Great Kitchen Tips For Moms, By Moms.

Even though I've been a stay-at-home-mom for slightly more than a decade now, it doesn't mean that I know the keys to all solutions at home. As I was eagerly looking out for ways to help myself solve some household matters recently, I thought it would be good to put down in writing the few good worthy tips I use and share them with my readers!

The White Eraser Sponge

One of my favorite finds to use in my kitchen is the white color eraser sponge, easily available at Daiso. It helps to clean off dirt stains on my white kitchen table top, my stained walls and also keeping my children's white PVC school shoes dirt free. (In fact, it is probably the reason why I don't buy canvas school shoes to save myself from scrubbing them!)

Rid Bad Odor in Fridge
 
Recently, I had a major issue with an odor in the fridge. Didn't know where it came from, even though I cleaned my fridge thoroughly with fresh lemon and made sure that any expired food is thrown out. So I tried the usual method of placing a plate of baking soda in the fridge, as well as placing fresh teabags on each shelves (as used by Cindy) since they are effectively known to absorb bad smell.  But I guess the odor in my fridge was a stubborn one!

Desperate, and in much scepticism, I decided to use my prized possession : vanilla extract.  Soak up the extract with a cotton ball and leave it in the fridge. Overnight, the odor mysteriously disappeared and the fridge now has a lingering vanilla scent to it! mmm!

Keep The Chicken Bones!

Oh! And the next time you roast a chicken, don't discard em' bones! Freeze it and use it when you next boil your soups. It accentuates the flavor of your soup with the extra oomph!

For the benefit of all, I've garnered and compiled more useful kitchen tips from my mom blogger friends from Singapore Mom Bloggers! These tips have been a great help to them and may come in handy for you some day. In a nutshell, it either saves you time or money! I'm already starting to take in many tips from here. And yes, some so simple yet simply overlooked in my kitchen. 

Thanks ladies, for your kind contribution!

 Do you have more tips to share from your kitchen or household that works brilliantly for you? Please feel free to leave them in the comment box because am pretty sure we will all refer to it!  

Till the next post, have a blessed week!

Replacing Coconut Milk With Fresh Milk For Curries

I recall, during my childhood days, my parents loved making frequent lunch trips from Ang Mo Kio to Selegie House where a famous Indian curry stall used to be. I was not a fan of curry then so I always got to pack along a hot dog while I watched my folks indulge in their curry chicken and finger-licking good crabs. But of course, this arrangement didn't last long. Now, I love my curries and can't live without them!

Years later, after I got married, I began to wonder what made curries so delicious and extremely appetizing. There were many things I was going to learn from my mom, since I had already moved out. I wanted to cook for my husband. (I had zero knowledge of cooking at the age of 26) So she told me the key ingredient that made everything so flavorful was coconut milk.

Don't be mistaken. I'm not against coconut milk at all. It was just the thought of consuming too much of it, especially when I love savoring the gravy, convinced me that it will not be too good for my weight in the long run! No. Am not a health freak. I love good food! But I try to make informed choices whenever possible.

Then, a few weeks ago, Greenfields milk came a'knocking and sent some of their milk products for the family to try. My first thoughts were - "aren't most fresh milk just about the same?" To which I found out that they are indeed different, living up to their label of 'honest milk' - with no additives, chemicals, hormones or antibiotics - now that is really something commendable!

Available flavors for everyone in the family! Greenfields milk comes in 2 litre bottles, 1 litre packs, 500ml and 200ml packs which you can find at the chilled section at major supermarkets. The kids love the chocolate malt the most, by the way!

Quick Facts About Why Greenfields Milk Is Our Choice

Greenfields is an integrated farm based in Malang, East Java and has over 6,000 Holstein happy cows which produces over 20 million litres of fresh milk every year. Because the farm is so much nearer to where we are, the milk products are delivered to us in quicker time. This ensures the optimal freshness of the milk we consume. Furthermore, with their single-pasteurised milk, produced and packed within the dairy farm, the milk remains fresh and safe for the whole family.

Image courtesy of Greenfields.

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Here's my easy chicken curry recipe you can make with Greenfields milk!
The result : honest-to-goodness delicious flavors that we all can safely enjoy.

This recipe serves 4.

Ingredients :
-  half a chicken or about 500gm of drumsticks and wings
- 2 potatoes (cut into smaller pieces)
- 2 tomatoes (quartered)
- 2 onions (sliced)
- a handful of curry leaves (optional)
- 100 gm chicken curry powder (get your mix from the spice shop at the market, or a premix one from shelves. So far, brands like A1, Babas and Earthen Pot have great tasting mixes.)
- 1 cup fresh milk from Greenfields
- 2-3 cups water, depending on your preference for thickness in the gravy
- salt to taste
- 2 tbsp cooking oil

Cooking method :
- marinade the chicken with the curry powder and set aside.
- fry the onions and curry leaves till fragrant. Add chicken and continue to fry.
- When it's partially cooked, add the milk, water, potatoes and tomatoes.
- Let it simmer for 45 - 60 mins.
- Add salt to taste.

Serve this aromatic dish with freshly toasted baguette or plain white rice, with papadums on the side for a satisfying meal!

Greenfields milk is available at leading supermarkets and 7-11 convenient stores. Fresh Milk, High Calcium Low Fat, High Calcium Skimmed milk and Chocolate Malt comes in 1 litre packs (S$3.25). Fresh milk 200ml packs and Chocolate Malt 200ml packs -only in selected Cold Storage ($1.20) and 7-11 convenient stores (S$1.50).  Fresh Milk, High Calcium Low Fat also comes in 2 litres bottle (S$5.95).

 This post is brought to you by :

  Till the next post, have a blessed week!

Disclaimer : The Accidental Mom Blogger received milk products from Greenfields for review purpose only. I am in no way, affiliated to this company and opinion about this product is purely my own.

Why, Yes. I Send My Kids To Tuition.

Flipping through the newspaper this morning prompted me to write this post where this is a hot topic raised on a national level. More so when I read a letter in the forum section by a mother which read "Tuition not necessary for good grades".

I have valid reasons for sending my children to tuition. If there wasn't any need to, I don't think I want to spend the additional money on extra classes, nor the extra time spent on ferrying/waiting which could have been better spent in quality.

As I go along in this post, I will be extracting certain portions of her letter and share how I personally feel about what was written.

"My elder daughter took her Primary School Leaving Examination last year and was among the top 10 per cent in her cohort." 

Well in this instance, I'm happy for her as a parent, who has a self-motivated and disciplined child that she need not worry about. For all we know, her daughter is just naturally born gifted and if I have children like that, I would be the least worried about her academics. 

My children are not academic ambitious, as much as I would like them to. Though this is not the reason why I send them for extra classes. 

Currently, my son in secondary one has no tuition as he already has a packed schedule with CCAs, coming home about 6pm almost everyday. It would be cruel to take away the precious time he has left to spend at home with the family, play and tackling homework each day. So I am just holding my breath that he will be self-motivated enough soon to be responsible with his revision and hope that he pulls through the weaker subjects. 

"I was shocked when my younger daughter told me recently that she was probably the only one in her class who did not attend tuition classes. Some of her classmates had two tutors for each subject, making it eight teachers for four subjects."

I am equally appalled by the sharing of the second sentence. Now this is absolutely kiasu, I must say. But then again, every child is different. And you may be surprised by how much a child can love tuition this much! No kidding! In fact, I've heard of a minority who thrive on tuition better than in school!

For us, we made the decision to send ours for tuition on their weaker subjects in school. Namely mother tongue which I wrote before on the challenges they face. Mathematics is another core subject they both can tackle however, as it is a difficult subject for me to guide them from home since there are changes to the way problems are being solved, I am not confident on giving advise on the topics as they progress. My husband would help if he is home however, we feel that they need a tutor whom they can tap on with proper resources, lest we give the wrong advice since we are not equipped with the current syllabus. So a tutor comes into the picture. It is not about having a tutor who gives more homework. It is about a tutor who can guide and explain what they do not understand from school and customize their learning journey if necessary. With understanding comes knowledge. When knowledge is applied properly, doesn't everything just fall into place?

"If teachers are doing their job, pupils are attentive in class and parents are doing their best to motivate their children and supervise their schoolwork, then there is no need for tuition to ramp up one's results."

I am very sure our teachers are doing their job. In fact, I think it's a very tough job to have to maintain everyone's undivided attention in class and ensure that every child registers what he/she teaches. In reality, I believe not everyone would. Just like my children who would sometimes let their minds drift away during class. This was what their teachers feedback.

For us, it is not so much to "ramp up one's results".  It is about being given individual attention in a small group tuition setting so that they can ask whatever without feeling the need to be embarrassed, as compared to a class of 40 in school. With this personalized setting to address their specific needs, they will grasp the topic better and would help them tackle the challenges. They still don't score exceedingly well but marked gradual improvements, even if its just by 5-10 marks, do make a difference in the grading system. Key point to note here is "improvement" or the very least, "maintenance". Not about the A stars. Though that would be a bonus!

"More importantly, not attending tuition classes gives my children an invaluable asset - the ability to allocate more time for family bonding."

Absolutely agree. However, as parents, we also cannot feign ignorance if we see our child struggling with a subject in school and recognize that they need the extra help. I feel that any parent will decide what is best for their children so that quality time will not be compromised.  

It is also times like this that I am glad to be a stay-at-home-mom because I am able to schedule their tuition on weekday afternoons without much disruption. I am an advocate of quality time with the family and determined to give my children a balanced life. Ultimately, what is most important is that we know our own childrens' needs and as parents, we must step in to address them. If we don't, who will? It is definitely not a one-size-fits-all kind of situation.

  Till the next post, have a blessed week!

Linking up with :

 

The Perfect Tween Girl Gift

   Nope. I wasn't the "awesome mom" that presented her this gift. But I was the "awesome mom" who brought her there. :p   Thanks to Regina from mummymoo.com, who had so kindly gifted Megan her first manicure and pedicure session as her birthday present. You cannot imagine how thrilled she was to have this pampering session - minus the silent "ow ow ow" part when they pushed her cuticles down...  

Photo taken from my daughter's instagram. It was her choice of color and design and I won't deny it looks really nice on her!

 To think my daughter has had a manicure experience at 11 years of age and her outdated mommy has not had one done before. But not that I am complaining since I don't really like the thought having chipped nails soon after because of daily chores, nor have people touching my toes.(I'm private like that.)     Till the next post, have a blessed week!

Things To Do @ Downtown East

We checked into Costa Sands Resort and escaped home for 2 nights earlier this week since it was the schools' September term break, but mostly to be away from the noise and mess since we were overhauling our master bedroom. Yes, overhaul! Because the previous contractor did not do a good job with the waterproofing of our bathroom and wreaked havoc on our laminated floor and built-in wardrobe.

We were not duly disappointed even though we visit Downtown East very often, it was different to be staying over and hanging out with the family without worrying about time, what to do and what to eat because they have everything to entertain us as a family!

The cozy room that we had with the basic amenities. I wished the beds were a tad less hard though!

Here's what we did to keep our children entertained and have some family fun apart from going back home now and then to monitor the renovation.

DAY #1 BOWLING & SWIM

DAY #2 

The kids caught up with their homework from school in the morning and had their favorite choice of breakfast.

 We went to Wild Wild Wet in the afternoon, mostly to please our resident adrenalin junkie!

Images taken from Wild Wild Wet site

Some of the slides and rides they covered. Urm, ok I'm no water babe of any sorts and certainly don't look like one. I was happy just to hang around the Tsunami and Jacuzzi but was convinced to try the Ular-lah. I screamed... and screamed some more while the three of them hummed to the smurf tune. Yep! That's my family for you, if you must know. Ah well, as long as they were entertained. -__-
 

We had an impromptu barbeque at the resort since the weather that evening was fabulous and caught up with a couple of friends, who were living in the area. We were glad that the convenient shops there had all our barbeque needs - including marinated meats so we needn't worry about the hassle of preparing the food!

It has been a good few days spent. I'm very happy to see my children enjoying the time together as a family - with no computer distraction. It is moments like these that makes me feel blessed to be a part of their lives and reminds me how far I've come in my motherhood journey.

  Till the next post, have a blessed week!

The Vow

Tomorrow marks my 16th year of marriage.   As they say, it's great to find someone special you can annoy for the rest of your life. I think, we both found ours.  

 
A wedding anniversary is the celebration of love, trust, partnership, tolerance and tenacity.  The order varies for any given year.  ~Paul Sweeney   Happy anniversary to us!  And many more years to come.   Till the next post, have a blessed week!