A series of unexpected events

Two of my oldest and dearest friends planned a visit to Sydney via Auckland at the end of March. I was very excited about seeing them again after over a year. I booked a nice restaurant and planned to do some serious retail therapy with them. The week before they were scheduled to arrive, I got an email to say one of the friends had to be taken into hospital by ambulance. This friend ended up staying in hospital for over a week (had to miss her flight to Sydney) and was ordered not to fly for over a month!

Luckily I still got to meet the other friend. She and her husband made a huge effort of coming to see us at home. I was busy all day cleaning up and getting dinner ready. I made a Vietnamese noodle salad (with meat wrapped in betal leaves-usually quite popular). I also bought a few interesting-sounding things to supplement the meal (didn't "banana blossoms with pine nuts" sound delicious?) I'm sorry to say but the dinner was a disaster. Everything tasted dry and funny. It would be so much easier, less time-consuming (and tastier) if I just got take-out at the local fish'n chips shop!

This same friend also got tickets to see Celine Dion with her parents who came to Sydney for the first time for the concert. I got a call from her after the concert to say that the concert was cancelled! (Ms Dion not feeling well) The organiser didn't even bother to call her (just an email to let her know concert was cancelled). Luckily she happened to check her emails!

Sometimes things just didn't go as planned. Life's full of surprises, isn't it?

I love this toy!

I love to be pulled around by Mummy in my toy car. It fits me just right. Things look more interesing from the car.

I tell Mummy where I want to go. And I let Mummy know if she stops in one place for too long.

I don't know why Mummy looks tired and keeps rubbing her back when she pulls me along but I think she enjoys it as much as I do.

I like to go from one end of the garden, to the other end and back, again and again!

Easter Friday - Lake Macquarie

We stayed over at a friend's holiday house near Lake Macquarie this Easter. We had been there a few times before. However, because of change in circumstances with one of the other couples, this yearly event was cancelled a couple of times. We opted to stay one night only as we didn't know how Lara's sleep would be in a different place. It wouldn’t be very good to keep people awake for more than one night.

The traffic going there wasn't great. F3 stalled as soon as we got on it, and during several sections of it, we were moving at no more than 20km/hr (Husband said he's not traveling again on Easter Friday). Coming back was a lot faster. We timed both journeys with Lara's sleep so she was no trouble in the car.

We normally just relaxed and caught up with friends while we were there, but this year with Lara, it was not as serene. The constant rain meant we didn't go into the water. Husband and friend R did a little fishing. R caught a few small fish that were later used as baits for blue swimmers.

Lara went to bed at around 8pm and only cried briefly at 11pm when we went to bed. It was a relief that she adjusted very well in a new place. We feel more confident in tackling longer holidays to further places later on.

I didn't know what happened but I managed to take not a single photo during the whole trip - even though I had my camera charged the night before and I made sure there was enough space to take lots of pictures. The photo included here was a family lunch on Easter Sunday.

Hatless Easter parade

I briefly saw the paper attached to Lara's day care book informing us of an Easter Hat Parade held on the Thursday before Easter. The next time I remembered it was Wednesday night at 9pm when I was packing Lara's day care bag.

Not only did I have no time to make a hat then, I had absolutely no material to make it with. Thinking that Lara would not know what a parade is and hoping other parents would be as "busy" as I was, I told myself I would make an effort next year.

I regret my decision of doing nothing as soon as I arrived at day care on Thursday morning, when I saw this kid carrying a big beautiful hat with lots of eggs, fluffy chickens and flowers on it (it would take me weeks to make a hat like that!). The worst thing was it looked like everyone had an Easter hat except Lara. I went to work feeling guilty and failed as a Mum (briefly). I felt even guiltier when I read Lara's communication book that night:
"Lara had a great time watching all the children walking around in the Easter Hat parade".

Husband and I were joking that Lara would always wonder why she has no memory of her first Easter Hat parade(because she was not in it!). I hardly have enough time to make sure Lara and us have a proper meal to eat every night, how did other people have time to make beautiful Easter hats as well?

Guilt is a strong motivator. I have made up my mind to go as soon as I could and buy enough craft material and be ready for the next parade or whatever craft I have to make next!

[1y 2m] Build up immune system

(photo: Lara sucking on lamb bones)

Lara's busy this month building up her immune system. She was clingy and irritable when she was unwell, but I guess that was expected and unavoidable. She is all well now and a happy little kid again.

This month:

* Lara is more aware of her surroundings. Husband noticed that Lara seldom walked into things now - she walked around toys in her way.

* Lara communicates to us what she wants by pointing and making a demanding "aaaaa" sound. she's particularly impatient when it comes to food. She lets us know when we are too slow in feeding her.

* Lara's understanding of what we say increased dramatically. When we say "birdie", she looks out of the window and points at the sky. If she sees a bird, she points at the bird and laughs in delight. When we say, "wipe your face/mouth", she would dap the flannel over her mouth. She also understands some Chinese words after Mum and Dad came. She know the Chinese word for "eyes" and would point to the "eyes" of her dolls and the Chinese word for "bird". We think Lara knows more than she lets on.

* Lara knows the concept of "pretend-play" now. She pretends to eat off plastic plates, pretends to stir and drink from a cup. She also pretends to read her books in her reading voice (a voice distinctively different to her talking voice).

* Lara also discovered climbing. She likes to climb onto her box of books, and read books inside the box. She also likes to climb stairs when we are out and there's one around.


* Lara copies everything we do. She put things over her head as hats, and next to her ears as phones. She loves to press keys on the phone. It's hard to talk on the phone without her wanting to press everything.

* Lara walks very well. She has several new dance moves. One of them is turning in circles, she varied this a little by something tilting her head, sometimes raise one arm or sometimes have on arm folded across her chest while twirling around. Her other dance move is to do lots of tiny steps while walking, sometimes there was some shoulder movement at the same time.

* Lara loves walking around pushing her baby walkers.

Stuffed zucchini flowers

I ordered something a little different in my vege box this week - zucchini flowers.

I turned them into stuffed zucchini flowers for dinner last night. Very exciting. While I was cooking, Husband kept looking over my shoulders and asking "Are we having flowers for dinner?" He doesn't like vegetables very much, but I think he secretly likes the novelty of eating flowers.

(photo: flowers being cooked in pan)

The stuffing was made with bread crumbs, onion, thyme(from the garden!) and baby spinach leaves. I also added shredded cheese to bind the mixture and provide extra flavor. We had 5 flowers each. They were very tasty. I liked them crispy on the outside.


The petals were very delicate. It took some practice for me to push the stuffing in without tearing the petals apart. It was a very enjoyable meal.
This is definitely something I will make again!

First hair cut

Date: 16/Mar/08.
At: Grandma's
During: Played with various measuring cups from Grandma's kitchen , Lara sat through the hair cut without much trouble (no crying that is). It was probably more stressful for Grandma, who had to put up with a constantly moving head.
Result: Much tidier hair ready for photo day next week. Thanks Grandma!

Mum's food

Mum and Dad went on a cruise across the Tasman Sea and arrived at Sydney, their last stop, at the end of February. My plan of going to see them when the ship docked at Circular Quay was cancelled because Lara was not well. Most of our other plans to visit places with them or try new restaurants were cancelled as well because Dad caught a cold shortly after they arrived. After he recovered, Lara became unwell again (another tummy bug). We ended up staying/eating at home mostly. And it was great that Mum took over most of the cooking!



It was simple, comfort home-made food. Just what we need at the moment.

Cost of carelessness

I have been a little careless lately.
It started when I nearly lost my handbag on the train.

Daycare called to say that Lara had a temperature one lunch time. In my haste to get home, I got off the train without my handbag(+purse). Luckily I realised it in time to get back on the train. Unfortunately, before I had time to get off again, train closed its door and left. It was an express train so it took me at least another 20 minutes to get another train back. The idiom "Less haste more speed" was very true in my case.

The following day was raining. I was reading an engrossing book and barely had time to put the book away when my stop was up. In my haste to get off (that word again), I left my umbrella on the train. I only had myself to blame when I arrived at work wet.

Not long after losing my umbrella, we went out one weekend and Lara fell asleep on the way back. I sat in the car waiting for her to wake up. I was too tired (it was during the time Lara had diarrhea) to notice that the car key was still in ignition when I carried Lara in. It was until we were ready to go to the video shop that night that we realised that car wouldn't start. I had to call NRMA to come and give us a new battery. This carelessness cost $165.

I'm trying to rest more to get over my tiredness. Hopefully I will have a clearer head and there'll be no more costly carelessness.

Vege box

We are trying out organic vegetables this year. Pictured above was our third box.

I enjoyed choosing the items in front of my labtop, planning what to do with them and receiving/seeing them at the door. I also enjoyed reading the newletter that comes with the box, learning about what's in season and the relationship between nature and the produce. For example, the heavy rain we had a couple of weeks ago delayed planting of strawberry seeds thus affect fruit we get 12 weeks down the track. Living our busy lives, we sometimes forget that all things are connected and related.

An agonising hour

I had a dentist appointment today. This is the second of a series of dental work big and small being done. Today I had a temporary crown put in. The real crown will go in in two weeks time. I was only at the dentist for an hour, but it was a very uncomfortable and expensive hour, especially after I found out our particular cover of health insurance didn't cover crown as it was not "general dental".

I wanted to get this particular tooth fixed for a while. Pork crackling at Christmas forced me to speed things up as a large filling fell out with the lovely pork skin. This dental business wasn't exactly painful, just very uncomfortable. I felt like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered every time the chair was being lowered down. I looked into the florescent light thinking pleasant thoughts - it helped me getting through each long minute.

I had the choice of studying dentistry a long time ago. In my "naive" youth, I thought looking into people's mouth day-in and day-out didn't sound like a nice way to make a living, so I chose to study engineering instead. I don't think I mind looking into people's mouth now if I can charge $300 for every half an hour I work (seemed to be the average of what I paid). I know money isn't everything and there's nothing wrong with what I do now, but there's nothing wrong doing work on people's mouth and get paid heaps either!

Weekend excursions

I like to schedule a couple of little excursions on the weekend if possible, preferably outdoors (if weather permits). Lara is fascinated by everything outdoor.

Lara was amazed by wind when she was young. I still remembered Lara's first wind experience, she looked like she was a little startled and puzzled by the blowing sensation on her face. She then went through a phase when she loved touching leaves, and ripping leaves off trees. Now she likes to walk around exploring, picking up twigs and flowers lying on the grass. Husband and I always enjoy the fresh air outside too.

Here are some pictures we took in the last couple of weeks.

This was taken in Auburn botanical garden. We happened to witness a group of geese walking to a nearby pond for a drink so we followed them. I wonder why they always walk in a line and whether there's a particular order they walk in?


Lara walked around on a grassy area. Even though she was not well with diarrhea, she was still very happy when we were out.


We stopped by in a new park on the way to the shops. Lara is too young for slides and see-saws but she likes swings.

Sometimes we need a small drink

Lara has been a little unwell recently. Two teeth on the top broke through 2 weeks ago, and another at the bottom starting to poke its head out. Other part of the gum is red and swollen and there sure looks like more teeth are on their way. But teething is not the only thing ....


(Lara fell off her toy car and landed flat on her face on our tiled kitchen floor. The result was a swollen upper lip and an even unhappier child. )

In the last two weeks, I have been called twice to go and fetch Lara from daycare because she was not well. The last one was on Friday when daycare suspected she had diarrhea. After watching her for 24 hours with no formula and dairy, everything seemed fine. Then I made a mistake that made things worse - I gave her yoghurt too soon thinking that she was fully recovered. Diarrhea came back after that.

Doctor diagnosed it to be gastroenteritis and ordered home rest (no daycare for a week) and a diet of rice, pasta and no dairy (excepted diluted formula) for 5 days. So Lara and I will be on a involuntary break for a week!

I had been feeling flat and tired already, as Lara had a couple of crying nights. I must had it really good, because I forgot how tiring it was to be woken up at night. Because she's not feeling well, during the day Lara's exetremey clingy. She cries, arches her back and sometimes throws herself on the floor. When I hold her, she wants to get down. When I let her down, she wants to be picked up. Nothing makes her happy. She's un-consolable when she starts to cry.

For the first time, I had this feeling briefly of wanting to "give her back". You know how when you play with other people's kids and they start to cry or become difficult, you can just hand them back to the parents. That was the feeling I got that I wanted to give Lara back to her parents. But I AM the parent people give Lara back to, I'm IT! This feeling didn't stay very long and the feeling of empathy soon took over.

Husband fixed himself a glass of bundy 'n' coke and asked if I wanted a drink. Oh yes please. How nice it was to have a glass of gin 'n' tonic to give me a little more energy to handle the crying. Poor Lara. I hope she feels better soon.

Saturday breakfast - french toasts

We had french toasts for the last 2 Saturdays. I did it mainly for Lara, trying to introduce different tastes and textures to her food. She loved it!! Husband and I are watching our waistlines so we probably won't see french toasts on the menu too often.

My little herb garden

(Clockwise from the front: chives, thyme, basil, mint and sage. Rosemary's in its own pot not shown here)

Planted them on the weekend, and they are still alive! (it's only a couple of days but the first few days are vital!) I know it will be a little while until harvest, but I'm already dreaming about herb omelet, herb bread, Vietnamese summer rolls all with fresh herbs from the garden. Umm... Yum...

Let's hope they survive my not-so-green thumb.

[1 year 1 month] Loves to dance

Lara loves music and she discovered dancing to music recently. She shakes her shoulders and bottom, bends her legs and moves to the beat of music. She has pretty good rhythm. I love watching her dance. Lara's a little camera-shy though. Every time the camera is out, she stops dancing. I'm loading a small video at the moment but hoping to get a better footage for our record at some stage.

Lara also learned how to make faces (we didn't teach her!) when she's not happy. Maybe she learned by watching other kids in day care? She squeezes her nose and eyes together and whines, especially when she wants something we don't want her to have. It looks funny (cute sometimes), not really a flattering look.


Lara loves grapes. If I put grapes and bananas cut-up in a bowl, Lara eats the grapes first. Grapes are my secret weapon at the moment; Lara would do anything for grapes!


Lara likes to put things with loops on her wrists like bracelets. She walks around very pleased with herself when she's wearing bracelets. She also likes to put her hat on and off, on and off. She sometimes puts a tea towel or a piece of clothing (eg. a top) on top of her head like a hat.


Lara sleeps in the cot now in day care. But she still only has one sleep (between 0.5-1.5 hours) as supposed to 2 sleeps at home (1.5 hours each). She's a light sleeper and wakes up very easily I was told. Some days, she came home very very tired; she kept falling off every couple of steps, as if she was drunk.

Lara was also quite attached to her blanket, probably due to increase in days at day care. It's something from home that she is familiar with and it has the smell of home. Lara still cries sometimes when I leave her in the morning, but the cries gets shorter. When I left this morning, she stopped crying even before I left the door. (she didn't cry going to day care at first because she hadn't worked out what happened then but now she knows when mummy leaves in the morning, she doesn't come back for a long time!)

New cookbooks

My recently-acquired cookbooks.
The book on the left only scanned for $3 due to an error. Not bad for a 500-page glossy hard-cover book. Shame that there was only one copy on the self, otherwise I would get a few more.

Last weekend

It has been raining a lot, and last weekend was particularly wet. Around mid-day, the rain stopped and the sun came out briefly. I had to return Lara's toys and Husband felt like a cup of coffee so we decided to get some fresh air outside. I was chatting in the car when Husband suddenly shouted "Slow down" before a Hume Highway intersection. At the same time, I saw a car making almost a U-turn, another car's bonnet popped open and a lawn mower flying in the air all in slow motions. It felt like time nearly stopped and every image was sharp and clear in a frame-by-frame-like fashion. I imaged there must be a loud crash sound but I didn't hear anything. All was silent like we were in a silent movie.

What we think happened was the van/truck in front of us changed two lanes quickly to get to the inner-most lane in order to turn right (he might have gotten away with it on a nice day but not a good idea on a wet day), slipped off the road and hit two incoming cars on the other side of the road. A few objects lying but not secured in the back of the van (Husband said there was a goods trolley and I thought it was a lawn mower) flying out and nearly hit our car. Luckily I was some distance away from him, wasn't driving very fast therefore narrowly missed the flying objects. We didn't think anyone was hurt. I'm extremely grateful that nothing happened to us and Lara. We really need to be careful ALL THE TIME when we are on the road.

*********************

On a happier note, on the same night we picked up some Vietnamese take away for dinner and went to get some DVDs at the local video shop. Lara was happily walking along the isles "choosing" DVDs with me following closely behind. She spotted two little girls nearby, one might be 3 or 4 and the other 6 or 7. Lara always likes other kids- she stared at them and followed them around at first. It wasn't long before she walked up to them mumbling something and touched one of the girls in the tummy. The girls were quite interested in Lara too, especially the younger one. She pointed at Lara and said "I think she wants to play with us". I replied "I think she likes you two". After that, the three of them just sat on the carpet amongst the DVDs and "played" (in their own way) together for a little while. Kids have this amazing ability of living in the moment and they make friends so easily. I'm learning a lot from them.

Lasagna and Hainanese chicken

To start on one of my New Year resolutions to be a better cook, I tried a few "new" things recently. Lasagna is one of them. I had never made it in my life but in the last couple of weeks, we had Lasagna twice.

The first was a "Pumpkin and Sage Lasagna" pictured above. The second one I made with our usual Bolognese sauce (then loosely followed the recipe on the back of the pasta packet). It pays to follow a proper recipe because the second Lasagna fell apart easily as it was too wet. It still tasted nice just not as pleasing to look at. The pumpkin and ricotta cheese combination is a little on the sweet side and Husband is not used to that for a main meal, but we still liked it a lot. Lara liked both and kept asking for more.

It was good for a first go. Obviously, there's room for improvement.

I also made Hainanese chicken pictured below.



The chicken was tender and tasted really nice. Rice was a little on the hard side, need to put in more chicken stock next time. The condiments (sauces) were nice with it. I cheated a little by using a packet I had for some time. It was very simple. All I had to do was boiling some water, opening packets, putting chicken in boiling water, taking chicken out, opening more packets, cooking rice, cutting chicken then everything was ready like magic. I used to think Hainanese was very hard to do. It must be more difficult without the pre-made packs.

A beautiful long weekend

The highlights of the long weekend were the lovely lamb roast we had at Parents-in-law's and getting into the pool with Lara afterwards. On a hot day like that, we usually stay in and watch TV in the cool air-conditioned room. I'm glad that we decided to spend some time outside. "Spending time outside" is something I remind myself constantly and every time we do that, we are always rewarded by how much fun we have.

Lara hadn't been in a pool prior so I half -expected that she would cry , but she didn't. Lara loves her bath, but a pool is so much bigger than a bath tub, and pool water is a lot cooler. We could see at first that Lara was a little unsure by the display of a frown and a weary mouth on her face. Gradually, she got more playful in the water. We were careful about sun protection but Lara kept removing her hat, so we had to stay at the shadier part of the pool. The warm sun and cool breeze was very relaxing and it made us all sleppy. For the first time, Lara didn't struggle or cry when I put her to bed in the travel cot. We all had a good time!