Want To Be A Frugal Mom?

How good are you at being frugal? Would you like to learn more on:

• how to save money?
• how to cook low-cost healthful meals?
• how to become debt-free?

Well, there's a special place where frugal minded moms meet and it's called the Hillbilly Housewife Club. Normal monthly membership is $15 but now there's a special offer where you can have a 7-day preview of the Club for only $1.

So, for 7-days you can access:

• A Monthly Report on a Money Saving Or Homemaking Topic
• More Frugal Recipes both From Susanne and Other HBHW Club Members
• Frugal Living and Homemaking Articles
• Daily Reflections
• Mingle with other HBHW Club Forum members where you can exchange ideas with other members, make new friends and become part of the HBHW Club community

If you've ever wanted a place to go where you could find caring women on the same road as you and get step-by-step action plans, each month, that will help you toward your goals, then you owe it to yourself to take a look at the Hillbilly Housewife Club.

Want to find out more? Click the link below:
I WANT TO BE A FRUGAL MOM

Happy 8th Birthday

We celebrated K's 8th birthday day before yesterday. Nothing fancy, just a special dinner cooked to her request.

I'm grateful that my kids have never asked for a big birthday party. The last "big" party we had was when kokoD turned 1 and K turned 3. It was a 2-in-1 party coz' both of their birthdays are in August. We booked an indoor futsal area and had lots of friends attend. Since then all their birthdays have been really simple - specially cooked lunch/dinner at home cooked by me. I also try to take them somewhere special. Last year I took them to a movie. This year we visited Gardenia's Bread factory. They are also given a budget of RM5 to spend on whatever they like.

In front of the Gardenia Bread factory with their goody bags.

This was K's specially requested birthday dinner:

Mommy's Fried Chicken Drumsticks (finger licking good MFC), chicken fingers, mash potatoes with gravy, french fries and coleslaw.

K enjoyed her chicken drumsticks and coleslaw to the max. I feel blessed that my children can enjoy a relatively inexpensive birthday meal (considering it would have cost me much, much more if ordered from KFC). I guess she also saw how mommy (with her big, big tummy) spent many hours in the kitchen preparing her meal and that made her appreciate the dinner more.

Mama's Parenting Tip on birthdays:

• Don't have to throw an elaborate birthday party each year for your children. You can still make it special in small ways.
• Start a family birthday tradition to make the birthday child feel extra special. For example: a special day out for the birthday child, a new dress/shirt, trip to the bookstore to select a book of their choice, birthday child picks the menu for the day, treasure hunt to find presents bought by family members etc....
  

Most Loving Sibling Contest

MOBS & ComfyBebe are hosting a contest and it's about Loving Siblings. At this very moment, my 2 boys are playing peacefully together. 5 minutes ago one was yelling at the other. That's just typical of siblings. One minute they are at each others throats, the next minute they are best buddies.

Anyway, I'm to choose one photo that exemplifies these "loving siblings". Here's my choice:

These pictures were taken in June 2007. That time Karina was only 6, Damus was 4 and baby Danic was only 5 months old. Baby still couldn't sit on his own yet and so the other two squashed him in the middle (acted as support) and enjoyed their motorcycle ride. I took this picture because it showed 2 things:

1. Even though baby was still very young, the older two included him in their play. They took care of him and made sure he was okay which gave mommy time to do other things.
2. Baby just looked soooo happy to be with his siblings.
   

There are many more examples of their loving relationship. I try to capture them whenever I can.

BabyD giving his koko kisses. He tags along when I send kokoD to school in the morning. He makes sure to give koko a goodbye kiss before koko gets down from the car.

See how he "manja" with the sister sometimes.

Even till today, the 3 of them will gather in their "playroom" every night and do "stuff". There'll be talking, laughter, shouting, teasing, screaming, fighting, playing etc.

Mamas Parenting Tips on Sibling Rivalry:

• Don't take sides. It's not who is right but what is right. So stop the finger pointing and blaming. AND don't ever ask "who started it first?" or "who did it?" You're just asking for more trouble.
  
• Sometimes I "bench" them all and have them figure out a solution to their problem.
  
• Hitting is not tolerated at all. Separate all parties involved until everyone cools down.
• Remove the cause of the conflict e.g. if they are fighting over a toy, I take it away untill they can tell me a good reason to give it back.
  
• Continue to teach tolerance, respect and understanding (even though it seems only the walls are listening).

Latest "sibling bonding" picture:

Totally Free Tuesday for New WAHMs

Are you a new WAHM? Not sure if you're doing things right or headed in the right direction? Well, mark this date down then: 8 Sept 2009 (Tuesday). Mom's Talk Affiliates is having a TOTALLY FREE TUESDAY! It's like an orientation for new WAHMs.

What's happening on that day?

• Free Webinars where you'll hear from other successful WAHMs.
• Free Gifts by eMail
• Special Giveaways

So, when that day comes rolling by, just click on the banner above.

Crispy Brinjal with Dried Shrimp and Garlic

There's a restaurant in Ijok (can't remember the name now) that serves this really nice brinjal dish. It's crispy and has dried shrimp and garlic. Not sure if there are other ingredients (probably yes), and I don't think they are going to share their secret recipe with us.

Anyway, thought I'd try to do a dish something like that. I don't know how they cook it until crispy. So I improvised and coated the brinjals with flour first before frying. Turns out okay. Not too bad. DH gives me the thumbs up. The kids didn't want to eat it at first. But once they tried it, they liked it too.

So, here's my recipe:

Ingredients:

• Brinjal (Egg Plant, Aubergine or whatever else you want to call it)
  
• Wheat Flour
• Rice Flour
• Salt
• Dried Shrimp (Hokkien call "Hay Bee) - wash and chop it to smaller pieces
• Garlic - chopped to small pieces too.

How To Cook?
1. Skin the brinjal. Cut them into longish rectangles (refer to picture below). Soak in salt water so it doesn't turn brown.

2. Mix together wheat flour, rice flour and a pinch of salt. How much depends on how much brinjals you are cooking. Coat the cut brinjals with the mixed flour. The brinjals will be a bit wet still so the flour will stick to the brinjals.

3. Deep fry the coated brinjals until golden brown. Set aside.

4. Fry the garlic and dried shrimp until golden brown. Get rid of the oil.


5. Mix the fried brinjals with the garlic and dried shrimp. Sprinkle a bit more salt for taste.

THAT'S IT!

Give it a try and if you improve on it, let me know.

Get Kids To Help In The Kitchen

You know, people tell me that I'm lucky to have a girl as the eldest in the family. You know what? They are right. K has been a willing helper in the kitchen and that has lightened my load. The 2 main things I have her do are:

• wash the rice
• cut / peel and wash vegetables (see what a good job she is doing with my spinach)

PARENTING TIP:
Don't chase your children out of the kitchen. Take time to teach them how to prepare food. They'll make mistakes, it's okay. You'll get beans cut at different lengths, it's okay. They learn through practice.

8th Month of Pregnancy

I'm now about 34 weeks preggy. As you can see, the baby clothes have all come out of storage. So exciting to see all those tiny clothes again. Can you tell I'm getting impatient? I'll only get more impatient as the weeks roll by.

Why am I impatient? Afterall, these are the few weeks left I have of uninterrupted sleep right? The few weeks left I have of being diaper free. The few weeks left I have of having normal size breasts. The few weeks left of having my arms free from weights. The few weeks left I have with dealing with 3 kids instead of 4.

Well, I'm getting impatient because this bump is getting really uncomfortable. I can't sit or lie down comfortably. Plus, it's difficult to do things. I'm out of breath a lot. My ears are stuck the whole day (don't know why). And I can't wait to get rid of this diabetes so I can eat my favorite desserts again. Oh, I also am tired of trying to remember to count baby's movements. AND tired of going to the clinic so often for checkups.

The clinic here gave me a referral letter to go to the Sg. Buloh hospital to make an appointment with the specialist. They said it was necessary at 34 weeks. So off I went last week. Must remember to wear a mask next time I go because of the H1N1 cases. They took a blood sample and told me to come back on the 26/8. So, now I have my checkup at the clinic on the 18/8 where I also do my BSP test the same day (which means going to the clinic 4 times that day to get my finger poked). Then I have to go to the clinic again the next day to meet with the doctor who will go through the results of the BSP test. The week after that I have to go to the Sg. Buloh hospital to meet with the specialist. And the week after that is my checkup again at the clinic. Sigh! Sooooo many visits to the clinic and doctors. Hopefully the doctor at the hospital do not ask me to go there for checkup too. If not I'll be going for checkup here and checkup there (sounds like "Old McDonald Had a Farm").

Okay, some of the things I'm grateful for:

• I don't have high blood pressure
• I don't suffer from heartburns
• I don't have edema

Need to do:

• Buy newborn diapers
• Pack my bag for the hospital
• Get diaper rash cream
• Get new rubber thingy for the baby tub
  

What I hope for:

• Quick delivery
• Normal delivery
• No tearing
• Good doctors and nurses
• Be able to bear the pain once again
• Baby doesn't stay inside past due date
  

Watch Out for Me On Malaysian Women's Weekly

Last year, I got an email from Malaysian Women's Weekly saying they would like to interview me for an article. I was told the feature would maybe be in the January issue. But then, I heard no news from them after that and didn't see anything on me in the magazine. I wrote to ask what happened and didn't get a reply. So I thought maybe the idea was cut.

Last week, I get a call asking when I would be free for a photo shoot. Imagine my surprise. I can't even remember what the interview was about. I remember faintly that it was about my blog (or was it my online shop?). Aiyoh, this pregnant woman has really lost a lot of brain cells I believe. Well, they were very kind to come out all the way to my home to do the photo shoot. They took some individual shots and also some with my kids.

This is KokoD with the makeup artist. Poor girl got a bit lost trying to find her way to my house. Anyway, I doubt they'll use the photos with KokoD because he became so shy in front of the camera. Either he didn't smile or his eyes would be close.


My living room turned into a photo studio.

Poor me with my big belly had to lie down on the floor for one of the poses. Thank goodness I could get up after that :) But the photographer was a very nice guy. The makeup artist also had to keep dabbing sweat off my face. Sorry-lah, when you are this advanced into pregnancy, you automatically become a heat generator.

Well, not often we get to be in a women's magazine. So I thought I'd let the whole world know. Heheheh. They haven't decided yet which issue this is coming out (Oct 09 onwards). Just keep a lookout for me.

I don't know if I can post some of the photographs up. I'll just post 3 and if they object, I'll just take it down.

(update 1/10/09)): I was told that the pictures will have to wait until the artcle is published. So I'm taking them out till then.

Happy 6th Birthday KokoD

KokoD's birthday was on Sunday but we only celebrated yesterday. His special dinner order was Chicken in Mushroom Sauce (I've posted this dish here before so just click on the link if you want to know how to make it). It's a really simply dish but really delish. It was served together with another simple dish of french beans with carrots. Drinks were cincau-soy milk. And the
cake was again my frugal Jelly Cake. I made this cake for them last year and he wanted it again. Jie-jie K's birthday is coming up and she also wants the Jelly Cake, but different flavors and mixed fruit instead of peaches. This may be the standing order for the next few years. Heheheh. I don't mind coz' it's cheap and easy to do.

I got the candles at Tesco. They had it on sale. 1 box was less then RM1. There was even a musical candle.

So, how do I describe this boy of mine who just turned 6?

• Still active and playful as ever. Can't sit still and can't keep quiet.
• Has lost his interest for dinosaurs. Instead, it's dragons, Ben 10, guns, swords and Transformers now.
• Needs plenty of reminders on manners and speaking uplifting words.
• Still a mama's boy. He still sticks near to me and needs his hugs and cuddles.
• Very sensitive and gets angry quickly.
• Can be very helpful and considerate if he wants to.

Happy Birthday KokoD.

Who Wants A Free Account with ClickN READ or ClickN SPELL?

August is a birthday month in my family. Two of my kids were born on this month. My brother and mom are also born in this month. So, what do we do with a birthday month?

Time for giveaways!

THE PRIZE
A free account to ClickN READ PHONICS or ClickN SPELL.
2 winners will be chosen.

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO?

1. Leave a comment here on which program you want and why you want it.
   
2. Optional: In your blog or website, link to one of the following pages using the given anchor text below. Let me know when you've done the linking.
   
• ClickN Read Phonics - link to http://valuebookshop.com/clicknreadphonics.htm
  
• ClickN Spell kids spelling software - link to http://valuebookshop.com/2009/clickn-spell-kids-spelling-software
  
  

HOW ARE WINNERS SELECTED?
To give everyone a fair chance, I'll be doing a lucky draw on the1st September 2009. So, all entries must be in by 31st August 2009. If you choose the additional option of linking to one of the specified pages, you will have 2 entries instead of 1. Meaning, your chances of winning is higher.

Good luck everyone.

If you want to learn more about what the programs are about, click on the links below:

• ClickN READ PHONICS:Learning to read with phonics
• ClickN SPELL: Kids spelling software

p.s. Oh, and make sure if you are selected as a winner, I have a way of contacting you to get details so I can set up your free account. Best way is to subscribe to this blog of mine (you'll find the "subscribe me" form on the right-hand bar) so you don't miss the winner announcement.

Cloth Diapers On Discount

If you want to try cloth diapers or are one of those mothers who are crazy over cloth diapers, then you will want to know that Nice Cloth Diaper is having a sale. You can get 10% off. The sale is only until 28 August 2009. Actually the discount is storewide. They not only have cloth diapers, but also wetbag, mattress protector, flash cards, cotton menstrual pad, environmental friendly cockroach and mosquito repellent, 100% cold crafted soap, environmental friendly laundry ball, baby sling and pouch etc....

Discount code is SALES2009.

Plus, for every RM70 that you spend, you get a piece of cotton flannel baby wipe worth RM4.50.

Sounds interesting?
Click here to find out more: Nice Cloth Diaper