I remember the time when we had to choose from a myriad of different tiles at the showroom in preparation for the finishing job in our house. It was mind boggling trying to grasp the different kinds of tiles.

We eventually chose the type known as a porcelain tile which has a flat, smooth and shiny surface. Little did we know at the time that it would cost double the price to have them laid compared to ceramic tiles. We only found out after we purchased the tiles. Oh well!

At least there is no regret having porcelain tiles as it really shines and make the floor looks clean However, if we do ever get a chance to choose tiles for a new home again, I doubt we would go for porcelain ones again.

As much as can be placed into the bag (background) for AU$5 from Red Lea. The people behind the counter would usually announce $5 for any of its cooked food about 20-30 minutes to closing time.  This is only the second time we’ve bought this $5 special as we usually leave the mall several hours earlier.

Today we went there late.  Well, at least dinner is taken care of

Time and again we have read about personal injuries and the compensation some victims were able to receive, thanks to the legal teams who made that possible. The recent news I read was about a boy being awarded several hundred thousand dollars for falling off a bunk bed at a friend’s house. I wonder how the friend’s parents must have felt as they were to bear and pay the full compensation to the victim.

If you know of someone who has sustained personal injury or even medical malpractice and wish to get compensation, the best is to seek help from your state’s lawyers. For example, if you live in Rochester, it makes sense to seek professional help from a Rochester personal injury lawyer as they are familiar with the state’s law and your legal rights.

Though I truly hope no one we know would have to be in such unfortunate situation.

Nothing much. Believe it or not, we haven’t been really shopping during this stocktake sale. When has time gone? Though we did buy a few things that mostly DH needed, not me. My list is still pending, hehe.

Bought more puzzles for DD as that is what she is into now. Oh yeah, bought a Tefal stainless steel frying pan, not like I am gonna use it anytime soon but figured at 30% discount, it’s a good buy and sooner or later I’m gonna need one.

I thought I could manage without a holiday since our last trip back to KL more than a year ago but lately, seeing most of my acquaintances holiday photos, it makes me want a vacation too.

Even just a stay at a luxurious hotel would be a nice change, like that of the Sahara hotel in Las Vegas. Maybe even a lifetime experience for people like me who do not get to holiday often.

DD has turned three now. Hopefully we could start planning annual holidays again when she is older. Can’t wait!

My second Kuih Dadar attempt (the first one was sometime in 2004) didn’t turn out very well. Though the crepes weren’t as ugly as my first attempt but it hardened a bit after several hours. What did I do wrong?

According to DH who took some to eat at work, the crepes weren’t hard at all. Or perhaps he didn’t know any better?? haha! Well, I guess I won’t be trying this kuih again for a long time.

For a very long time now, I have been thinking about getting my mom a pair of diamond earrings. It is unfortunate that I live so far away from her, otherwise I would have liked to take her out to the jewellery store so she could pick her own design.

Real certified diamonds have that sparkle and brilliance that no imitation or cubic zirconia could ever produce. I do not own genuine diamonds myself but I have seen others wear them. It does puts radiance into an otherwise dull looking face

Hopefully on my next trip home, I may be able to take mom shopping for some little sparkling diamonds.

We had the priviledge to finally get to meet Anna & Brandon on 4 June 2009, when they came to holiday in Sydney.  It was great to see them as well as her younger sister and nephew, JoAnn and Ethan whom we met a long time ago in Sydney too.  Beautiful people!

Too bad the weather was really horrible the weeks leading up to and during their visit to Sydney.  We didn’t get to go outdoors as it was too cold especially for the kids.  But that didn’t stop the three 3 year olds from having a lot of fun.

Hope to see them again some time

Since my PIL’s visit, I had been stuffing myself with food. Tomorrow we are supposed to go for a seafood dinner, eat eat eat again. Goodness me! With my kind of unhealthy lifestylie, even the best diet supplements will not work for me.

And to think I intend to try my hands on making new kuehs weekly, gosh, more eating! How do chefs and bakers stay slim? Must take a lot of self control I guess. Wish I could do that.

Most major departmental stores stocktake sale commences today, yahoo! Time of the year to grab some bargains. Why is there always something we need to buy? I mean things that we really need such as some electrical items and new clothings to replace the old worn out ones and larger sizes for my lil girl.

Well at least we do not need furniture desperately unlike in previous years, thank goodness!

When I had my girl, I never thought much about printing birth announcements after her birth. I did prepare beforehand, a digital birth announcement ready for a photo of her to be inserted and then emailed to all our family and close friends.

I was so glad we prepared the announcement well before her birth as it would have been pretty exhausting for either of us to sit down and think of something up after her arrival. Oh those sleepless nights! Who could forget?

For those who could afford and have the help, perhaps getting some professionally printed birth announcements would save a lot of time and headaches ?

My very first try at making sweet potato Ondeh Ondeh was back in 2004 and it didn’t turn out good at all. Since then I’ve given up hope and had been too busy to even think about learning to make any nyonya kuih. Moreover most kuihs require freshly grated coconut (substituting it with dried dessicated coconut will never work, it does not taste the same at all).

Last Friday I saw frozen freshly grated coconut at an Asian Shop in the local mall. I immediately bought a pack to try it out. And since I was left with two big sweet potatos by somebody, I decided to give sweet potato Ondeh Ondeh a try again. To my own surprise, it turned out quite well

The coconut was great. I intend to buy more of this frozen grated coconut and will try to make Kuih Ketayap/Dadar next.

A few more days and it will be middle of the year. Time to think about getting term life insurance quotes again. Same practice year in year out. Good thing getting quotes is a breeze with most insurance companies providing instant quotations on its website.

Better still, there are sites that compares and gets you the best price according to the desired insurance plan. I guess we gotta set aside some time to do this exercise.

That time of the year again very soon ie Stocktake Sale! Time flies, flies and flies. It felt just like two months ago when I last saw the Stocktake Sale sign everywhere. Will you be spending much this year? Not us. Can’t afford to splurge anymore.

However, I think if we see a really good deal, we will still grab it

The ILs will be arriving tomorrow. Already, we have some plans lined up for them which includes pigging out on seafood and what not. Gee, it means I can kiss my diet goodbye again.

I am pretty sure the first comment I get when IL sees me is “wow you have put on weight”. Well I am kind of immuned to that statement already.  I have been thinking about treadmill lately. I want to continue to indulge, at the same time, would prefer to work it out to shed the extras rather than popping some ephedra diet pill. First we have to make space in our garage.