Happy Birthday Little Lady. 

May you always be happy and healthy.

 You may outgrow our laps but you will never outgrow
our hearts. 

Love you always and forever.

I finally tried roasting half a chicken with my Happy Call I followed a recipe which I found online.  Here’s what I did.

Washed and sliced the potatoes.  Then I mixed them with some olive oil and mixed herbs.

 Rub the chicken with salt and sprinkled some mixed herbs all over the chicken.  Left it in the fridge to marinate for an hour.  Then heat the pan on high fire for a minute and add 1 tbsp of olive oil.  Place chicken in the pan together with the potatoes and snap it close.  Reduce fire to medium.  Turn the pan over after 5 minutes.  I flip the pan over again after 5 minutes.  Did this for 20 mins.  Then check if the chicken is cooked or not by pricking the meatiest part of the chicken with a fork.  If the fork comes out clean, this means the chicken is cooked.

Other than some burnt potatoes, the chicken smelled good and the meat was tender.  I think the next round, I must remember to sprinkle some water onto the chicken to make it more moist.   Is there another way?  Please tell

So yesterday we were at Mid Valley to attend the birthday party of Ashley’s classmate. It was held at Megakidz and the missy was so excited that she couldn’t wait to go. She woke up so early in the morning (on a freakin’ Sunday) and kept hurrying me to walk faster to the Megakidz after hubs dropped us off >.<

Missy and her classmates

After 2 hours of fun, we left Megakidz and while walking past some shops, we spotted Urban Adventure which features interesting climbing facilities for beginners to try climbing on 3 artificial climbing structures – Nine Cross, Speed Track and Tetris.   Ms. Adventurous wanted to try it out and I was like,   are you sure?  She has never done this before and since there is a professional climbing guide there, I let her try it out.

Putting on the harness

Up the Tetris wall.  Climbed to the top and rang the bell

Coming down

Next she scaled Speed Track,  the 20 ft. wall

The guide asked her if she wanted to try Nine Cross, the last wall and she said yes.

I think this is the most difficult wall to climb

This is the price list for the climbs.  Initially I thought it was free …. silly me.  I just asked the guide if Ashley could try and he said yes…muahahahaha.   Missy said it was a lot fun and wants to visit Urban Playz again next time.  She said she had loads of fun yesterday.    Whilst we were there, a lady asked me if I am a blogger and I said yes.  She then told me that she follows my blog *smile*  I regret not asking her name.  If you are reading this post right now, “I am sorry I forgot to introduce myself properly.  Thank you very much for visiting my blog” .  Please leave a comment ok?  

The school holiday is just around the corner.  If you are in Mid Valley, do drop by Urban Playz with your kids for some fun.

Teacher’s Day falls on May 16th but Ashley’s school is celebrating it today to coincide with Friday. This year, I only prepared a gift for her class teacher. Here is my simple DIY gift wrap.

I cut a Froot Loops’ box into half.

Wrapped it with a floral paper

These are the little gifts for her teacher

I also got a box of Extra mints and glued it onto a card.  Got this idea from Pinterest.

Put everything inside the box and wrap it up with a clear paper and twine.  I also got Ashley to write a note on the handmade gift tag

My cousin’s granddaughter just turned one month old and they held a full moon party for her over the weekend.  Yeah, I’m a Grand Aunt already.  Sounds old huh? Boo Hoo!  It was a small and meaningful buffet dinner party at my niece’s home which was attended by family members and close friends.  Her husband even got ready a presonus audiobox from musicians friend to play the recordings of my niece’s pregnancy journey on his laptop.

I bought lil Abigail a gift and this is how I wrapped it.

First I drew a ribbon on a piece of pink paper

Then, I cut a strip of pink paper and glued it onto the box as part of the paper ribbon.  Then I glued on the ribbon which I have outlined with black pen.

Here is my simple gift wrap.  If you run out of ribbons, try this paper ribbon idea instead

I received a card which Ashley did in school and she also handmade a fan for me.  The fan was done secretly with her aunt

I thought on Mother’s Day, I can relax a bit without doing any housework but I got this pile of clothes to iron.  Can’t leave it till later because there is more waiting for me.  Boo Hoo.   Hubs helped to mop the floor while I did the ironing.

I didn’t want any special lunch or dinner on Mother’s Day but I did get myself a little gift…hehehehe

How did you celebrate Mother’s Day?

Happy Mother’s Day everyone ♥

A friend in Facebook posted this tip on how to save money. It is very easy to follow and on the last week of the year, you will see your result. Am going to do this for myself and Ashley too.

Want to try this out?  We are already in the 19th week now.  You can either start Week 19th as the 1st week or put in $190 into your piggy bank and continue from there

Kodomo no Hi is Japan’s Children Day and it falls on 5th May. It is a day to celebrate the health and happiness of children.  We had dinner at a restaurant that day and while waiting for the election results, my friend Junko made Ashley a paper hat in the shape of a kabuto (samurai helmet), like she did for her children.  This is a popular craft which Japanese children make on this day.

Notice the black shawl that Ashley is wearing?  That is Junko’s breastfeeding shawl which she was playing with *slaps forehead*

Junko also made some traditional food known as chimaki, which is a dumpling wrapped in bamboo leaves.  It tasted like mochi and very delicious

Many people enjoy gardening  because it is relaxing and they also feel at peace when they are in their garden.  This hobby also gives them a sense of satisfaction.  Some of my friends and relatives have turned to growing their own vegetables too.   There is nothing like growing your own chemical-free vegetables for the family.  If you also love to grow your vegetables but do have a vegetable patch in your yard, then you can grow them the hydroponic way.  Hydroponic gardening provides you with the supply of fresh vegetables, fruits and herbs  all year round.   One place where you can check out some high quality grow boxes is at ACTechWI.com.   The ACtech Hydroponic Grow boxes are designed using the best and state-of-the art components and they provide 100% odor control, block 100% of light inside and whisper quiet.  Find the GFI circuit breaker at at ACTechWI.com if you want the safest hydroponic grow boxes because it protects the power that is fed into the hydro grow box.  When water is spilled on an outlet or if a piece of equipment has a short circuit, its cabinets will automatically trip the built in GFI protection circuit.  All you need to do is press the button on the outlet to reset the electrical system once the water is cleaned up or the equipment is replaced. This is much more reliable than another brand I have came across.

 Growing your own produce is fun and rewarding.  So do check out ACTechWI.com for the best growing experience.