fire, and the father, mother, child and servant quickly evacuate the house. However, the child got frantic and suddenly ran up the stairs. He was too scared until he lost his mind, and didn't know what to do. Right then, his father asked him to jump down the window. He told him, "Dad, I can't see you. How can I jump?" His father answered him, "Child, you can't see me, but I can see you. Just jump, and I'll catch you."

That's how our new priest started the Mass today, and even though I didn't really understand the 'whys',  at least I didn't feel so rotten inside now. He ended his sermon with this inspirational video, which I would like to share here. Hopefully it'll serve as a reminder to myself, that no matter how painful the experience is, I'll never quit but finish the race. With Him, all things are possible.

I'm starting to get the hang of it!

Not long after I blogged about my bread story, I made it! I followed PS's advice and viola! It's crunchy instead of hard, and the texture inside was nice to chew too. Both my girls gave their thumbs up, and kept getting several helpings at one go. 

What did I do this time? Well, it's based on the 2nd batch of dough that I made, but this time I expedited the 2nd part and prevented the flour from getting into the filling or inside of the dough, as advised by PS. Thanks a lot, pal! :)

The only downside to this was that it would not be as cruncy or nice to chew the following day. Baking it for 10 minutes solved the problem, but still it couldn't last very long. So I still couldn't bring to office for my breakfast. Maybe I should get the bread machine after all....

My first few attempts at breads

Nay, I'm not sharing any success stories here. But it's still a fun past time and I'll definitely try again.

I've been diligently collecting points to redeem a breadmaker for years. Then PS shared with me a quick and easy way to make Artisan Bread, so I decided to give it a try. What intrigued me the most is that it doesn't require any kneading at all, unlike those traditional home-made bread. 

My first batch turned out rather saltish. I guess I used the wrong type of salt, which was the coarsest that I could find.  

The 2nd attempt, I used normal salt and reduced it to less than 1 Tbs. It turned out rather mild, but because I wrapped some meat floss in it, its taste was rather nice. Still, I was not satisfied with the texture. Not as soft as I imagined, and the crust was a little too hard.

Hopefully I will have better bread result next round...

Coincidence

It was a public holiday today due to the installation of the new king. Though not all companies observed it, luckily mine did. So were my girls' schools.

It's a very fruitful day for me. I finally managed to clear the dusty stack of piled-up documents on my dressing table. I cleaned the shoe rack and the front porch. I have the girls' shoes shop reorganised (you can't imagine how many pairs each have, they have more than mine & hubby & MIL's put together! I gave my long bath a good scrub. I washed SY's school shoes and all the floor mats in the house. I visited the "Elf and the Shoemaker" to get my broken shoe mended. I settled some banking stuffs. I took my MIL and the girls' for a foodie spree (yes, with their favourite cakes for desert too!). I managed to spend time drilling SY with her scales & pieces & sight-reading. The only thing I didn't do or forgotten was helping her with her school assignment (luckily Daddy chirped in when he's back that night).

While I'm guiding SY with her theories, we suddenly experienced minor tremor shakes in our condo in the late afternoon. We felt giddy, the mirror rattled, SJ cried. We evacuated the building twice, first time using the lift (!!!) and 2nd time using the stairs. The 2nd time was more scary, even though the tremors were not as great as the first. I heard water splashing outside as if the water pipe somewhere has burst, people shouting, everyone going down the stairs, etc. What a commotion.

Both times, after we reached down, everything was back to normal. People chatted in their mist of excitement, but it's calm and peaceful. I got several smses at night, asking us to be careful and keep away from the coastal area. But we're staying on the coastal area!

Before we retired for the night, I overheard SY asked MIL, "Amah, why today got earthquake one?" Is it everytime during the King's installation, there'll be earthquake?"

Me: "Speehless....."

The Eye Exerciser

Sometime early this year, SY came back from school with a note informing us that she needed prescription glasses. Apparently, her school did an eye check for every students. She told me that she cried because she couldn't see, and felt very scared. Many of her friends cried too. But the person who inspected them consoled them and told them that it's ok, they would see again after Mommy fixed glasses for them, and they could chose beautiful frames as well.

I felt like I've just been given a big blow too and it took me a while to accept it. Not even 7 and she needed to wear glasses? I got mine at 14, and I locked myself in my room for the whole day. Ok,, I exaggerated, but it was a terrible day for me then.

What's worse was that I felt at lost as to how to help my girl, apart from getting her a pair of 'pink' spectacles. I was more worried for her eyesight, while she's more worried of how she'll look. Sigh, girls...

I've known a few friends who bought the Eye Exerciser for their kids. I wanted to try that too. But that was rather costly, and its effectiveness was not 100% proven. Hubby did not think that was necessary. To him, it was like what's so big deal? Just get her a pair of spectacles and that's the end of story.

To me, I knew that it wouldn't be the end of the story yet. The power would go on increasing, since children's eyesight would not stable down so fast. And with glasses, her daily movements might be constrained in a way, especially during sports activities. Worried, I consulted a dear friend, who gave me a more positive outlook on things, and I did really felt so much better after that. Thank you so much, PS!

So come weekend, I took SY to see my regular optometrist and got her power inspected. Luckily it was not as bad as stated in the prescription note she brought back that day. The optometrist advised us to monitor her reading habit closely, because he told us that children's power went up very fast. He didn't recommend her to wear the glasses all the time, but only used it for reading and in the classroom. Yes, did I tell you that she didn't copy down the homework for the day because she couldn't see? I also asked the optometrist about pinholes glasses, but he told me not to waste money on that. I was not sure if it was really that ineffective, or that would mean less business for him. His reply was the same when I asked him about the Eye Exerciser. According to him, once the eyesight deteriorated, nothing would be able to help except prescription glasses. But the glasses would only aid the person's eyesight, it would not improve it. How sad and demotivating when I heard that.

Undeterred, I decided to call another good friend and asked for the Eye Exerciser agent's contact. Unfortunately, the agent told me that they were not selling the model that my friend's son was using anymore, but they had another model with similar function, though using a different approach. The model that my friend was using, was more popular, and I could search the info from the websites. It used moving cartoon images to exercise the child's eyes, so it could attract them to stay focussed throughout the exercise duration period. The model that the agent recommended to me used rays of lights to stimulate the eyes, besides having background music to train for better eyes/ears co-ordination. However, longer period of exercises were needed, in fact double the amount of time of the other model. The agent claimed that this model would be more effective because it didn't require the child to really focus for the 'magic' to work, rather as long as the child's eyes were exposed to the 'rays', it's as effective. Furthermore, it came with 2 programs, treatment for those having short-sightedness, and prevention for normal good eyesight people who just wanted to exercise the eyes.

The Eye Exerciser came with the eye chart as well. Can you see the 'rays'?

It was also claimed that this machine would be effective for kids up to 10 years old, with the power of less than 300. Even though so, adults could also benefit from this exercise too, not so much in terms of treatment, but rather for eye relaxation after a tiring day.

After discussion with hubby, we decided to buy the machine. There's nothing to lose because it came with a 30-day money back guarantee. Meaning if the child's eyesight didn't improve at all within this time frame, we got our money back. We went for the 'made-in-China' option because it's much cheaper, ~RM1k less compared to the  'made-in-China', but 'repackaged-in-Singapore' option. The agent shared some testimonials with us that a child with a power of 175 regained perfect eyesight after using it for only 2 weeks, but the child exercised as frequent as 3 times a day.

Since it was during the CNY break, I made sure SY exercised at least 2-3 times a day. Even after school reopened, she managed to squeeze in an average of 2-exercises per day. I wouldn't deny it was tough for her, since her homework was picking up too. Then one day, she came back from school and excitedly announced that she didn't need to wear the glasses anymore! She could see the board!

I was very happy for her, and I tested her eyesight a few days later. It was only 15-day after we got the machine. Indeed, her eyesight really improved 1 line. Come 30-days, she improved 1 more line. But I needed to make her do some palming to see that clearly, which I read about in the Bates Method. Her improvement was further confirmed when she can still see the board while she was seated at the last row in school. You see, their class had this sitting rotation where the children would be shifted back one row once every week and the rotation continued on. So the children got to sit from front to back throughout the school sessions.

I felt so relieved myself, and couldn't believe such miracle. She's one more line to perfect eye sight. However, this girl got lazy and so was her mother. We both felt complacent and reduced the exercises to once a day and sometimes none at all. Until one day, when I leisurely tested her on some car plate numbers and she told me she couldn't see it, I got worried and made her continue doing the exercises. At times, I doubted if her eyesight really improved, because it really sounded like a miracle to me. I did pray a lot for this to work, though and I knew deep down inside me that God has answered my prayers. But not all people can believe such miracle. They wanted something scientific to prove it. My doubts came when SY couldn't see some words that I can see. Some people suggested that maybe she memorized the eye-chart. But then, after slacking for quite awhile, I tested her again, and indeed, her eyesight dropped back to where we first started. Indeed, we both needed lots of discipline to continue working towards the perfect eye-sight.

I refrained from sharing about this earlier because I wanted to be certain that the Eye Exerciser really helped before I sang its praises. Now, I'm quite convinced of it's 'magic', but to really gain the full benefits from it, we really need to continue using it. There's really no short cut indeed. Besides that, I'm also starting her on some eyes supplement recently, because she had astigmatism as well, and nothing could cure that. But again, all these are pricey and took sometime to see its effect. I only started her on the eye supplements after I witness all the improvements, so I can safely conclude that the Eye Exerciser plus a good reading set-up did help. We actually revamped her study place, with the correct angle and amount of light as well as a proper desk/chair so that her eye level would be at the right distance.

And now, we need to continue the exercises.... Cheers to more healthy eyes!

A time of repentance

I just attended the Penitential Services recently. As usual, my daughters would ask me why do I need to attend that. I have been telling them (for a few years already) that I've been naughty, so I have to say sorry to Jesus. They would then ask me, "Why are you naughty, Mommy? Because you scolded us?". And I would laugh and say yes. Only after that they would let me go.

This year, my 7-year old daughter surprised me with another question. "We can say sorry many many times one, is it Mommy?" So I told her yes. And she went on to ask me, "If we didn't do anything wrong after that, next time we won't need to go for confession again, is it?".

How nice if I can achieve that level. I've never thought about this, but that question has made me think about a lot of things that I've never thought before. For one, I didn't even know how to explain to my daughter that we can't help sinning again and again, that we wouldn't reach that stage. Well, maybe we will, but not so soon. Or is that true? Sigh... I've only taught that it's something that will happen to the Saint, not me. But it's nice to know that God will continue to forgive us, again and again, no matter how many times we sinned. Still, that's not a licence to continue being naughty, would it?

The 2 Sides of Human

I can't help noticing that each of us have 2 sides, the happy side and the sad side. We only get to see which side the other person wants to display. Is it possible to see both the happy and sad side at the same time?

Some people only show their happy side. They tell everyone on Facebook the happy news. They twitter about it. Normally these type of people believe that happiness should be shared. Sad events should just be kept to themselves, why want to let the whole world know what misfortune has come their way? They want people to look up at them, not pity them.

Another category of people fall into the 'mopping' side. They are also often seen as those who can't stop complaining. Every time you meet them, they will tell you what a sorry state they are in. How 'this and that' happens to them, what an unlucky day for them, etc. But the good things that happen to them, they keep it low profile. Why?

I think people act the way they act because they want to be accepted in this society. Or it's part of their habit which could hardly be changed. Those who always show their happy side wants acceptance into a larger social circle,  the more 'likes' they got, the more likeable they are. No people will 'like' what you posted if it's something unhappy, right? Yeah, common sense tells us that Facebook is for the happy people.

But some people complain and complain, not because they like it, but rather for the sympathy and comfort that they will get later. Yes, when you tell your friend about something bad, they will naturally comfort you, and you won't feel so bad any more. If you tell them about how lucky you've been, you might get a 'like' on the surface, but in actual fact, they are jealous of your achievement and  silently building more 'forte' against you. Gosh! Are humans that complicated?

I don't know, maybe it's just part and parcel of life. We do what naturally comes to us, without any motive. I just know that I can be happy one minute and sad another. When I'm happy, normally I shared the good news. It just depends to a larger audience or to smaller ones. When I'm sad, I also shared them, mostly with my most trusted and close friends. But lately, I learnt that some things are best kept to yourself. You might want to get some comfort, but in actuality, time is the best healer. It's not whether you vent it out somewhere whether to real or fake audience, but in the end, you will still have to carry it with you, and only time will heal. No matter how painful or happy a memory is to you, after some time, things will be back to where you begin. All these are just temporary, it will past.

So, just be what you feel like being, be Yourself!


  

I'm feeling lucky

Guess what? I just got a gift from Santa! Gosh, it tooks 2 months for my pressie to be delivered from the North Pole, LOL!

Ah, but I'm not complaining...Now I'll have more reasons to go shopping for books :)

I hope this year will be my lucky year. It's not always I won something for myself ;)