Saturday, 15 June 2024

It will be a long, late night for Cass and hubby today.  Cass has a figure skating rehearsal at the skating rink from 10pm to 12 midnight. Fortunately hubby is free tonight to do the chauffeuring, otherwise, I'll be waiting at the freezing skating rink until midnight. 

Cass has been eating clean and healthy lately. These is what her meals look like these days:

Salad with kimchi, Korean marinated pork, half an avocado, broccoli, cauliflower, and scrambled eggs with cheese. After her main meal, she ate a slice of air-fried sprouted wheat bread, low-fat yogurt with granola, an apple, an orange, and a few slices of papaya. 
 I also air-fried a slice of quiche, which was given to us by Alycia's bosses at the cafe that she works part-time at. When Alycia's bosses heard that she injured her hand, they passed some goodies from the cafe to her.

Steamed marinated spicy chicken chop, an ear of whole corn (I sliced out the kernels from the cob), sauteed assorted vegetables (from her dad's kitchen), steamed sweet potato, and sweet cherry tomatoes. I love the colors on her bowl, and so does Cass. I'm glad my years of training her to eat vegetables have paid off well.

After Alycia's terrible mishap in the kitchen last week, resulting in shards of broken glass cutting her finger badly, we now have a phobia of using glassware. I've since switched to using stainless steel bowls and containers.  Moreover, our microwave oven died on us yesterday, so we have no choice but to reheat our food using stainless steel dinnerware in the wok 😁

Hospital Tales: A Day of Heartbreak and Hope

Last Thursday was a day filled with anxiety, sadness, and reflection as we navigated the halls of three hospitals after Alycia's accident. The experience was a stark reminder of the unpredictability of life and the resilience of the human spirit. I have often read of parents running from one hospital to another late at night with their very sick or injured child only to be told that all their rooms were fully occupied. Now that happened to us. The helpless feeling that gripped us was real.

The First Hospital: A Heart-Wrenching Moment

I was in the Accident & Emergency department at the first hospital (in our neighborhood), waiting for the Medical Officer (MO) to clean and bandage Alycia's injured finger. As I stood outside the A&E, my mind consumed with worry, I heard a woman wailing in another room. The sound was chilling, but I didn't investigate further. My focus was entirely on Alycia, and I had no desire to intrude on someone else's sorrow.

Later, as we drove to the next hospital, Alycia shared that she overheard the nurses talking about a woman who had just lost her 3-month-old baby. Whether due to medical negligence or an illness, the tragedy was profound. My heart ached for the grieving mother, even though we knew nothing of her story beyond that moment.

The Second Hospital: Our Hopes Dashed 

At the second hospital, which is Pantai Medical Centre, Bangsar, we were told by one of the attending MOs that all the rooms in the hospital were fully occupied. She told us that she had to turn down several emergency cases. We left the hospital crestfallen. I was on the phone calling other private hospitals to check on their room availability.

The Third Hospital: A Haunting Familiarity

Our next stop was the Accident & Emergency department at SJMC. While waiting for the MO to insert an IV catheter into Alycia's hand, a familiar and distressing scene unfolded before me. A young woman, around 20 or 21, was being wheeled into the Procedure Room in a wheelchair, sobbing and clutching her stomach. The sight triggered painful memories of my own miscarriage 24 years ago in the same hospital's A&E.

I noticed her boyfriend's anxious demeanor as I chatted briefly with him, and I couldn't shake the feeling that the young woman might have attempted an abortion. This suspicion was confirmed when I overheard the MO explaining to the young man that she had indeed attempted an abortion, but the ultrasound showed the sac was still in the womb. She was to be seen by a gynecologist the following morning.

My heart went out to her. I hoped that she would make better choices for her future and find the support she needed to navigate this difficult time.

Alycia's Ward: Unexpected Companions

Once Alycia was settled in her ward, she shared a room with a woman in her late twenties who was hospitalized for muscle spasms and a slipped disc. Her boyfriend was by her side most of the time, providing comfort and companionship. Seeing their bond reminded me of the importance of support and love during trying times.

Reflections on Life's Unpredictability

These hospital tales underscore how life can throw unexpected and often devastating curveballs our way. Each story, whether it was the grieving mother, the young woman facing the consequences of her choices, or Alycia’s injury, highlighted the fragility and unpredictability of life.

We must live each day as if it were our last, cherishing our loved ones and making decisions that align with our values and hopes for the future. 

Alycia packing her stuff to go home, finally.

Colorful & Healthy Meals

The girls and I love colors in our food, natural colors of course. I like buying colorful fruits and veggies and the girls were trained from their baby days to eat healthy, with lots of fruits and veggies. I never had difficulty coercing the girls to eat fruits and veggies. 

Eating colorful meals is beneficial for good health due to the variety of nutrients provided by different colored fruits and vegetables. Each color typically represents various type of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that contribute to overall well-being. 

Lunner for Cass ~ air-fried salmon with air-fried shimeji mushrooms, blanched broccoli and cauliflower, Mediterranean chicken stew, raw greens and fruits of avocado, jumbo golden kiwi and purple grapes.  Cass and I eat half an avocado every day.

Delicious air-fried salmon and shimeji mushrooms, seasoned with herbs and spices.

Chilled lemon juice.

Cass is a fruit and veggie lover and can chomp down a lot every single day.

My healthy bowl - salad with Mexican chicken stew.

This is how I like to eat capsicum - with cream cheese.

Homemade Mexican tortilla made with whatever ingredients there were in the fridge - frozen capati, guacamole, air-fried chicken chop, and sauteed capsicum with shimeji mushrooms and big onions. The two serving plates on the right are from Le Creuset. They're cute, eh?

My chia seed pudding with coconut cream and Gula Melaka syrup. It tastes exactly like Sago Pudding but it's healthier as chia seeds are packed with minerals, omega-3 fat, and antioxidants, including tocopherols, phytosterols, carotenoids, and polyphenolic compounds. And it's so much easier to prep - just soak the chia seeds in water in a glass bottle overnight in the fridge, add coconut milk/cream (I used packet ones) and Gula Melaka (I use bottled ones).

Sherilyn cooked this very yummy pumpkin + minced pork porridge using the Philips pressure cooker. She first sauteed the minced pork with lots of garlic and onions before adding the rice and pumpkin to cook the porridge. I love this porridge. My comfort food, always.

Grilling and Air Frying: The Ultimate Kitchen Duo

One of the main reasons I love grilling and air frying is that the taste is on par with pan or wok-fried dishes, minus the hassle of dealing with excess oil and oil splatters. The convenience factor cannot be overstated - my trusty oven and air fryer have become my kitchen companions, saving me time and effort while still producing mouth-watering meals.

Lately, I've been contemplating upgrading to a bigger capacity air fryer or even a dual-drawer air fryer to make my cooking process quicker and more efficient. However, I also realize the importance of utilizing all my kitchen equipment, including my under-used Philips pressure cooker.  As Sherilyn dug out the pressure cooker to cook porridge last week and it’s now sitting conveniently on the kitchen counter, today I used it to cook Mediterranean chicken stew.

Speaking of under-utilized gems in my kitchen, the Thermomix has been patiently waiting for its time to shine. Despite its reputation as a versatile kitchen helper, I confess that I have yet to fully grasp its potential. Perhaps one day I will learn to master its functions and explore the culinary possibilities it offers.

As I dream of future additions to my kitchen arsenal, an induction cooker stands out as something nice to have. The allure of safer, healthier, faster, and more efficient cooking compared to traditional gas or electric stoves is undeniable. Here's hoping that my wish for an induction cooker will soon become a reality.

License to grill - my one-tray grill for the girls.  Each tray is composed of chicken chop, shimeji mushroom, bell pepper, and lots of chopped onion and garlic.

No meat grill for Cass and me.

Oven-grilled garlic and herbs butterflied prawns.

One-tray grill of chicken chop and veggies for everyone.

I finally used the pressure cooker again today after a long hiatus to cook Mediterranean chicken stew.
Ingredients used - boneless chicken thighs, pumpkin, sweet potato, tomatoes, shimeji mushroom, large onions, garlic, herbs and spices, black pepper, and tomato puree.