Haru In Our Home

At 10 months old, Haru still drinks water from a milk bottle. She just won't drink water from a bowl or special pet water bottle that I bought.  However, she will drink water from her bowl only if it's mixed with her wet and dry food.   So she's been trained to eat her wet and dry food mixed with water and has no issue with it.  I still feed her water from a milk bottle to ensure that she gets enough clear fluids for optimum health.  

Recently we started feeding Haru with lactose-free goat milk from her milk bottle.  Like a little baby kitten, Haru LOVES it.  Cass will feed Haru after her online class in the afternoon, whenever she has time to.

Haru can even hold the bottle with her two front paws.

*Wink wink*  Mummy, I love milk from the bottle 😹

Shameless cat 😂😂.   

Family Mart's Venetian Tiramisu Ice-cream

Family Mart's new sofuto flavor, Venetian Tiramisu is surprisingly very delicious!  It tastes exactly like tiramisu cake - creamy, smooth and not overly sweet.

Today I bought one pint pack (only RM8.90) and by the time I remembered to snap a pic of it, the girls have bolted almost the entire pint 😬

The girls commented that we don't have to buy Häagen-Dazs ice-cream or Tiramisu cake anymore as we now have a cheaper alternative that's so delish  😁

I think I'm going to get another pint pack tomorrow before this flavor is shelved and another flavor takes over.

Klang's Famous Regent Pandan Layer Cake

I've always wanted to try the much raved about pandan layer cake from Regent Pandan Layer Cake in Klang.  There are so many resellers on Facebook selling this cake, which comes in pandan, yam, pandan + corn, durian and corn flavors.  I've always wanted to get the pandan and yam flavors to try. 

A friend of mine who lives in Singapore even organized a group buy with some friends and got the cake shop to transport the cakes to Singapore on a refrigerated truck, just to satiate their cravings!

I've seen many of my friends raved about this cake on their socials, which makes me drool even more. 

Yesterday must have been my lucky day. Hubs brought home two boxes of Regent pandan layer cakes!  His friend who's a famous Chinese food blogger traveled all the way to Klang to get hold of the layer cakes and got us some too. Woohoo, I was tickled pink!    

Any form of pleasant surprise sprang on us during this dreaded lockdown would make me happy.  Hubs likes to gives us surprises, all in the form of food and desserts.  I'm waiting for the day that he springs a bigger surprise on us by telling us that he has struck the lottery or 4D 😁

Our verdict?

The cake's deliciousness has been overrated.  No doubt the pandan layer cake is nice but I had expected it to have a stronger aroma of santan and pandan, the kind that would make me melt and say "so yummmmmmmy!" and then drift to dessert heaven.   I was a tad disappointed.

The pandan layer cake from RT Pastry House, a bakery at our hood, sells a similar looking pandan layer cake, which we have been eating for almost a decade.  It's our family's all-time favorite cake.   We find that RT Pastry House's pandan layer cake has a stronger santan and pandan aroma. And it's cheaper than Regent Pandan Layer Cake.

Our conclusion?

We're just stick to RT Pastry House's pandan layer cake.  I can get the pandan layer cake to satiate our craving at any time and don't have to cause a dent in our wallet on the delivery fee.

Adding More Greens Into My Diet

Ever since my blood work came back with a bad cholesterol reading of 6.5, I am now even more resolute to cut out red meat from my diet.  As I have genetic high cholesterol aka Familial Hypercholesterolaemia (FH for short), it will be quite impossible for my cholesterol level to go down even with a strict diet.  It went down to a reading of 4.9 when I drank 2-3 packets of Izumio hydrogen water daily - that was about 4 years ago.  But Izumio is too costly and I now only drink it when I feel under the weather.  

I now try to include more raw veggies in my diet.  I used to eat quite a bit of raw veggies and sprouts but the darn pandemic and prolonged home quarantine threw my healthy regimen out of the window.   The prolonged lockdown almost threw my sanity out of my my head too.

My yearly blood test  is in January or February each year. But because of the lockdown and my fear of knowing the truth,  I delayed going to my doctor's office until recently (late September).  

Good news is my blood sugar is still good at a reading of 5.0.  I thought that it would protest and go up too as I had not been eating as clean as I should have been throughout the lockdown.  

Bad news is my cholesterol reading has gone up from 6.4 (last year) to 6.5.  And the little good news amid the bad is that my HDL (good cholesterol) went up and my total cholesterol/HDL ratio is only 2.8 (< 5.0).  It must be my diet that's high in nuts and fish oil.

My doctor is not pressing me to go on Statin, albeit he did say that I could try taking Lipitor.  But I'm not taking Statin just yet. I have my reasons.   I may also want to consult our family friend who's a cardiologist at SJMC to seek his advice. He's currently out of country.  

So hopefully by adding more veggies and rawsome goodness into my diet and eating lesser red meat, my cholesterol reading will go down.  I know it's going to be hard with a mutated gene, but eating more veggies will also benefit other aspects of my health.

I love Hakka Lui Cha (Thunder Tea Rice). After all, I'm a Hakka girl.  I've been ordering my Lui Cha from this Hakka seller on Facebook as she makes pretty good Lui Cha.   I like to add on raw broccoli and alfalfa sprouts and cashews to my Lui Cha sans any rice. And it's really filling.

I use the Lui Cha paste as dipping for raw bell pepper slices.  

A bottle of lui cha paste (RM26 with peanut and RM36 with cashews) can last me for almost a month. I freeze them in silicon ice-cube molds and pop one cube into hot water to drink as a healthy veggie tea or simply pop one frozen Lui Cha cube into my mouth and enjoy it as an ice-popsicle.

Homemade Caramel Popcorns With Hazelnuts, Hotteok and Tiramisu

Throwback post from last week.

After making Hotteok today, Chef Sherilyn made a small batch of caramel (for the popcorns), popped another batch of popcorns to make 'Garrett' popcorns with hazelnuts and in the evening, made two trays of Tiramisu (one with chocolate liqueur, one without).

Her 'Garrett' popcorns taste 99% like the real deal and the cost is only a fraction of the price of Garrett's. So dangerously addictive! I need to quickly walk past the tupperware of popcorns and resist the urge to open the lid to pop a few into my mouth! 🤪

Divinish Hotteok aka Korean sweet pancakes.

This time she used the trusty wok instead of saucepan.  No more burnt bottom pit and more popcorns can be produced.

It's not that difficult to make Garrett's caramel popcorns. We can sell our very own too and make good $$ 😆

Another dangerous dessert. One spoonful is enough to send you to dessert heaven!

  

There's nothing our teenage chef can't bake or cook. And it all boils down to interest and a burning passion. 

Sunday, 19 Sept 2021

Today is the end of the week-long school term break.   Cass hit the sheets a few minutes before 10 p.m., which is something that is extremely rare for this night owl.  But I'm glad that she's slowly learning to take charge of her life without me nagging her anymore.  Baby steps. My prayers have been answered 😍

I didn't notice Cass going into her room as I was busy with work on the computer.  The MIL asked me in astonishment why Cass went to bed so early as that's just not Cass.  I went into Cass' room and asked her if she'd still like to pray together as this morning she requested that I pray with her before bed. 

As I walked into the room, instead of calling her Cassandra, in a slip of the tongue, I called her Haru instead 😆.  We both broke into hearty guffaws.  

After praying with Cass and giving her a goodnight hug, I went to check on Haru who's already in her cage. Today Sherilyn fed and put Haru back into the cage.  It's my nightly routine to carry Haru back to her cage, pet her and say I Love You and Goodnight to her.  Sometimes I say a short prayer for her.  If I'm too busy with work on my computer, Haru will jump up my chair and bury her face behind me to nudge me. This is her way of telling me that she's either hungry or want to be carried back to her cage at night.  

Having a pet is akin to having another child as I love my pet like my own human child.  Though I was never a cat lover and never knew how to care for one, I've now fallen in love with this kitty, who's like a child trapped in a cat's body.  

Alycia who used to have phobia of cats and fury animals has also fallen in love with Haru.  She likes putting Haru on her lap, like a toddler, while she watches her Korean dramas.   Haru who is not really a lap cat, does not resist and seems to enjoy Alycia's company.  But she has a limit. She won't sit for more than 5 minutes on our laps now as she prefers to roam freely.  She used to be stroked for hours till she fell asleep on Cass and Sherilyn's laps when she was a 2-3 month old kitten.

Outerwear Trends For 2021

Some of you may be wishing that the summer months would continue so that you could be in your comfy and light trendy women's tops every day to enjoy the warm summer days.  But the reality is fall is upon us and winter will come around just as fast.  

Whether you’re a fan of trench coats, cardigans, puffers, cozy fuzzy sweaters, or oversize teddy coats, these wardrobe staple is an absolute necessity this time of the year. They keep you warm and stylish throughout the cold months.  What's not to love about winter fashion? 

You might be getting tired of wearing the same outerwear that you wore last fall and winter.  The dampening cold temperatures will be so worth it when you get to wear chic new coats that make you look so swank.  This season there are endless of gorgeous new styles for all the right reasons.  With endless coat options to suit every style, whether you want to tap into this season’s animal print or opt for faux fur coats, women’s trench coats or  sweaters with cute animal prints, there is a coat to suit every mood at Ninacloak.  

If you want to start getting your wardrobe together for the bitter cold days that will inevitably happen in a couple of months, these are the styles to keep in mind when shopping so you can be in the ~know.~ From fun patchwork pieces to classic textured cardigans, you'll be all bundled up for winter in no time.

I’ve picked 5 snazzy winter fashion trends from Ninacloak and wishing that I could also be bundled up in them for fall and winter!  

1. Luxury Faux Fur Collar Cape Sleeve Coat

2. Women's Halloween Printed Long Sleeve Sweatshirt. 

3. Luxury Black Hooded Faux Fur Coat

4. Faux Fur Collar Double Breasted Coat

5. Autumn And Winter Checker Blazer

Experimenting with a brand new look is the key to keeping fashion fun and to brighten up your day when you feel doom and gloom amidst the pandemic.  Make a statement in a faux fur long trench coat or dress yourself in cute Halloween women's sweaters, with the new season coats that offer timeless appeal.

If you’re in search of the perfect fall and winter pick me up for 2021, head over to Ninacloak, an online store where snappy dressers are spoilt for choices with the season’s most exciting outerwear and more!

  

Lemongrass Plant For Haru

 

I've been wanting to buy cat grass for Haru from Shopee or Lazada. But lazy me just won't have the time to plant these grass from seeds, water it and tend to it everyday.  So I went to a nursery at our hood today and got a pot of lemongrass at RM6 a pot.

Lemongrass has a catnip-like effect on most cats. Whether potted indoors or planted in an outdoor garden, a nibble-friendly patch of lemongrass is a safe cat treat. Lemongrass essential oil, however, can be toxic to felines.

Initially Haru didn't know what to do with the lemongrass plant except to sniff it. Sherilyn cut a teeny bit of leaf and taught Haru to chew on it.  Moments later she was nibbling on the leaves from the pot.  

Thankfully Haru didn't get the Zoomies after nibbling on the leaves.  In fact, she's been very good today, except for the fact that she climbed up the kitchen counter top, where the microwave oven is to look for food! 

Haru gets very excited each time she hears the sound of the microwave door opening and the sounds of the buttons being pressed as these are the sounds she hears whenever we heat up pork or chicken (her favorite food) for her.   It was already her supper time and her way of telling us that she's hungry is by climbing up the counter top.  Someone wasn't happy when she saw it 😂

Four Reasons To Love Boots

Many women are crazy over footwear.   Many of them spend thousands of dollars just to get a pair of designer shoes.  I am not against this as long as you can afford it.  Many years ago when I was in the corporate world, I splurged over RM2k on a branded leather handbag and RM1k+ on a pair of killer heels.  I even had a pair of embroidered boots up to my ankles which I loved but wore them less than 10 times as it was hot wearing that boots in our country's sizzling hot weather.  

I still love boots. Though it's not suitable to wear them in our country, I would want to get a pair of boots, especially knee-length boots to wear in a winter country when it's safe to travel out of our country again. 

I'm sure I'm not the only one who love boots so much. Why do we all love boots?  They can have a rugged country look or a sleek urban feel. On chilly days they make dresses and skirts wearable. They also give polish to jeans and add a down to earth feel to more delicate pieces. They're sexy, glamorous, protect your legs from the elements and versatile.

Boots are one of the fashion world’s unsung heroes. Stylish, versatile and flattering, they're a staple of every woman's wardrobe.  Here are four tops reasons to love boots and to add them to your shoe collection.

1)  Ultimate Trans-seasonal Footwear  

At the end of the summer, when it's too warm for tights but definitely too cold for sandals, a pair of ankle boots work perfectly with bare legs and a dress.

When temperatures dip a little, just add a thick pair of tights or tuck your jeans into your floral cowboy boots to stay cosy no matter what the weather.

 

2)  Super Flattering

Everyone looks good in boots, especially if you choose one of the more flattering styles from the range of Newchic boots, which are also affordable.   Look out for boots which are cut low towards the front of the ankle if you want to make short legs appear longer.

3) Practical

There is a very obvious reason behind this trend – boots, especially ankle boots are practical. They're comfortable, flexible and waterproof. You can run in them without breaking a heel and they won't chafe the way that flats can when you've been walking in them all day.

4) Never Goes Out of Style

Get acquainted with the ankle boot, and you may just be calling this evergreen shoe your new BFF. This particular piece of footwear can be worn on the daily, whether you’re kicking around town in denim and a sweater or heading to the office in a skirt and blouse. They should have a moderate heel that’s manageable — the right ankle boot should be comfortable and easy to walk in. You’ll be putting in a lot of mileage on them, after all.

Which type of boots do you love?  Vintage knee high boots, ankle boots, cowboy boots, classic boots or army boots? 

Holiday Activity - Making Stovetop Popcorn

I bought these popcorn kernels by mistake from Shopee. I thought they were already popped and ready-to-eat.  I got a shock when they came as kernels.  I missed out the word 'kernels' 😐 That's the problem whenever I buy something in a rush.

RM3.98 a packet for US mushroom kernels and RM4.98 a packet for the South Africa variety.

Today Sherilyn popped the kernels on a stovetop in a saucepan with organic coconut oil and littered them with a teeny bit of maple sugar.  They turned out pretty well, albeit some of the popcorns didn't turn out looking like mushroom popcorns (rounded) but instead, looking more like butterfly popcorns (irregular shapes).  Nonetheless, the popcorns were very nice and addictive.  We can indulge in them without much guilt as we know what goes in.  

The aroma of the popping popcorns wafting in the house was reminiscent of our good old cinema days.

We will try popping the kernels again tomorrow. This time we will add cocoa powder and matcha.  

Popping popcorn kernels is a fun holiday activity. It only takes a few minutes to get one big pot of yummy popcorns.  Quite glad that I erred on this purchase 😅

Haru In Our Home

 

This pussy saw a bumble bee buzzing away outside the mozzie net and got hyper excited. She was intent on catching the bee and almost pushed the mozzie net down our unit.  The other day she saw a lizard for the first time in her life and bit off the poor lizard's tail. The tail was still flipping and Haru bit the tail into pieces. O.M.G.!!

She's a lover of food and is hungry round the clock. About 1-2 hours before her meal time, she will be seated at the kitchen island shelf (this is where we keep her kibbles and wet food), waiting patiently for her food.

Haru's new scratch board beds arrived.  While her 2 doting sisters assembled the box, she waited patiently in the old scratch board bed which is already in a terrible beat-up condition.

Trying out her new scratch board box/bed.

Lockdown Tales

Two days ago, we found out from our friend who runs a Chinese restaurant at our hood that two of her shop neighbors had died of Covid.  This happened at the plaza that recently had a cluster -- the same place that Maria stays. The same place where the supermarket that I go to is.   We are also friends with the two deceased. One is the owner of a photo shop and the other, the owner of a Chinese medicine hall. We had been patronizing them for decades. A few shops away, something unfortunate happened to the owner too (who is also our friend), albeit not Covid. He suffered a stroke and is now hospitalized.   Although our friend's restaurant had to be closed for 2 weeks twice in a span of 1.5 months due to confirmed Covid cases from her workers and shop neighbors, thankfully our friend and her family members who help out at the restaurant were spared. They had to fork out thousands of Ringgit on Covid swab test for the entire crew. 

I couldn't sleep after I learned of the news. It was only three weeks ago that I saw one of the deceased when I went to the plaza to buy lunch and he's now gone forever.  Covid could infect anyone, even the fully vaxxed ones.

Life is very fragile. Tragedies, illnesses, death and other unexpected bumps in the road remind us of that fact. Unfortunately, a long life is not guaranteed. Some of us will get to live to be one hundred while others will live a fraction of that time.  

This reminds me once again that I should live in the present moment and take it one day at a time. With so much uncertainties over the future because of this pandemic, we can no longer plan ahead anymore.  I am trying hard to enjoy my lockdown days, though it's not easy. 

To beat the lockdown blues, I do quite a bit of online shopping.  I really enjoy waiting for my parcels to be delivered. That's the only thing that I can look forward to now.

Last weekend I ordered something that I've long wanted to try - lemang and beef rendang from a Malay seller and paid a frigging RM15 for delivery!

The lemang came encased in a bamboo.

The seller sent me a You Tube tutorial on how to remove the lemang from the bamboo. Cass tried it with a pestle by knocking the bamboo with it and then squeezed the lemang out.

The beef rendang melts in the mouth and very delish. But I had unquenchable thirst after that!  I read the ingredients and saw the word 'flavor enhancer'.  I thought I was going to reorder from this seller  but after the terrible unquenchable thirst episode throughout the day, no thanks 😁
Nonetheless, we all enjoyed the lemang and rendang.

Haru In Our Home

Cass' online classes start at 7:30 a.m. and only end at around 3 p.m. everyday.  Her days are pretty hectic, though classes are 100% remote.  Whenever there are breaks in between her classes, she will de-stress and get her dose of laugher and pet therapy from Haru.  But she can sometimes be overzealous in the way she shows her affection towards Haru - she hugs and squeezes Haru till she shrieks, she tosses Haru slightly in the air and makes Haru bleat and growl or chases Haru till her tail bristles up.  If I were a cat, I wouldn't want to be handled like that 😹 

But whenever Cass is gentle with the cat, Haru can remain still on her lap, watches Cass play a game or two or watches You Tube with her.

Haru's favorite person is her hooman dad as his voice is the first human voice that she heard. Haru's mother gave birth to her right outside hubby's office.
Every morning Haru follows her dad to the lift and I have to carry her back into the house.  
Whenever the door bell rings, she darts to the door and meows in anticipation that it will be her dad coming home.

I don't have to buy toys for Haru anymore.  She loves playing with thrash -- boxes, strings, bottle caps, broken hair ties, blister packs from my supplements, pens and plastic bags. 
The toy rat and scratch pad poll that I bought for her are untouched now. 

This is the look from Haru just before she bites us. She loves to bite us when her playful mode is switched on or when she's busy with something and we try to play with her.

In troubled times like now during the COVID-19 pandemic, pets can offer more than just a slobbery greeting or good-natured nuzzle, in Haru's case, she likes to tap on our leg with her paw to say 'hi' to us.

Haru is a great listener 😁.  I tell her things that I can't tell anyone else in the house and no unwelcome advice is given,  and sometimes, just saying things aloud can help me feel better rather than bottle up the feelings.