I WON!! Thank you Javapot!!

Thanks Javapot for a fun challenge, and thanks to all who voted for me. While I didn't get the highest votes, a big thanks goes to Master Prince who gave me a good placing in the lucky draw, thus putting me in the first place in the challenge, as seen here.

Javapot was very efficient and personally hand delivered the prize right after posting the results on her blog. Here are the lovely prizes, pix taken from Javapot's blog.

I just love this bento set by Thermos. My first 'keep warm' set.
Many cute accessories, which got the kids very excited and happy.

And here are all the bento entries.

Edit: 4 months later - I found this languishing in the draft section, waiting for the pix. Am backdating this post, just to complete the blog. Yeah, I'm anal that way.

Of Emily and 100 yen shop

Met up with Emily two days ago at Taman Desa's 100 yen shop to pass her some edamame. She is so familiar with the staff that she store her frozen edamae in their fridge while we go for breakfast. Then the 'si tau poh' came and Emily asked to look at their catalogue. We ended up spending almost an hour going through all the items. The si tau po has agreed to order all the cute bento stuff such as picks, baran, silicon cups, cutters. So exciting!! There'll be about ten different types of picks from clickety click picks, jewelled picks, animal picks etc. And the silicon cups are different from the Daiso ones. Depending on the supply in Japan side, most of the stock should arrive in March. Will let everyone know then. Watch this page.

Edit: The 100 yen shop is a franchise, and each shopowner/branch order their own stock, which accounts for the different items carried in different branches. So only this Taman Desa branch will order the things mentioned above.

In the end, instead of breakfast, we went for lunch at Francais Alliance. Thanks Emily for lunch and for the things you gave the kids. Hope you enjoy the edamame.

What I bought in Singapore

My first purchase in Singapore was no surprise - more cute pasta *_*. Upon arrival in Singapore, my in-laws took us for a late lunch in Paragon. SIL showed me the DaPaolo Gastronomia shop where she bought the Disney Character pasta. Babylet was excited to see that the Mickey pasta was in stock, besides Princess and Pooh. So, bought the Mickey pasta and another pack of Princess pasta, this time in tricolour. BIL also bought more dinosaur pasta from Australia, so our pantry is well stocked with pasta for next year.
Went to the Hello Kitty counter at Takashimaya, and saw many bento boxes there - Hello Kitty, My Melody, Shinkansen, Twin Stars, and Cinnamoroll - mostly rectangular/oval shape. It took me a long time to decide and I finally bought this Hello Kitty box for its red colour and apple shape. Was also the cheapest there at SGD11.90. And picked up a HK belt too, just for the heck of it. *_^ The Shinkansen train is really popular in Sg. I've not seen any Shinkansen products in KL.
There were quite a number of Thomas the train bento boxes in the various shopping centres, which were not available in KL. I bought this box which comes with adjustable divider and upper tray for cutleries.

I didn't buy much things at Daiso. Went to the branch in Plaza Sg as arranged to meet IL there. As expected there was a huge Christmas crowd there, and I already owned most of the things left on the shelves. The only interesting thing I bought was these plastic crinkle cut knife (probably sold in Daiso KL). While I have a similar steel knife, was looking for one with a deeper groove. These are for cutting jelly, don't know if can cut harder things like potato or steamed carrots.

YL had earlier tipped me about new Mickey Mouse products in KaiKai at Chinatown Point, and I called ahead to book some items. Must be kiasu, mah. Was quite disappointed that the stock will only arrive in January. Still I had fun going through the 2009 catalogue book and seeing the new Mickey products. (Hey, YL, saw your order on a few things *_*) Now the question is how to collect the things. Looks like another trip to Sg is required if my dearest sis or SIL couldn't pick up for me. Well, I am going back hometown in Johor for Chinese New Year.........

My purchases from KaiKai were the Pooh and Tomica multi-cutters, Tomica vege cutter and Pooh furikake case.

On the penultimate day, I 'geram' didn't shop enough as too busy entertaining kids. So put the kids to nap and headed for Takashimaya again, this time Basement (Household section?) for 1 hour shopping before dinner. Found silicone moulds in the shape of dinosaur fossils for my dinosaur lover boylet. It was sold as ice tray but can also make jelly. Can withstand temperatures of -58`F to 446`F, so can also bake??, not that I'll be doing that. They were rather price-y, enough said.

More impulse buys (still at Takashimaya)- cutters, which I had seen in NST and Marketplace but didn't buy. Why did I make the plunge this time? Well, I was in a buying mood and the things were there to be bought. Make sense? haha.... Lucky for hubby I'm no longer into LV bags. *_^

Also bought some cheap books at Lucky Plaza, t-shirts for the kids, cute stationeries & stickers. Overall, I think I showed a lot of restraint this time round. ^_^

Presents from Blogging friends

I just realised that it's the 31st of December today, and I've still got lots of backlogged posts on the kids' concert, holiday programme and stuff. Waiseh!

Anyway, we just got back on Monday after 5 days in Singapore and 2 days in Johor.


In Singapore, I met up with YL for a continuation of our Bento Swap. She is so efficient, and has posted what I got her in her blog here. And she is so lovely to get us our favourite - shaped pasta - Christmas Pasta from Muji, and Disney Cars pasta. She bought the pasta earlier on which was a good thing as they were all sold out when I was there. Lesson learnt - mustn't shop 2 days before Christmas, or after weekend / public holiday as shops like Daiso / Muji will have their cute stuff swept clean.
She also included mini Hello Kitty containers, which can be locked together or used separately. Cool! Thanks heaps, YL. Earlier on when I posted up the picture of the various egg moulds from 100 yen shop, IL (Family of 5) requested that I get her the moulds. Was glad that the Taman Desa branch stocked up the week before I went to Singapore. Unfortunately I didn't manage to get the mini Pooh Bear containers for her. Another efficient blogger, she has blogged about it here.

What I didn’t expect was for her to give me a box of bento things. So paiseh!!! See the nice box with a ribbon and a nice card - Babylet claimed it as her Christmas present. *_*There were so many things in the box. A bento box for each kid, pretty cupcake liners, long wooden fruit skewers and a 4-in-1 sandwich cutter. I had planned to buy the last item from Takashimaya, so was very happy to get it from Irene. Thank you very much.

So glad to have met up with both of you and to put a face to your blogs. Wishing you both and everybody a Happy New Year. Despite the gloomy economy, let's make 2009 a happy bento-licious year.

Bentos # 94 - Easy Christmas Bentos

I managed to squeeze in another Christmas Bento just before we went off to Singapore for a holiday last week - very easy ones with just sandwiches cutouts, and Girlet doing most of the decors. Also took a shortcut in the form of Christmas Tree Marshmallow (from Cold Storage, KL), which was a real treat for the kids, besides brightening up the bentos.

They had the bentos at home as none of the decorations could've survive a transportation farther than the one from the kitchen to the living room. *_* Here I got them to pose ala Angeleye's Darius with their thumbs up.
For Girlet's bento, she decorated the tree with edible markers (bought from Cake Connection, PJ) and candy coated chocolate sunflower seeds (from US). She is getting a quite handy at making bentos. She also requested to add in the Princess pasta which SIL had just given her. It's adorable with shapes of castle, carriage, flower, slipper, and two princess figures.

Thanks, May, for the Princess pasta. Girlet absolutely loves it. For those who don't know, it was purchase from DaPaolo Gastronomia in Paragon, Singapore at SGD 6 per pack. And thanks for the pack of Winnie the Pooh pasta too.

Babylet had plain white bread. I gave the Santa a bit of texture with the hat, moustache and beard. Girlet chose to put a wink on Santa. Babylet is actually rather fearful of Santa (as was Girlet when she was 2), so she was happy that she can eat up Santa. Silly girl!
Boylet's bento was the easiest as he requested for a snowman. Decided to give the snowman a bowtie to smarten him up ala Arlene's style.

And to Shoppingmum, who asked about the small star cutouts, this was the puncher I used. Not sure of the brand, but got it from the stationery section of Parkson. Have also seen it in Jusco.

Bento Swap

Recently I had a Bento Swap with Our Story. It didn't occur to me to take a photo of what I got for YL. Duh!! But there were a Doraemon bento box, 2 teddy bear silicon cups, a pack of spiderman pasta, and some 100 yen shop stuff - quail egg moulds and several bento boxes. YL's post is here.

And YL got so many things for me that I feel so paiseh. What I requested were some things from Daiso and the Disney pasta. She added so many extras, including things from her recent trip to Hokkaido. And knowing that I 'collect' pasta, she has sent not one, but five different packs of various pasta shapes. We're so spoilt with choice now. Thank you very much, YL. And Muak, Muak, Muak from the 3 kiddos.

Cutters, picks, sauce bottles and lunch cloth. *swoon* Babylet immediately claimed the Hello Kitty cutter as hers.

Organic wholewheat animal pasta and Organic teddy bears pasta. *drool*

Brown Rice Assorted Shapes Pasta. *more drool*

Halloween pasta and Winnie the Pooh pasta. *add kid's drool too*

Also thanks to my sister, Biblo, who made arrangement for the delivery and collection of the packages. Why sound like accepting some award liddat... hehe...

YL, you're the BEST!! And thanks to your SIL too.

Guess what I bought today?

I have ordered some FreezerMate Tupperware through Laundryamah, and when I got the items from her, guess what else I bought?

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Tadah! Another bento box!

More specifically, a Madagascar Bento Box from Tupperware. I know that we've got plenty of boxes (and some not yet used). But this box is different from all the other boxes we have as it is wide and shallow. It has a capacity of 560 ml, and the divider is removable. It comes in a set with a tumbler and a small airtight container.

Boylet is absolutely delighted with the new bento set. He loves Madagascar, and I'll be bringing him to see the movie, as soon as he completes his kindy's holiday program.

Bonus photo - Babylet wanted to follow her koko and pose for a picture too. Just in case anyone thinks that Babylet has an extra large right ear, that ear belongs to Boylet who is otherwise obscure behind Babylet. *_*

DAISO is coming to KL

Hurrah! I heard from allthingspurple a few weeks ago that Daiso is coming. Now it is confirmed in Bentopet's latest post. Daiso is now under renovation at The Curve. Check out this link. Now, isn't that the most fantastic news for bento fans? No more travelling to Singapore just to feed bento tools mania. *_*

Backdated post - What Hubby Bought in USA

D'hubby came back from his trip to USA two weeks ago. I had whined about being left behind with the 3 kiddos (I also missed out when he went to Europe earlier this year), because although on working trip, he extended his stay to include some sightseeing. So he had very obediently? guiltily? bought me ..er... us.. lots of stuff. Something I learnt from the kids... whining works.. hehe... An overview of the things here. After the food scare in China, I had second thoughts about using the silicone cups from Daiso for baking since they are 'Made in China'. So got hubby to buy drop by Michaels to buy some cute silicone cups. Hey, I had to google the store and get the exact address for him first, ok? Unfortunately, these Wilton cups are also 'Made in China'!! Erm, safe or not? Would you use them for baking after all the negative news in China?

Silly Feet and Silly Critters silicone cups. So cute right? Yes, I'm aware they are sold in KL (at a bakery equipment shop 'Pavilion' in Gardens, Midvalley), but of course more expensive compared to US. If hubby didn't go to US, I would not have bought them 'cos I'm just calculative that way.

Flower cups that comes in pink and yellow, and bear cups in beige and brown. And some picks too. I totally heart this Puzzle Cakes! Build-A-Cake Set. Comes with 6 round cups, 6 half moon cups, 6 diamond cups and 6 pie shapes cups. And have instructions for three cake designs. Of course creative people can create more fun shapes, but I'm not one of those people. *_* Very cool huh? And best of all, the cups can be used individually for other purposes too.

Then Hubby decided to buy these two car and butterfly cake mould too. Erm.. not something I would have bought myself, being expensive and can only use for one purpose only.... Better don't say too much or he won't buy any more things next time. So, good job, darling!

He got some cookie cutters too - Mini Noah's Ark. That's because he doesn't know how many cookie cutters I actually have. I'm quite sure this set is also available in KL.

Moving on to the foodstuff. I gave hubby a broad instruction to buy anything cute, colourful and not available in KL.

Kookyculinary very kindly posted a photo of the pasta shapes that she usually uses, and I printed the pic for hubby as a reference. He had very dutifully followed the picture and bought the same items! Cookies!

We snack a lot on dried fruits, so Hubby got these, among others. Since they are non-organic, boylet and I will have to pass those yellow coloured ones which is preserved with sulfur dioxide or risk aggravating our asthma/eczema. The two girls can have those without sharing. The cherries are super yum! The kids love Nutella, and d'hubby's friend recommended Noisella, a Belgian chocolate and hazelnut spread which is supposed to taste even better. Haha... what a name! Let's hope the taste is nicer than that. Unfortunately some leaked during the flight.

Hubby also bought a two-tier Barbie lunchbox from KLIA. It's too big for Girlet to bring to school, but will be perfect for our yet-to-happen-if-ever picnic. *_*

I've always commented that he's not good at buying things. But this time, he has done pretty well. *Muak!*

Purchases from Market Place

These are my newest purchases through internet, from a local website called Market Place. I found the prices very reasonable and some even cheaper than e-bay. And the service is superb!! Thanks, Chooi Peng!

It's almost time for the year-end's long school holidays. I am planning a few jaunts to some local attractions. So stocking up on boy's or asexual bento stuff for Boylet's bento, to balance out all the Hello Kitty stuff. Pooh bear is a safe 'investment' as the girls can use them too, should boylet persists on refusing a bento to school.

So Pooh bento box, Pooh container with spreader, Pooh cookie cutters, Thomas dividers, mini Alphabet cutters, egg shell cups, and chick furikake container. Chooi Peng threw in some colourful baran for free. Thanks again. Also bought a pack of picks, but already given away before taking this pic. And I've already have the cookie cutters. These are for a friend.

A bigger pic of the egg shell cups. Comes with 3 picks - chick, frog and dinosaur!! The last being a delightful surprise.

And a bigger pic of the Pooh container with spreader. To quote Emily, "Cutesy"

Anyway, Shopping Therapy is very good for stress.... LOL!

New purchases from Taman Desa's 100 yen shop

Last week, I read Emily's review on the Taman Desa's 100 yen shop, and spotted some Thomas the Train stuff. I used a visit to my eldest sis as an excuse to drop by there, and here's what I got. Alamak! If different branches have different stock, then I'll have to track Emily's footsteps to the various destinations.

Thomas snack bento box, small water bottle, small divider plate and bowl @ RM4.90 each

Bento belts in various designs.

My sister bought household stuff and we all had the yummy Mango Ice.

Bento Party on Sep 6

Finally, the long awaited Bento Party has come and gone. It was hosted by Bentopet and Emily. Venue: Onsen, a Japanese restaurant near Palm Spring Apartments in Kota Damansara. It was a small party of 25 ladies. Each received a fabulous goodie bag. Thanks, Sue from Cooking Momster, who contributed some of the items. There are a selection of cookbooks, Hershey's cake mix, popcorn, cookie cutter, sausage shaper, mints, a bento box (not shown here) and even beauty products. (By the way, the pink mini onigiri mould is from Emily. She gave one to my sis, biblo, and I very thicked skin asked her for one too. So cute- mini onigiri is just the perfect size for kiddos. Thanks Emily!) .Bentopet started the party with a very professional talk on bento, with powerpoint slide and everything. Emily followed with an advocation to go green through bento. Good speech, ladies! After that was an ice-breaker, introduction by each participant. It was good to finally put a face to the blogs that I've been following. As expected, there were many fans of bentopet and allthingspurple there. Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to chat to Christene as she had to leave early.

Lunch was a buffet spread of Japanese food, with chicken karaage, mixed tempura, mixed maki, crabstick salad and cupcakes, the later provided by SuYin. See bentopet's update on the party for pics of the wonderful cupcakes.
Both the above photos were copied from Yatie's blog.
But before we were allowed to eat, we were put to work first. Hehehe.... we had to pack the food into our provided bento box and the best presentation will get a prize. There are two categories - with accessories (which you were supposed to bring along) and non-accessories. Such an interesting concept, huh? This was my first attempt, a grown up bento. I brought along the lettuce as dividers.

After my sis took hers to be photographed, I realised that the cupcake was part of the presentation. I had taken a cute teddy bear to bring back for the kiddos, which did not match my bento at all. So out came the cute bento dividers, picks and Hello Kitty sauce bottle. Between my sis and I, also brought along some 'more' grownup silicon cups, dividers and sauce bottle, but the sis ended up going for the 'non-accessories' category. My final presentation was a very kiddy one. Well, I am blogging about kids bentos.

After lunch, we get to purchase bento supplies by the 100 yen shop..... all at RM4.90 each. My sis and I bought a big bagful each. Nothing compared to Emily with 3 big bags and 1 box. It was a good thing she had her daughters and sister on hand to help her carry her stuff. Maybe that's why she brought them along? hehe.....Here's another pic from Yatie....

On hind sight, I didn't buy a lot. Here's a pink set - two-tiered box, one-tiered click box, dividers, square sandwich box (bigger pic below), matching belt and bag. Bought extra belts as light pink gets unbelievably dirty by 6-yr olds.

The sandwich box turned out to be collapsible..... cool huh? This was one item that was completely sold out at the party.
Also bought a black bento box and matching dark brown belts for d'hubby, if and when I pack breakfast/snack for him. Also bought the blue and maroon because I already bought the bags (at the bottom) earlier on without the boxes.
This beige two-tier bento box was part of the goodie bag. I bought a beige striped belt and bag to match it. That'll be my bento box if and when I pack bento for myself.

And finally, blue and pink clickety boxed, for presents, and a dumpling mould, if I ever get around to making dumplings.... hehe..... There were also other things that Bentopet sourced, some from Daiso such as silicon cups, sauce bottles etc and some cutesy bento boxes eg. Doraemon and Hello Kitty. I had wanted to buy the Hello Kitty box, but thought not be kiasu and wait until after lunch. Of course, what I wanted were all booked and sold out by then.

The good news was that I got the prize for best presentation with accessories. Thank you. This was what I got!
Wasn't that a fabulous bag? And the contents were egg moulds and the cutest animal dividers. Thanks again.

Sorry, I didn't get the name of the person who won the non-accessories category, who incidentally also won the lucky draw. How lucky was that? And Kelly, from Kel's place, also received her prize from Bentopet's 100th bento competition.

Thank you very much, Bentopet and Emily, for the very enjoyable and well organized Bento Party. Looking forward to the next meet up.

Edit : For more photos, check Hijack Queen's blog.