It was a long-overdue 'date'. One mummy needed a well-deserved break, the other mummy, well, also needed a break but also wanted to satisfy her much needed craving for Spicy Miso. So the mummies set aside a night and met and had their fill of Japanese food. We ate, we chat, we laughed & ate & chat and got pampered. Even though it was an express mani-pedi session, I suppose it was enough to give ourselves a much-needed mini pampering. Hard to believe that it was just our second meeting because it surely doesn't feel like it. The next minute we knew, it was time to get back to our 2 kids & hubbies back home. Short, sweet & fun. With a full tummy, nice feet & hands & great company.
I am already dreaming of our next full-fledge pampering session....thanks again Rina, I had a blast :)

Gosh, how fast have time flew by when you are having so much fun. FUN? yes I think as tiring as it was the past 2 weeks have been quite fun actually. Visiting, catching up, eating, visiting, eating..you get the flow. We manage to 'cover' all the important relatives & friends that we categorise as 'tier-1' & we also visited some 'tier-2' relatives when we managed to squeeze in some time after work but slowed down a bit last week when Amirul have to prepare for his final-year exams.

Yup, its the time of the year again where the daddy will get heart-palpitations & sweat-inflicted sleep worrying about how his son will do. But today is his last paper & based on Amirul's feedback, my son should do just fine. He even said that it is slightly easier than the mid-year paper that he took. I guess we'll know as early as this Thursday if all his hard-work & teary-eyed assessment practises will finally pay off.

Last Sunday, we had our annual Saints Hari Raya meet-up, graciously hosted yet again by Rimawati. Unfortunately some of us are unable to turn up as there were lots more family-visiting to do on their part. So then there were three. But still fun just the same as usual. Now we cant wait to meet up for yet another lunch-dinner-shopping outing, just us, the mothers (heh, hard to believe that we are all mothers now :)..so how Jules, nak join tak??

It was a short-planned meet-up. Yan wanted to 'attack' the Spotlight' sale 'head-on' & also do some grocery shopping at Carrefour. It was smack in the middle of my route to work. So I pushed my work-hour ahead & met up with my lovelies. Since we are there for breakfast & the kids are off to school, why not 'sound' the rest of the lovelies - splendid idea. All except one Mak Buyong who was nursing her flu couldn't make it.(hope ure up & well now love :)
While waiting for Yan & her 'entourage', I manage to do some work & had my caffeine fix. The other 2 lovelies joined us later only to have me take my leave to earn me-moolah in an hour's time. Nevertheless it was fun all the same - any excuse for chat-catch-up & idle gossip is always fun & who would want to miss a lil dose of lil Ms & Mr Sunshine to start of your work day(afternoon in this case)?? :)

Come Celebrate Hari Raya whilst doing your bid for charity by contributing towards the Darussalam Mosque Fund. Soak in the atmosphere of Aidilfitri by indulging in traditional cuisines while being entertained by our well-known local artiste like Imran Ajmain, Hairani & Elfee.Also making a special Appearance is our very 1st Singapore Idol himself, Taufik Batisah.
Tickets are available at Darussalam Mosque at 6777 0028 or u can drop me an-email at aida@coochi.com for enquiries. :)

Its the time of the year again...all the preparations & anticipation came to a climax 3 days ago when Hari Raya is finally celebrated with much joy & aura of festivities all-round. This year was not much different for us. The first day was spent visiting the elderlies & a string of 'mamis' from my hubby's side. The following 2nd & third day was another norm round of visiting but with the one-week school holidays, we get to at least go at a more 'leisurely' pace. Although I can't say that it is less-tiresome as it was the previous years. It was visits & ketupat & lontong galore & I thought I hear, more than once, my little tummy begging for mercy. Tired as we are, we nevertheless had fun & with 4 more days of holidays for me, do expect more heel-mercy, stomach churning days ahead....

It was a dinner that all of us were anticipating with excitement. Amidst the busy schedule of work, home & the impending Hari Raya, it was such a welcome break for us. It was Iftar with my favourite ladies at Sofra. Ladies whom I adored for as long as I remembered. Ladies who I've known for over 21 yrs and another for almost 28 yrs. Ladies whom I shared a bond with that only good friends would understand without the need for words. Even the romantic & cosy ambience felt like we were transported back to our school canteen with our boisterous laughter & endless chatter.

Looking around the table at 5 of us (2 couldn't make it as one is expecting lil Juliet in Auxerre & the other due to maternal commitments), as cliche as it sounds, its hard to imagine that 20 over years have passed & we are still acting like giggly teenagers like we were before with the likes of Debbie Gibson, Tiffany & Bros.

It felt like yesterday when we were marching in our hard & sturdy blue NPCC uniform under the hot sun & just a while ago when we were practising yet another dance routine for yet another sch concert.

We always make it a point to meet up at least twice a year & some even often than that. Thank god for emails & chats & the blogging world so we could see each other 'grow' up (some with kids included) literally right before our eyes.

I feel blessed being a part of this beautiful friendship that have grown so much through the years & I know for sure that we will definitely be growing old together.

Lilis & Jules, you are definitely missed last night...

Its been quite sometime since Amirul baked anything at all. Our official cook cum chef-teacher, his mummy Shah is away & wont be back til late October. When I am baking the Hari Raya cookies, he will be in his afternoon session school therefore won' be able to satisfy his baking-cravings. He's been pestering me. A lot. Especially on bored Sunday afternoons when he got bored with his mountain of toys & already tired of talking to the little what seemed like mutant toy figurines to me.

To save myself from yet another excuse to not play another session of 'Snake & Ladders' with him, I conceded his request. We shall bake today. Chocolate Walnut Brownies, my favourite. I got the help of Miss Betty Crocker & let Amirul do the rest as I sat on the sideline just to make sure that he did not turn the kitchen upside-down.

So my boy did his thing. Very happily I might say & ummi got her sweet chocolate fix yet again courtesy of her favourite boy..:)

Since the beginning of Ramadhan, my whole family have been fasting under one roof, yes ALL 14 of us, everyday. Very kecoh but very fun. It is also have been quite a challenge having to think about what to cook for Iftar & then for Sahur next. So me, my mom & sisters would take turns throwing ideas about what the day's menu would be. During Iftar we would have an 'open-table' discussion where my mom would ask for suggestions on what to eat the next day. Some ideas would be considered & if successful, you'll see your choice dish on the table the next day, or else it would definitely be taken into consideration.(we got 30 days, remember?)

I think now that we are entering the third quarter of Ramadhan, I would be so grateful if I do not have to eat another noodle variety(yellow, kway teow or vermicilli!!) or even rice for that matter - well, at least for a few days.

Last Sunday, after our trip to NTUC Finest, we decided to do away with the noodles & nasi & opt for an all-western fair. So we grilled BBQ beef & chicken, made some mashed potatoes, macaroni & cheese for the kids, garlic bread, macaroni salad, baked beans for Mira, creamy mushroom soup, vegetable salad & also for my mom & hubby dearest, digressing a wee bit from the evening's theme, prata & sambal tumis udang.

Alhamdulllah, it was a 'feast' allright, especially enjoyed with the people you love - all noisy 14 of them.

We were feeling a bit 'atas' & did grocery shopping at NTUC Finest at Bukit Timah Plaza.

The two-storey supermarket is the shiniest and brightest thing in the mall.

But the revamp from plain old FairPrice is more than cosmetic coz it has almost everything a foodie would want.

I was wandering through the vegetable section wanting to grab everything. When was the last time you saw artichokes in a FairPrice supermarket, not to mention endive, savoy cabbage, rhubarb, parsnips and fennel?

There are more (weird) delights in the fruit section. I saw Square watermelons from Taiwan at $68 EACH but they did put a note there saying its inedible- what? spend that much money & see the fruit rot? The Japan square melon goes at $268 each, and Japanese musk melons also at $68 each (at least they are edible, but sayangkan??). I guess they are made available for those into elaborate gift-giving rituals.

For the rest of us, there are small and sweet Mikan oranges from Japan ($12.90 for a pack of five), large, sweet and fragrant Japanese peaches ($18.80 for two) and organic, fresh black Mission and pale green Kadota figs ($5.99 a punnet).

Some items in the supermarket can be found nowhere else on the island, including a range of flavoured olive oils from Borges, created by top Spanish chef Ferran Adria. The oils ($11.50 for 200ml) are flavoured with all sorts of exotic things: cinnamon, vanilla and lemon peel, among others.

Oklah, nice & definitely an eye-opener but I think my mom & I will stick to our Sheng Siong & nearby local wet-market for now - Thank you..:)

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