Shelving woes

Since young, I have dreamt of a huge study room with wall-to-wall, ceilling-to-floor shelves all full of books. Yah, yah..... I was a very nerdy kid..... still am, with the exception that I've got rid of the huge glasses. *_*

Fast forward to present, I haven't have the priviledge of owning such a room, even if I'd been investing in books as though I have. Mind you, most of the books I'd bought in the last few years were kids' books. For my reading pleasure, I had to rent the books or else lend my books to my dearest sis, in which case I would get free storage indeterminately (I still reread them when I go over during the hols). Oops.... did I just alert her to that fact? *_*

Anyway, this resulted in overflowing bookshelves, as I'd resorted to double stacking (stacking another bunch of books in front of the books already in the shelves). Like this....... in Girlet's room. And this ....... And this ....... upstairs living room ......... kids' workbooks, activity, colouring, dot-to-dot, mazes, sticker books ....... there are more shelves and more books on the left, but grownup stuff, so didn't take pix.

And this ....... boylet's books in the master bedroom.

But still I find books now occupying space on the floor, on top the piano, two of the dining chairs, not to mention overtaking hubby's study table.

Like this .........

Enough photos already.... or you all will think I'm living in a pigsty.

So any ideas how to solve my shelving woes? Buying shelves is easy. Problem is there's no space for more shelves! As my upstairs has high ceilings, I was contemplating a loft library like the following (link here).... what d'ya think? Suggestions welcomed, besides donating the books away!

But you can't keep a Bookworm down. Tomorrow I'm going to the Pearson and Penguin Books WAREHOUSE SALE. Yes, my hubby. I know the books I bought last month from the MPH warehouse sale are still in the store room. But, with publishers like Pearson Longman, Penguin, Puffin, Ladybird, DK etc., how can I not go? I'm buying for your kids ok? (can't argue with that, can you?)

For those interested, the details of the warehouse sale is:

Date : Oct 2 - 11

Time : 10 am - 7 pm

Venue : Pearson Msia S/B, Lot 2, Jln 215, Off Jln Templer, PJ

Happy book hunting!

Go watch "The 1 Kind Show"

This is my record in lowest blog productivity - 6 weeks with no posts. Been busy with this and that (another post), plus the maid was back home to Indonesia for 1 month, not mentioning the 3 weeks of anxiety when she called to say she's not coming back!! After I bent backwards to help her out too! Well, after much persuasion, she did come back to settle her things and wait for her replacement. At least 'ada hati perut'.

Anyway, as I haven't uploaded any pix from the camera, I'll just make a quick post of this live comedy show I just saw on Sat. Named The 1 Kind Show (after 1Malaysia) by Comedy Court, there were lots of racist and political jokes, but simply hilarious. Their impersonations of the various races were spot on.

The show's on until 9 October. Venue : Wisma Tun Sambanthan, Kampung Attap (next to Bangunan Public Bank). Tickets : RM55 / 75 / 105 - available through Axcess. For more info, check their website here.

You can watch one of their skits 'Who wants to be a Billionaire' on Youtube - only the live show is so much better, so go see already!

The kids are sad that since the Bangsar Shopping Complex closed down their auditorium, there haven't been any puppet shows in KL. Hopefully when Actor's Studio open shop in Lot 10, Gardner & Wife, and Act 3 Intl will bring back kids' shows. Keeping our fingers and toes crossed!

Happy Birthday, Babylet!

Babylet turned 3 on Aug 11.

She had her heart set on a party in Jungle Gym, just like korkor. But with the A(H1N1) flu pandemic, we thought better not risk it.

So, we just had a family celebration in Ming Room, Bangsar Shopping Centre. Babylet was dressed in her Cinderella dress that SIL got for her. And she was hilarious in it. As her dress was almost reaching the floor, Babylet was very concious and walked very slowly like a real princess. She even condescended to give a Princess wave to some passerbys.

Babylet tried hard, but only managed to blow out one candle. Jiejie blew the rest before Boylet had a chance.

Another present from SIL, a baby Cinderella doll. Babylet was thrilled that her doll was wearing the same dress as hers. Happy Birthday Darling!

Girlet's Concert # 2 - Ballet

Finally posting about Girlet's ballet concert after more than 1 month posting about her tap-dancing concert. (Both on the same day, one afternoon, another evening). My bad - a combination of procrastination, exams, and addiction to virtual farming (Farmtown on Facebook). Having achieved the highest level and getting my virtual mansion *gloating face*, and last day exams today, I'm back. For a short while anyway before the maid goes home to Indonesia for puasa and hari raya.

Rehearsal for "The Swan". Girlet leaping into air.
Putting on makeup. Thanks to Aunt Anna for the sparkly silver dust for the eyes.
Backstage before the performance. Looking nervous and very serious.

The dance itself here:

On Pushy Parents

"Having pushy parents is four times more important than financial background in terms of their success in later life, a major report has found."

"Children whose parents take an active interest in their education are more likely to go on to higher education and a good job, regardless of whether they come from a rich home."

The quotes were found here at dailymail . The original report, called Unleashing Aspiration, was published by The Panel on Fair Access to the Professions in UK and commissioned by Gordon Brown. You can go read the original report, or like lazy me, read the summaries / reviews. There are lots, just google it. I'll just quote those that supports my view (haha) : here, here and here.

Quoting from here : "the report identifies six pivotal points in an individual’s life which can have a significant impact on their ability to access a professional career." Go read what the six pivotal points are, but as parents, we can influence three of the six points, namely their aspirations – based on their initial exposure to and impressions of the professions, their education – in particular, their school years and the support that young people get to make decisions about their career, and their opportunities to get into university. The other three depends on social standing/networking and luck- being in the right place at the right time.

The report dealt a lot with thwarted or suppressed aspirations in UK, read here. Glad to say that there are many more pushy parents over this part of the world. Isn't that why there's lots of hoohaa every year when top students didn't get scholarships to universities?

I actually first read about this in Domestic Goddess's blog. She sums it up nicely, so go read it here.

Also explains why I've been MIA from this blog......... in the midst of Girlet's exams. Gotta go be a pushy mom now.

Edit: Oh dear! I'm a bad writer. Now everyone thinks I'm a pushy ogre. haha. To clarify, the report originates from UK, where the culture and level of 'pushiness' is pretty different from here (Msia & Sg). What was dubbed as 'pushiness' there was actually parents taking active interest in kids' education. I don't think they have a culture of forcing kids to non-stop academic tuitions and homework there.

Anyway, my philosophy is simple. Let us all participate actively in our kids' education. Expose them to a wide range of disciplines. Pay close attention to their interests, and fan their passions. Teach them good values and good learning attitude. Let them have a sense of accomplishment in what they do, so that they'll strive to do their best. Most of all, just love them and enjoy their process of growing up.

Girlet's Concert # 1 - Tap Dance

Girlet had her Dancing School concert on June 27. It was held at MATIC on Jalan Ampang, right in the city. There were two concerts that day. Unfortunately, she was involved in both, which means we were at the concert hall for 6 hours. D'hubby left after the first concert to send a bored and restless Boylet home. Last year d'hubby didn't attend her concert, saying Ballet isn't his scene. Of course I gave him a hard time after, which was why he obediently came back for the second concert this year. He didn't regret it as the show was really good, with modern dance, jazz, hip hop and tap, on top of the usual ballet. There were many numbers performed by the older girls and they did fabulously.

Here's Girlet tap dancing to "A - You're Adorable". She's the one with the letter 'T' on her shirt. Looks like cheerleader, huh? She was hesistant in the beginning, but caught on fast. I'm glad I gave in to her request to pick up tap dancing. She's really pleased with her achievement and that made all the shuttling around for practices and rehearsals worth it. Yippee! Concert done, now can relax a bit.


Will post her doing Ballet in the next post after I sort out the photos.

Of Papaya Trees and Dengue

So what do the above two have in common? You may have heard of it, but this is really news to me.

First, I’ll talk about our attempt to plant papaya trees at our front yard as part of the kids’ science project (we’re tired of planting green beans). My mom has a few papaya trees and gave us mini papayas, which were simply adorable. Perfect for bento, like the one below:
(Sorry, can’t resist sneaking in a bento, lol!). That's half a papaya, onigiri, teriyaki chicken, grapes and a strawberry.

My mom made it sound so easy, that the black-thumbed moi decided to try planting papayas too. The kids helped to clear part of the lawn and scatter seeds from the mini papayas at 3 different spots. To our amazement a tree actually grew, and started flowering almost immediately. Then it grew taller and taller, without any sign of fruits despite ample flowers. We salivated and applied more fertilizers to no avail. Then my mom came for a visit and declared that the plant was a ‘MALE’ plant, which would only flower and never bear fruit. The flower of a 'Female' plant is different. Huh??!! I knew it was too good to be true. I griped to a few people about it and vowed to chop down the tree.

Two days later, Sue, my good friend who had heard of my misadventure, requested for some papaya leaves as she is suspected of contracting Dengue fever. Fortunately, the procrastinator moi had not bother to chop the tree yet. Apparently, papaya leaves contained something that helps platelet to increase. Take the Raw papaya leaves and blend (or pound with mortar and pestle). Squeeze out the juice, strain and drink. It’s very bitter, so do add honey to it. But do not cook, or add hot water. Well, her platelet count increased enough for her to avoid hospitalization, even after it was confirmed as Dengue.

As Sue also drank spotted frog soup cooked with bitter gourd, (another bitter concoction, why do these natural cures taste so awful?), I thought the papaya leaf juice may be another urban legend. The skeptic in me asked around and heard anecdotes of so-and-so’s relative whose stay in hospital was shortened after drinking this juice. Even googling ‘papaya leaves’ came back with more anecdotes but not proper verification or test. The only confirmed fact is that papaya leaves contain papain which aids digestion.

Hmm, true or not, if one contracted Dengue, there’s no harm in trying out this method. If can take spotted frogs, why not raw papaya leaf juice? Only, don’t come asking for papaya leaves from me. The tree has finally been chopped down. Glad that it could be of use despite being a barren tree. Plus point : identifying papaya leaves is part of Girlet’s science curriculum, and she saw it first hand instead of just from textbook.