Singapore shots

The 'old' girls and their kids


Caitlin with two of her Singaporean cousins, LeReyne and Elroy

Rhythm of the drums

Caitlin's drum set arrived on Saturday. Now she can practise. Drums are relatively loud instruments and her teacher says she is a loud, rock drummer. She has a set of ear plugs to use at her lessons but now the whole family needs ear plugs too to protect our hearing when she practises.We do not have a soundproof room. Hopefully the neighbours will enjoy the rhythms and not complain!

The Purpose Driven Life

I am currently re-reading this book "The Purpose Driven Life". The last time I read it was two years ago when I had just quit my job to be at home. I find this book helpful in providing direction and inspiration. It takes you on a 40-day journey with daily chapters which are short enough for busy people, and yet its contents really get down to the heart of the topic covered for that day with points to ponder on.

Despite the criticisms mentioned in the Wikipedia link above, I believe it is up to the individual to determine if the book has been helpful to him. After all, it is only a guide and ultimately, how one lives should be guided by one's heart, his relationship with God and His Word.

If you visit the website, it provides related resources and even has the first seven chapters available online.

Chapter 3 of the book stood out to me when I read it about 10 days ago. It's titled "What Drives Your Life?" and the two quotes at the top of the page were meaningful:

I observed that the basic motive for success is the driving force of envy and jealousy! Ecclesiastes 4:4

The man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder -- a waif, a nothing, a no man. Thomas Carlyle

One of the benefits mentioned in this chapter about knowing your purpose is that it simplifies your life. Knowing your purpose "defines what you do and what you don't do. Your purpose becomes the standard you use to evaluate which activities are essential and which aren't....Without a clear purpose you have no foundation on which you base decisions, allocate your time, and use your resources. You will tend to make choices based on circumstances, pressures, and your mood at that moment. People who don't know their purpose try to do too much -- and that causes stress, fatigue, and conflict."

Time for me to ponder now about the stress, fatigue and probably, conflicts, I sometimes experience!

Handbags

Ever since I became a work-at-home mum, my need for a chic or business-like handbag to go with my office wear has diminished. However, recently, when work started picking up and required me to go out more, I suddenly realised that my old handbags were deteriorating from lack of use and were somehow not to my taste anymore.

Thus, I'm on the lookout for a bag or bags that are versatile enough for work, casual outings and to also hold all the necessities a mother of a five-year-old would need to carry along when she goes out with her kid, and still look good!

Coincidentally, I was directed to an online shopping site which features a really good range, thousands in fact, of handbags and wallets, among other things.

Checking out the site, I found that it is user-friendly with pictures of the items, pricing, description and store that carries it. This site carries many brands of handbags, from cheap no-name ones (some of the bags ARE nice), to designer labels such as Jean Paul Gaultier, Prada and Dolce & Gabbana.

You can search by categories of price range (below USD30 to above USD260), stores, brands, material and even closure (zipper, flap, etc). I saw quite a number of bags that I like from affordable ones to the ones I can only dream of....

Ratatouille tastes good!

I'm glad I bought a copy of the Sept/Oct issue of Flavours, a Malaysian publication for food lovers. In this issue, it featured Ratatouille, a French dish made famous by the recent Disney-Pixar movie by the same name. For those who have yet to watch the movie, I would recommend it, and although the cute rat is featured so prominently with the movie title, we must remember that his name is Remy, not ratatouille!

According to Flavours, "the real ratatouille, as served up in homes around Provence, looks nothing like the elegantly-plated, thinly-shaved layers of vegetables fanned out to form a mound that you see in the animated movie; it is the most unglamorous-looking of stews - a floppy mass of mushy vegetables."

After reading the article, I was inspired to try out the recipe as it looked idiot-proof and the ingredients were easily available, plus it's so versatile that it can be eaten and used for many different other dishes; on its own, in omelettes, as a pasta sauce, on baguette like a bruschetta, as pie filling or even a crumble.

Last Friday I made it and we ate it with spaghetti. I must say, for a lousy cook like me, it tasted good on its own and with the spaghetti too. Unfortunately, Caitlin wasn't keen on it as it's a vege dish and tomato-based (she prefers creamy,white sauces like carbonara or herbs and cheese with her pasta).

It's great too that this dish can be made in a big batch and frozen to be used for various occasions and can be served warm or cold.

Here's the recipe if you are keen to try it out. Bon apetit!