Still on the way to 25...

only 6 things accomplished, and we're already halfway to 25. Have not found the gold glittery polish, but replaced with a silver glittery one. Baked the mug cakes for three occasions, once for adrian, once for my growth group and once for the year end christmas party we had at our home. Won a few contests last year, including starbucks drinks and movie tickets. Painted a mural, decided i didn't like the colors, so spray painted it gold. Got a photobook voucher from Adrian for christmas. Lastly, got deep red curtains for the living room.

Still in progress: Found two out of 6 animal figurines, one deer and one frog prince. Still working out the craft storage system, but things are getting more organized with help from Daiso. Taking better photos is easy with my new camera. The dining table is hidden under tablecloths. Still growing old with Adrian.

2012

2011 ended much better than it started.

• My house is more of a home for the two of us now, after a massive cleaning session during my holiday in december, which involved emptying out all the contents of the kitchen, cleaning it out and putting things back properly, and lots of rearranging furniture in the living room. 
• A better frame of mind for the both of us, after the struggle to remain sane, married, godly, alive. More talking. More planning. More serious. 

2012 is looking up. I predict that there will still be struggles for me personally. But i remember this..

The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ~Philippians 4:5-6

Thursday's Tip: Two-Minute Mug Brownie

Tried this the other day with great results! I only had whipped cream then, but i think it would taste best with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. It was also a little too sweet, i would lessen the sugar and cocoa. 

4 tbsp flour
2 tbsp packed sugar
1 1/2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
Pinch salt
2 Tbsp canola or other mild vegetable oil (do not use EVOO)
2 Tbsp milk, coffee or water

In a heatproof mug or ramekin, stir together the dry ingredients until no lumps remain. Stir in the oil and milk until you have a thick paste.

Microwave on high for a minute, checking it every 30 seconds (microwaves vary) – it will be done when it’s springy on top but still a bit gooey – like the very best brownie. Eat warm.

Recipe and Photo from the family kitchen

good cheer at the millers

Someone left my sour cream in the microwave

The story of a frazzled kindie teacher is filled with smiles, glitter, pink, hugs and ickie things.

She is too busy to blog. Enough to post one picture.

Of her sister digging her nose. Muahahaha

laughs about language

I'm going through a strange phase of having to maintain excellent English when talking to the kids while learning basic spoken Chinese from their conversations with one another.

Speaking of English, here are some interesting things i've come across:

1. Typed by a guy who was involved in an accident: "...Got hit...mere death experienced..."
2. The kids read "I'll be" as "I got be". 
3. It's interesting how "I didn't do it" or "It wasn't me" has evolved into "Where got?"
4. I asked a kid to spell B-O-O-K, she got confused and wrote B-O-O-B. 
5. Another kid reads YELLOW as LHELLHOW.

A boy and The Lord

A little boy told me today that he prays to Jesus every night, then Jesus will protect him. 

So i asked him why do you think Jesus can protect you when you pray to him? 

He didn't know, he's just doing what mummy and daddy tell him to do. 

So i explained to him that Jesus is the Boss and Lord of everything, the whole world and more. That's why He can protect you. He's in charge of everything.

The bell rang. 

I wished i could have said more. But it's okay. Jesus is still in charge of everything.

This is my application for evangelizing children, from the sermon "Christ's Glory & Judgment" that was preached in church last Sunday. It is available for download on the CERC website.

The dog days were gone for like... 5 minutes?

And they're back.

These four months have been a record for many things:
The most we've ever talked about real and important things since the beginning.
The most honest we've ever been about everything.
The most time i've had to practice cooking and have a few steady recipes under my wing.
The most relaxed time i've had to actually sit down and think.
The most difficult work of sanctification.
The most amount of tears ever shed.
And so on and so forth.

I wouldn't have given up these three months for anything.

I've learnt many things, which may surprise many, but i don't care.
I've learnt that in many ways, i am sinful, and of whatever sins i know of, i will repent. But also that, i cannot repent of things that is not a sin. Or at least, i'm not convinced that it is.
I've also learnt that you REALLY can't trust people. People misunderstand what you say or do, take what you say and do and use it against you. So i've got to learn to open up to people in a clear way, always clarifying and asking why. And expecting them to betray you anyway.
I've learnt not to expect apologies. Cos people are sinful. They don't know what they did, and sometimes even if they know, they're not sorry anyway. So i've got to tell them what they did, expect an apology and not be surprised if there isn't any.
And lastly, i've learnt that running away isn't going to help. It's only going to be a repeat of the same situations in a new place with new people. Sticking and sorting is the way to go, although i have also found it to be painful and angering and upsetting. Easier to take flight, but no solving the matter then.

So all in all, i learnt that i am sinful, people are sinful, but we still have to live with one another. Welcome to what is called the church.

No tips; but an update

Life has caught up with me.

I am now working in a kindergarten in our neighbourhood. The kids are adorable, but i hope i never hear another word about Angry Birds ever again. I think my chinese is probably improving. I have to try to understand what the kids are saying so that i know they are not up to mischief.

There are not very many nice shows on national tv to watch with a side of my ironing. I have finally organized most of the documents at home, but there still are some more piles somewhere. I had more than 5 copies of the songsheet for "We are God's people". There is a massive recycle pile near the door.

The dog days are ovah-huh! The dog days are go-o-o-one! but i don't think they've gone very far. Many talks, tears and hugs make a good relationship. Its putting gold through refining in the fire. A relationship without fighting makes a non-relating relationship, which is an oxymoron.

Oh yes, here's a tip for you even though i said no tips: If you want to make yourself cook, make sure that you buy all sorts of raw ingredients only when you buy groceries for the week (like raw meats and veg). That way, when you're hungry and go look in the fridge, you've GOT to cook. Haha.

Now i sit on my clothes vacated sofa and wait for the next wave to hit me. It's coming, i can feel it. But i'm gonna be okay. I have a bouy! It's called God's Providence.

Thursday's Tip: Really Random Tips

Hello everyone,

I'm actually not around right now, am at this conference, learning about the Providence of God at this very moment, but still here is my usual Thursday's Tip for you.

Tip number 1: I recently came across this really useful website, especially for people like me, who really have no idea. It's called stilltasty, and it gives you a guide to how long your produce and other food products last and when it's still safe to eat and most importantly, is still tasty!

Tip number 2: Did you know you can make appalum/pappadum in the microwave? Just place the appalam rounds on the outer corners of the rotating plate in your microwave and watch it pop! Be careful not to put it into the middle, cos it will burn. Time to cook depends on your microwave really, on mine at medium heat, it takes about 1-2 mins. (Tip courtesy of Melissa Johnson)

Thursday's Tip: Give gifts (without going over budget)

We all have friends and family that we want to give something to, be it for their birthday, wedding, any other special occasion or even just to say "Thanks!". But the problem is... not a lot of money to spend. So how?

Here's my roundup of 4 affordable (but still meaningful) things you can do/find:

1. Bookxcess
This bookstore offers new books for much cheaper than the normal bookstores. Something like FOS or Reject Shop for books. As far as my eye can see, nothing wrong with the books, so hey! All the better for us. They have loads of nice coffee table books, which of course are excellent for gifts. You can find something for most people there, lots of design books for those who love art, interior deco for the decorator, cookbooks for the housewives and cooking enthusiasts, all sorts lah. You'll be able to find a good enough book to gift for RM20-RM50. There are more expensive options too if you feel like spending but since this is about cheaper gifts, the RM20-50 range will suffice. (image from bookaxcess)

2. Bake a cake
Really. Effortsome, yes. Cheaper, yes. Yummy, hopefully. Meaningful, YES! Especially if you know what your receipient's favourite cake is. A normal sized round cake would probably cost you from RM15-RM30, a tea cake from RM10-20, depending on whether you get standard quality ingredients or high quality ones.

3. Plant something in a pretty pot.
I propagate plants quite often, so i usually have a few full jars of rooting plants that are just waiting to be planted into a pretty pot to be given away. This makes a good housewarming gift! Nice pots from IKEA start from RM5 and if you get cuttings from your own garden, it's free. Just tie a ribbon round the pot and voila! Or you can even plant it into unusual finds like cups or bowls.

4. Ingredients in a jar
If you're too lazy to make something yourself, then ingredients in a jar work just fine too. Put something like hot chocolate mix topped with mini marshmallows and choc chips into a pretty jar (if you like, glass ones work pretty well and IKEA is your friend for those) and tie it with ribbon. This idea is good for times where you want lots of small affordable gifts to give away, like at Christmas.
(all other images from pinterest)

need some inspiration to start cleaning?

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