Is it worth embarrassing yourself for $9?

Shop & Save have this way of attracting shoppers to buy at their store. For every $15 you spend, you will get a stamp. Get 12 stamps in a month and you will get $9 rebate. Their stuff are not really cheap but since it's the only supermarket near my place, I have no other choice. I don't shop there to get the stamps but if I'm close to complete the required 12 stamps, I'll just buy whatever is needed for the home to keep stock. I don't 'beg' from strangers for stamps.

You see, if you go there on the last 2 days of the month, you might be approached by strangers asking you if you have the stamps and if you could give it to them because they are short of a few. Just how many is a few? If it's one or two, go buy something useful to top up lah. If it's more than you are not just short of a few. You might as well give yours away or share with a friend. Two of the regulars doing this are someone I see almost everyday. They are SAHMs. We often see each other on the street.

Yesterday, I went to get a tin of milk powder since I was just short of 2 stamps and I need a spare tin of milk anyway. As I walk out, one of the 2 SAHM came to me and asked if I have stamps to spare her. I told her no, I just completed mine. Then she said, "Ai ya. Then no choice, I have to continue to do lose face things." 哎呀。那没办法，我还是得继续做丢脸的事。

If you think it's so embarrassing (丢脸), then why do it? What I don't understand is, they sit their children (one each) on those musical mobile. (You know, those you have to put a coin to get it rocking.) And while awaiting for their 'victims', they keep 'donating' money into the machines so that their kids will not ask to go home. It's 50 cents a ride, you know.

So at the end of the whole 'face-losing' event, they may eventually get the stamps and the $9 they wanted. Minus off the money they spend to pacify their children, it is worth it? Or maybe they have gotten used to it since they do it every month?

Tag: Creative Thinking

Jolene gave me this award to me for being creative in food preparation. Aww ... thank you so much. Must put on my thinking cap to wokked up more interesting food. I don't want to fail this award leh.

Sorry, Jolene! I know this has been quite sometime liao. More than 1 month to be exact. *pai-say* I have in my post and didn't realise that I didn't publish it. Blur! Hey, thanks again for the award.

I would like to pass the award to the following ladies for their ever creative online scrapbook photos. I love it and would love to try them but ... I got no photoshop leh. hehe ...

LZmommy, Jazzmint, TwinMommy and Hui Sia .... keep it up!

Teachers' Day Gift

This was what we did for Teachers' Day. Chocolate Cheese Truffles packed in gift box with tag or magnetic bookmark.

Of course he didn't complete everything, as usual, but he did make the truffles all by himself. Oh and the tags too because that was simple. *wink*

* The making of Chocolate Cheese Truffles*

* Gift Tags we made *

Discipline Master in the house

I was in the kitchen doing my washing after 哥哥 finished his dinner and left the table ...

• 哥哥 : You stand properly here. Stand still. *making 妹妹 stands against a wall*
• 哥哥 : Why you make 妈妈 angry? Why you so naughty don't want to eat the porridge 妈妈 cook for you?
• 妹妹 : Ah ... bu.. jar ... blah ...
• 哥哥 : You must say sorry to 妈妈 okay?
• 妹妹 : Sorry ...
• 哥哥 : Come ... *holds 妹妹's hand* go ... say sorry to 妈妈 ...

妹妹 came to the kitchen and said sorry to me and left. 哥哥 told me he punished her (by making her stand) for being naughty and he repeated what he did (including 妹妹's babbling), which I had already seen, but this time with is facial expression. haha ...

I later told 哥哥 that he did the right thing in telling 妹妹 that she was being naughty for not eating her dinner but in order to do that he himself must eat and finish his dinner (which he did). And I'm very happy that he talked to 妹妹 nicely and not by shouting at her. He is setting a good example to his 妹妹. *keeping fingers crossed* I can tell he was pleased with himself too.

Gift Tags

We made gift tags to attached with the Chocolate Cheese Truffles for my son's teachers. This is a simple craft. Since my son didn't want to draw so many cards. We used craft punches instead.

Originally, my son wanted to give the Magnetic Bookmarks he made few days ago to two of his teachers but they were to big to fit into the gift box, so we made another two smaller ones.

Materials needed:

• Coloured Paper (our size was 5.5cm x 5.5cm)
• Glue (Stick glue preferred as it will not curl the paper)
• * additional tools needed - assorted craft punches

How it is done:

1. Just stick the punched out shapes to the paper.
2. Either fill up one side of the paper and can write your message of the reverse side.
3. Or leave some space to write your message in front.

Note:
You can use sticker, glitters to decorate too!

* Tags we made *

Chocolate Cheese Truffles

This is what we made for Teachers' Day. It's Chocolate Cheese Truffles, something easy that can be managed by kids themselves.

However, I changed the procedure of my original recipe a bit. Instead of melting the chocolate in a pot over a pot of boiling water, I have the bowl of chopped chocolate in another (heavy) bowl of hot water. I don't want my son to get himself scalded by boiling water as it will be still bubbling. And to keep the chocolate ganache soft for rolling, I have a bowl of hot water at the bottom to act as a 'steamer'.

I put the chocolates in a bag and pack them in gift box or attached a tag with it.

My son had fun, making the Chocolate Cheese Truffles for his teachers. We have to make another batch again because there weren't any left for us.

Dual Colour Gift Box

It's Teachers' Day today and we had decided to make Chocolate Cheese Truffles for the teachers. We needed a nice gift box to put the Chocolate Cheese Truffles and to do that I tried to recalled how gift box I received at wedding dinners were like and finally got done. Maybe not exactly how it's like but it will do.

Materials needed:
(to make 1 gift box)

• 2 different colours paper

How to do it:

• Print or draw the template of the box on the papers.
• Cut them out.
• Fold along the dotted lines.

Note:
I printed out all the templates because we had to make six boxes.

How to assemble the box:

1. Slip the two pieces of paper through the slit at the base.
2. Now you have one across another looking like a '+'.
3. Fix the flaps in green in the picture by fixing the two flaps beside the yellow paper, together through the slits.
4. Repeat for the other flaps on the other side.
5. To 'close' the box, have one flap fold down.
6. Fold the next flap over the first flap.
7. Lift the round' leaf' of the first flap to the top.
8. Repeat for the next two flaps to complete.
   

• Click here for the template of the gift box.

O ... is not 0 ... 0 is not O ...

• 爸爸: You go to bed at seven three 'O', okay?
• 哥哥: You cannot say 'O'. It's zero. 'O' is a(n) alphabet. Zero is a number. They are not the same. Say seven three zero, okay?
• 爸爸: Oooh! Okay, okay ....

• 爸爸: I have been saying 'O' for a long time leh.
• 妈妈: Time to stop using shortcuts liao. LOL

So, what about you? Did you say 'O' or zero? *wink*

Little Worker

爸爸 had to go back to work yesterday as they are shifting site office. 哥哥 wanted to follow. Since it was not dangerous, 爸爸 bought him along to work.

Later that evening, when we were having snacks, 哥哥 took my last biscuit. I pretended to be sad ...

• 妈妈: I thought you said before when you go to work, you will buy food for me to eat? You didn't buy any food for me and you took my last biscuit. I'm hungry. *pretend to cry*
• 哥哥: Yes! Yes! I will buy!
• 妈妈: You went to work with 爸爸, right? But where is the food?
• 哥哥: I'm a small worker only. I only helped 爸爸 cross-out the paper (for recycling). They never pay me.
• 妈妈: *LOL* Oh! They didn't pay you?
• 哥哥: Ya! I do very little things only, so they never pay me. Next time, I go to work, I will buy food for you, okay? You eat this (half eaten) biscuit lor.
• 妈妈: Okay, okay. You can have it. .... So, you will remember?
• 哥哥: Yes! Yes! Sure remember. *happily finishing the biscuit*

爸爸 heard what he said and paid him $2 for his well-done job. haha ....

Magnetic Bookmarks

It has been sometime that I last did crafts with my kids. I have a few crafts that I wanted they to do but just could find time.

I managed to squeeze in time to do this with my son and he said he wanted to to give this to his teachers for teachers' day.

Materials needed:

• Cardboard (size 20cm x 5cm)
• 2 magnetic strips
• Coloured Paper
• Glue (we used stick glue. It's doesn't curl paper)
• * additional tool used: craft punches

How to do it:

1. Punch out shapes using craft punches.
2. Fold cardboard into half.
3. Spread glue on the folded cardboard.
4. Decorate the cardboard with punched out paper.
5. If your magnetic strips does not come with adhesive tape, use double-sided tape to stick the magnetic strips to both insides of the cardboard.
6. Let the glue dry and you can use it now. Just 'clip' it on a page of a book. No more slipping bookmark. *wink*

Note:

• You can also find a piece of cardboard with nice picture to use as a base, eg. post cards.
• You can also draw on the cardboard instead.

* boy in action *

* the end products *

Am I a good boy today?

哥哥 had been a VERY good boy yesterday. He tried to be nice and polite all day. No screaming and shouting at 妹妹 and 妹妹 was so happy to play with him. There will lots of running and jumping around. Lots of laughter. They enjoyed each other company.

I told him at the end of the day that if he wants to have an enjoyable day everyday he must learn to control his temper. And since 妹妹 is learning from him, if he start shouting and screaming at her, she will do the same to him and he didn't like that.

I have to remind him daily and hopefully such behaviour will continue.

妈妈 ... Shh-shh

妹妹 is toilet-trained. I think.

I have tried to make 妹妹 get used to doing her big and small businesses using the potty and the toilet bowl for a while. But she cried each time I wanted her to sit down so I gave up training her. I didn't want to stress her.

About 2 weeks ago, I made her diaper-less during the time she was playing at home. The floor was wet for a few times. Lately, the floor had been dried the whole time she was diaper-less.

Hopefully, she is able to hold her bladder better then I will bring her out without her wearing diaper.

Air, Air ... Elephant

The other day when we were out, 哥哥 telling me how he would remember the spellings of the words that we taught in school. He emphasised the sound of the first letter of the word before spelling it.

All of a sudden, 妹妹 said Air ... Elephant. I was surprised but thought I could be mistaken. So, I test her on a few more letter sounds and she could either say out the alphabet associated with the sound or a word beginning with the sound. And it looks like she knew almost all the sounds of the alphabets. I haven't even taught her phonics!

Wow! How, when and where did you learn them, 妹妹?!

Recipes contributed by WokkingMum

A company with a chain of Halal Food Courts (the very first in Singapore) and cafes, has requested to feature my recipes in their newsletter which can be found at all their outlets. Yeah, they wrote to me!

So the next time you dine there, look out for their newsletter. You might just spot my recipes in it. *wink*

Hmm .... I haven't seen the newsletter before. I should drop-by the one at Jurong to see if I could get a copy. Hehehe ...

When we are not fighting

I'm not sure about yours but my kids fight a lot and they fight for all sort of stuff. Basically, because the younger is bossy and holds on to everything and the elder one gets angry over the sightliest thing. The elder one doesn't want to ask or talk nicely to the younger one but the younger one will only share if you ask or talk to her nicely. Haiz!

Thank God they don't fight all the time. Of course I have to remind them constantly to be nice to each other. I'm waiting for the day when I don't have to remind them. It will be a long wait. Haha...

When they are not fighting ...

* Sharing toys and having fun together *

* Couch Potatoes sharing and enjoying a bag of Chips *

No Smoking!

Few days ago, 爸爸 found his cigarettes missing and later found them broken into pieces in the dustbin. Guess who could get away with it and not get scolded? His dear little baobei!

Now, I have one more member in my 爸爸, please quit smoking team! hehehe...

Being Crabby

哥哥 has been telling me about how crabs walk for a long time. I was wondering why is he so interested in how it walk and why he loves imitating it, till his school send us a consent form for our kids to participate and buy their costumes for their Gradation Concert.

His classmates and him are putting up an item about sea creatures and he is the crab! So that's the reason why the sudden interest in crabs. LOL Looks like they have been practising for a while. He even showed me how the other sea creatures move. So cute!

I can't wait to the their performance. He is already 'acting' so cute without the costume. I wonder how it would be like with all the fishes, seahorses, clams, jellyfish and crabs together. Bet it will be very colourful and adorable. Guess what's the song they will be dancing to? *Wink*