Health is Wealth

I am fortunate that I never have to cook up a storm for relatives and friends during Chinese New Year. If my mil happens to be back for CNY, she will be the chef, whipping up 2 - 3 sumptuous meals a day. She is even capable of cooking up a storm for a big group of relatives using all her high-end cookware, which she would only use if she has to cook ‘fanciful’ and ‘elaborate’ dishes. I dare not touch her cookware and collection of bakeware if she is not around, lest I accidentally break them, holy moly if I do as they are all very costly and imported! The pretty cookware and bakeware sit inside the kitchen cabinet nicely, with a layer of ‘protection’ until she returns.

I do not bake as I cannot find the time to do so, though at times I am very tempted to do some baking with my kids. My kids will love me if I am ambitious enough to let them bake some cookies with me. Whenever my mil is overseas for a stretch of a few months, I will prepare pretty simple dishes using pretty simple cookware. One time, I was so tired of cooking that I ordered some home-cooked catered food but after just one month, I gave up. No matter how busy I may be, I have since told myself that home-cooked steamed chicken and steamed fish are still way tastier and healthier than the daily catered food which I got, which was laden with oil (and I have no frigging idea what oil the caterer used) and burnt wok remnants on all the dishes!

If ever I have to take over the position of the chief chef of the house, I may buy a new collection of cookware. I will buy pots and pans that will help make my cooking sessions easier. I heard Shop Hot Pots have a good range of cookware. Busy me might just get them online since it’s so convenient. Yep, I am all for online shopping now ever since I started an online store myself.

Posted on February 1st, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: SR | 2 Comments »

My 3.9 year old little devil enjoying her breakfast of bread dunked into half boiled free range chicken egg. She made quite a mess on the table, on her face, her hands and clothes. She even dipped her fingers into the egg mixture and tried to scoop out the egg with her hands! Oh well, as long she is willing to eat her eggs without any coercion, I am happy

Posted on January 30th, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: Cassandra | No Comments »

Each morning when I jog round the neighborhood, I would see a lady in her fifties doing gardening in her little plot of land outside her house. I grew up in a house with a huge garden and I love plants, especially flowers and trees that bear fruits. Ever since the kids came along, all my time has been centered around them and now in my online work. Each time I bump into that lady in her garden, I would imagine myself doing this when I am her age. That is when my girls would have left their nests and I would be a woman of leisure again. That is when I can embark on my hobbies, which I have a few. I would imagine my daughters giving me gardening gifts so that I could grow more plants and harvest some home-grown fruits and veggie for them too.

Posted on January 26th, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: BKUT | No Comments »

The very first time I coughed out a tiny, white and soft stinky irregular shaped ball from my throat was many, many moons ago. I think I was still a teenager then or was I in my early 20s? I cannot really recall. But I can remember how disgusted I was when I smelled the tiny ball, which looked like a firm, lumpy, cuddled regurgitated milk. I was horrified, thinking that I had some kind of disease. I told my mum about it and she told me that she and my brother had experienced coughing out those stinky lumpy balls but they too did not know what they were. Whenever a sore-throat was impending, I would cough out these foul-smelling globs. This would be accompanied by bad breath and a general feeling of malaise. Whenever I felt this way, I knew that I would fall sick.

I never knew what exactly those stinky balls were until recently when I read about it in the Reader’s Digest. I was very relieved to have read that article and finally my almost 2-decade long curiosity was quelled.

Tonsilloliths, also known as tonsil stones, are irregularly shaped, whitish/yellow, foul-smelling globs of mucus and bacteria that get caught in the back of the throat. The tonsil stones form in the tonsil crypts which are simply small pockets or divots that appear in the tonsils of everyone. The scientific name for these white globs is tonsilloliths.

It is only recently that the oral care community has begun to understand what these white spots actually are - many people have reported that their dentist told them that they were just extra food debris, which is not true!

These tonsillar stones don’t do any physical harm, and sporadically coughing them up doesn’t mean that there is anything wrong with you. However, they can be annoying and sometimes they are an indication that you have tonsilloliths and bad breath.

If you have ever broken open a tonsil stone, then you know that they smell absolutely terrible! The smell is actually caused by a combination of volatile sulfur compounds (methyl mercaptan and hydrogen sulfide), post nasal drip, and bacteria.

They will only form in people who still have their tonsils; however, that does not mean that you should run out and get your tonsils removed! Not too long ago, they were routinely removed for being swollen and inflamed. What was not understood then was that the tonsils’ sole purpose is to prevent organisms and bacteria from traveling deeper in the throat.

Tonsilloliths are not something that you have to live with - there are various treatments to get rid of them, without having your tonsils removed (which can be dangerous as people get older).

Whenever I feel Tonsilloliths in my throat (yes, I can feel those globs stuck at the back of my throat, thus irritating my throat), I will try to cough it out, using all my strength to force cough them out. Sometimes, it is only 1 huge ball while other times, there are many tiny broken up balls. The Chinese will say that I am very heaty. I will also gargle my throat with sea salt water, drink lots of coconut water, plain water, avoid deep fried food, heaty food, spicy food and sleep early.

Do you have Tonsilloliths too?

Posted on January 20th, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: Tonsils | No Comments »

When Alycia and Sherilyn were younger, my hubby and I spent a lot of money on their toys and books. I was still working then and could still splurge generously on toys for them. Most of their toys were battery-operated, which means we ended up spending more money! Normal batteries did not last long. So we used only alkaline batteries and duracell procell 9V. Each toy ended up costing almost double the amount we spent on it, inclusive of the batteries. For Cassandra, I was wiser. I stopped buying toys as I knew that each toy would probably be touched for a few days or a few weeks (some toys were never touched!) and thereafter, it would ‘expire’ and land in the white toy box or given away again.

Posted on January 17th, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: BKUT | No Comments »

My suppliers sell all sorts of cute kids’ clothes and kids’ accessories. A supplier even sells funky wigs for kids and Cowboy Hat! These are all very slow-moving products as people would only buy such items for special occasions like for a concert or for a fancy dress party. Some of the items are never sold despite my supplier slashing down the prices and I wonder what she does with such items. Sometimes I am very tempted to stock up on some cute kids clothes and cute kids accessories which I can get at very attractive wholesale prices with a minimum order quantity. But I am not a risk taker just yet. I hate to see my money bogged down in stocks that don’t move!

Posted on January 17th, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: BKUT | No Comments »

These have got to be the second and third best gifts that the hubs has ever given me, after the previous 2 digital cameras. He bought me an OTO e-Lux for X’mas as I have been complaining to him about having stiff shoulders, stiff neck and lower backache. He too always suffers from stiff shoulders and often goes for physio therapy. So it was a ‘kill 2 birds with 1 stone’ sort of gift - a gift that benefits the both of us

The OTO e-Lux is a portable mini-massage chair that can be attached to just about any chair at just about any place from your dining chairs to your office chairs, your car seat (but I think this is highly hazardous as one will surely doze off during the massage session!) and I think you can even put it on your bed to enjoy a good upper, middle and lower back massage.

The Shiatsu massaga on my back unblocks energy blockages and reintroduces the optimal flow of energy or qi. The Rolling massage mode helps reduce stress and improves blood circulation. The healing properties of heat therapy provides added pain relief and relaxation. I always have 2 rounds of Shiatsu and 2 rounds of Rolling massage, for at least half an hour.

Ever since I used OTO e-Lux on my chair when I work and even when I am having my meals, I don’t suffer from stiff shoulders or backache anymore! The results after each session is very noticeable. I can feel all my tensed up muscles all loosened up and I feel really refreshed and good after each session. And yes, I often doze off and have a 15-20 minute power nap during the massage session.

But the OTO e-Lux does not reach the head. So my dear hubs bought an OTO e-Cuddle (this massages the head) 2 weeks later! Now I can enjoy a body and head massage everyday. OOoh, I so love my e-Lux and e-Cuddle. If only I have a chair that can be reclined, I will enjoy each massage session even more.  Oh by the way yesterday while we at Mid Valley, we saw a gadget that massages the feet when we passed by the OTO shop. If the hubs buys this too, our set of body massage tools will almost be complete!

Posted on January 15th, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: Healthy Living Products | 4 Comments »

My baby girl will be 4 years old in April this year. Each time she sees her #2 che che in her ballet costume or practicing ballet movements at home, she will surely badger me to send her for ballet lessons. Sherilyn and Cass are always having such a great time whenever the 2 sisters dance together. Sherilyn will be teaching and Cass will be following the movements obediently. Such a heart warming sight. Cass loves her che che’s old ballet shoes and would always put it on and pretend to dance like her che che. I am very tempted to send her for baby ballet lessons and the only issue that is stopping me is that Cass still has to wear diapers because of her post surgery urine leaking problem. When Cass asked me why I cannot send her for ballet lessons, I told her that she is still on diapers, to which she replied “but I can wear the long stockings and wear a tutu skirt, so no one can see my diaper!” Such a smart reply from my baby girl. I think I am going to talk to the ballet teacher and if she has no problem with the diaper issue, then my Cass will be a ballerina soon!  And who knows learning ballet will help to fix her problem too!

The dancing and singing buddies … may they be BFFs forever

Posted on January 8th, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: Cassandra | 4 Comments »

If only I knew that there was insurance for the unborn child, I would have bought one for Cassandra when she was still in-utero. This type of insurance covers even hereditary conditions, suffered by the child. But it’s too late, as fate had it. It’s fated that we have to dig our reserves dry to save her. She is the most expensive child of my three girls. But this has not stopped me from loving her with all my heart. I cannot tell you how important insurance is for everyone. You never know when you will need it. My friend’s sister went to Thailand for a holiday and a very unfortunate road accident had left her sister’s leg broken and one of her son’s eye blinded and the son is only 6YO! Whether it is medical insurance, accident insurance, education insurance, business insurance or even motorhome insurance, insurance is something that you cannot say no to for you cannot say no to misfortunes. Misfortunes can happen to anyone even before he/she is born, at any time with no forewarning.

Posted on January 6th, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: BKUT | 2 Comments »

My mum is one of the healthiest 60 something year old woman I have ever known. Everything that goes into her mouth are healthy, bland in taste (as very little seasonings are used) and many are home-grown. Her dishes are mostly steamed with very little soy sauce and salt… if she cooks her own food.   When we were back at my parents’ in Ipoh during the school holidays, she prepared some healthy beverages for us with her Nakada beverage maker and Breville juicer.

This is a multi-grain and seed beverage, consisting of black sesame seeds, walnuts, ground flax seed, Job’s tears, barley, millet, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and a dash of brown sugar.

The product…. iLike it!! It’s tasty in both ways - hot or cold. It fills you up with the good carbs and fibre. Excellent for kids and adults.

Beet root, carrot, green apple, cucumber and celery juice…

The Vampire girls loving their ‘bloody juice’!

My mum’s expensive Breville juicer…. yet she is contemplating to buy an even more productive and effective juicer which costs over RM2k - a juicer that allows you to dump the whole fruit in and everything, including the skin, core and seeds will be juiced till they are dry! And if she does buy that RM2k++ juicer, I will be the happy beneficiary of this Breville juicer kekekeke….

Posted on January 5th, 2012 by shireen
Filed under: Fruits | 5 Comments »