Pearl Bean, Corn and Carrot soup recipe

It's quite rare to find pearl beans at the supermarket. In fact, I have never seen any before. Often, i will spot it at the wet market. Marketing is extremely therapeutic for me coz it's a kind of me-time. However, most of the time, I have to wait till the hubs is in town before I can do that. Just last week, I had such an opportunity! And yipee! I found me some pearl beans!

This is how the beans look like. I wanted to boil them with lotus roots however, with recent reports on lotus roots being bleached, I stayed away from them whenever I deem them too white.




It's great motor skills training for the kids. They enjoyed taking the beans out of the pods.

Pearl Beans have a nutty and creamy taste to it. It is packed with nutrients as well. Each cup of beans provides 241 calories, 0.8 grams of fat, 16.5 grams of protein and 43.3 grams of carbohydrates. These pearl beans, otherwise known as Cranberry beans, do not contain any cholesterol and only have trace amounts of sodium, making them a heart-healthy protein choice. Perfect for the whole family! It also contains loads of fiber. Fiber adds bulk to your diet and since it isn't digested, it makes it beneficial for those who are trying to lose weight. It also decreases your risk of getting constipation and haemorrhoids.

Here's how I incorporate it into my soup -- Corn, Carrot & Pearl Bean Soup:




INGREDIENTS

• 200g of pork ribs
• 2000ml water
• 1 carrot
• 1 cob of corn
• A handful of pearl beans
• Salt to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Blanch the pork ribs in boiling water for about a minute. Scoop it out and wash away the scum.
2. Bring water to a boil in a separate pot or slow pot. Add the blanched pork ribs, corn and carrot. Let it boil for an hour or so over small flame or in the case of a slow pot, i boil it for 3hours. It could be less probably, but i typically boil it the night before so i can get my 老火汤
3. Add in pearl beans and continue to boil for about 20 minutes.
4. Add salt to taste and serve. Most of the time it is sweet enough such that no salt is actually needed. However, a pinch is good to bring out the flavour. 

It's a great hearty soup for the whole family and not difficult to prepare. So why don't you try it today!

Daikon and green radish soup recipe

The weather has been pretty crazy lately. One minute it is raining incessantly, the next minute, Mr Sun is blazing mercilessly on the ground. As such, the kids have been down with cough and runny nose. They have been coughing for 2 weeks now so I thought i had better start being more hardworking in terms of home remedy.

First up, it is my Daikon & green carrot soup. This is a hot favourite in our household. This soup is great for dispelling heat. Daikon itself has several benefits including removing body toxins, aids digestion and kidney functions, it is also a good decongestant and if you find yourself having a breakout, this soup is for you!

We call it the 臭臭汤(smelly soup) as it emits a rather 'unique' smell when boiling. Small K has been rather heaty of late. His mucus is green and his breath is so bad! It doesn't help that it takes a lot of reminder before he starts drinking his water. So hopefully this soup helps. These two vegetables are known to be cooling so pregnant women should avoid it. If you are afraid that it is too cooling for the family in general, you could add a few slices of ginger.

These are the main casts of my soup, in case you are wondering what's a Daikon and a green radish. I was told by a TCM that we should not add the typical orange carrots as it cancels out the effects of Daikon. 

Here's my recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 medium sized Daikon
• 1 green radish
• 3 dried scallops
• 1 honey date
• 300g of pork ribs
• 1 tsp of Chinese South almonds (南杏）
• 1 tsp of Chinese North almonds (北杏）
• approximately 2.5litres of water (this is just an estimation. I basically adjust according to the size of my ingredients)
• 2 slices of ginger (optional if you are afraid that the soup is too "cooling)

Instructions

1. Blanch the pork ribs in boiling water and set aside. 
2. In a slow pot or a separate pot, boil water for soup.
3. Peel and cut the green radish and daikon. 
4. Rince all ingredients 
5. Add the pork in once water has boiled. After approximately 10minutes, add the rest of the ingredients.
6. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 hours if you are doing it over the stove. I often use my slow pot and will turn it on for approximately 4hours. I usually prepare it the night before when the kids are sleeping so that I will have nice soup for lunch the next day. I don't sleep much anyway.
7. When ready, sprinkle a pinch of salt to taste and serve.

A good soup is really a great addition to the meal! So why not try this today? 

DIY Beauty in a pot Collagen stock

The hubs hasn't been in town for 3/4s of February so, yes, I've been running solo. It's tough. Real tough, but the show must go on. Emotional, my tank is empty, coz well, he calls home but mainly to talk to the kids. And when we finally have me-time to spare, our time difference makes it hard to chit chat. Not that he is much of a chatter with me anyway. So instead of wallowing in self-pity, I chose a better option. To host parties whilst he is away! Ok, honestly, i would rather him be around so that at least there is someone to help me with the dishes and rubbish. And, the scheduling of a party is usually done way before hand and so coincidentally, his trips always clashes at the last minute! So here I am, already extended the invite to friends, but there the hubby announces that he has to pack his luggage and fly (again). What do I do? Party on!

The latest party was a meaningful one. It is a celebration of 3 birthdays! A little 2 yo and two other older ones. One of whom is ME! It's great coz it wasn't planned for but happened that the dates were close hence I suggested a cake to go along. All kids love cakes right? And me, I just love celebrations! Since young till I was 21, mom had always bought me a cake from Bengawan Solo on my birthday. However ever since she knew I was in a relationship, she stopped. After I got married, she sends me text wishes, but that was it. No more double eggs with mee sua. No more Bengawan Pandan cakes. She probably thought my other half would celebrate for me. Well, she didn't get it wrong. He did. For the first couple of years at least. After a while, the novelty worn off and I don't even get a timely wish let alone a cake or a present. I had to plan my own party. Pathetic much? 

So here's the party we had over the weekend and I am specially penning this down coz many have asked me for the recipe for my collagen broth. So here goes:

• 300g of pork ribs
• 300 g (approximately 2) big pork bones (I did not use big bones this round due to the capacity of my pot. You can actually replace pork ribs with pork bones or vice versa)
• 1 chicken carcass
• a bunch of chicken feet
• 2.5-3litres of water

If you have a bigger pot, you can add more, but my pot was small hence I had to do two batches. Yes, over 10 hours of boiling! *horrors

I basically blanched all the ingredients to get rid of the scum and simmered it for 5 hours on low heat. Yes, you heard right! 5 hours! I literally stayed up till 3am to simmer this! #toofree. Next, I turn the heat slightly higher for 2 hour or so. It's basically to make the stock more milky and have that sticky effect. It was way past my bedtime hence I kindof skipped this step. However, everything in the pot has already disintegrated and I was sure it was collagen infused.

As I boiled, I constantly scooped away the scum that surfaced. You will get a clear stock that way. Once it has been boiled, discard all the bones and let the clear stock cool before freezing them. I freeze the in small containers so that I am able to use them when cooking noodles or porridge or soups. Remember not to add salt before freezing. 

On party day, in order to make the soup sweeter and more flavourful, I added the following: corn, turnip (my secret weapon -- now you know!) and carrots. I added in the frozen stock together with these ingredients and boiled for approximately 2hours on slow fire. 

The result -- DIY 美人锅 (Beauty in a pot)

How to host a Christmas party alone

This is the first Christmas in our new place and I had to host my first Xmas party at home even if it meant that I had to cook EVERYTHING myself! You see, the hubs was traveling. Again. The plan was for him to be around to help with the kids and the dishes, but surprise! His trip had to coincide with my party. Nothing new.

This round was with a bunch of girls whom I've known for eons. They haven't seem to change a bit since our Primary school days. Was extremely happy that two friends are pregnant and since one was craving for home cooked food, I couldn't disappoint. 

I was a little apprehensive honestly as it was a luncheon. I officially got out of bed at 10am and lunch was due to start at 1230! Horrors! Thanks to great planning and corporative kids, I managed to pull through. Here's what I managed to whip up!

Cabonara made from scratch

Enoki mushroom wrapped bacon

The crowd's favourite: Honey Garlic Salmon

Steamed seafood cake

Another crowd pleaser: Salted egg prawns

I needed veg but I really didn't have time for any elaborate stuff hence broiled broccoli with mayonnaise. My kids' fav!

Ok, I wouldn't take credit for this. Beef ribs from Cedele, bought by one of my gfs.

Another crowd favourite! Baked black pepper wings

A lovely gf got her little one to present me with this bouquet of flowers. Such a surprise! I haven't received flowers in a long long time. The hubs isn't quite a romantic person. Honestly, I think flowers are pretty expensive too. However, it is still nice to receive once in a while *hint

I wanted to catch up with the bunch but was a little worried that the kids wouldn't allow me to and with the hubs not at home, it was going to be tough. Hence, I prepared an #invitationtoplay! Decorating cardboard gingerbread house! The kids had loads of fun and I was able to catch up with the girls in peace!

Cheers to many more years of friendship!

Big K turns 5:: A Peppa Pig Party

Yup, it's real. The kids are growing up wayyyyy too quickly! Big K just turned 5 last week and I am thankful that i was able to organise, yet again, a small scale thematic party for her. As much as I'd like to invite more friends and excite her a little bit more, i have always kept it within the immediate family and school. Namely, it is an excuse to bring together the family who otherwise would not find time to meet up as often. As well as to thank them for all their help and support. Without a village, it would have been impossible for me to achieve this much. But also, undeniably, as much as I'd like to, pushing it to a larger scale would also break an arm and a leg! Haha

This year's theme was Peppa Pig. I love dressing up a party. I mean how many years would your kid want to celebrate their birthdays with you and for that matter dress up the entire place in Elsa and Anna or Peppa. So i really treasure this process despite it being a bit of a hassle. Unfortunately for the last couple of years, we mainly held our parties in restaurants. Particularly because the hubs did not want the fuss of cleaning up and also, our house was in a perpetual mess. It still is. But this year i insisted on doing it at home. Why? Because we have just moved in our newly renovated home! It's so nice and cozy so this is definitely my first choice! Also, often when i hold it in a restaurant, what would happen was that right after cake cutting, the fil and bil and my dad would all disappear. Fil isnt someone of great patience at the dining table and dad and the bil would head out for a puff. No one bothers eating the cake. No one bothers even waiting for the kids and i to have our cakes. In fact, it would be best if we had just blew the candles and pack up. If i were to be lucky, they would try a small slice and end up complaining that the cake was way too sweet for their palettes. It is really tiring managing everyone's requirements. 

So this year, the plan was to order a small boring cake for our home party. I had my eyes set on the pretty swiss roll baked by a certain homebaker whose business name started with J. I do not wish to point her out lest i am giving her more traffic. About a 1.5weeks before the event, I contacted her. She agreed to bake us a customised swiss roll and some nutella blossoms. A few days later, the hubs announced that he might have to fly on that date and I had to push forward things by a day. I discussed with the baker who agreed to deliver a day before. No firm timing was given till a day before she said I could collect the cake between 4-5pm that fateful day. Thinking that party would only start at 6pm, I thought i would  be in time. The day before i asked for an exact time and address as well as mobile number umpteen times but after 24hrs, there was still no response. An ominous feeling loomed. All the way till noon on party day i did not hear from her! Imagine my panic! I was tethering at my wit's end! At 245pm she finally replied my private message claiming that there was some techinical fault with her system such that she wasn't able to reply me and that she wanted to inform me that her fridge could not start up! Major horrors! I was frantic and despite not being a baker, I knew that with only an hour to delivery, it was impossible to set a cake even if her fridge was working. She requested for 10minutes and i was still hopeful. I waited but after 10minutes, it was still silence. I gave a chaser and fate was sealed, we had no cake! Immediately i spammed my resourceful mummy friends as my brain was completely busted. I couldn't think straight. Thankfully lots of ideas poured in and I finally managed to calm my nerves and get a cake from Flor Patisserie. Why didn't i think of that place earlier instead if driving aimlessly for half an hour. It is just a stone's throw away! Where was the hubs all this while? Napping away! He told me to chill even if there wasn't a cake as it wasn't Big K's actual day! Does that even matter?? A cake is a cake. What is a birthday without a cake! So anyhoots, I was just glad I made it in time and managed to get a refund after 24hrs and after persistent pestering, with me issuing a threat to report the matter to the police before she finally made the refund. She claimed she was busy running around doing deliveries. Wow! So suddenly her fridge was working the very next day? Nice. It was thereafter that several friends came forth to share that this baker has a bad name on a certain baking forum on fb! Who would have known! Especially since I engaged her after seeing an ig mummy raving about it. Just my luck i guess. 

 

So the above two cakes were the ones I got from Flor. They pride themselves for their Japanese-French inspired pastries. The Cocoa Royal cake was chosen coz it resembles the muddy puddle which Peppa and George love to jump on. I was hesitant to get a chocolate cake in all honesty coz we all know how sweet that would be. However, I took the risk and surprisingly, most of the guests tried! There were also hardly any comments from them except from the FIL who commented that it was sweet after chomping down 2 large slices. The second sliced cake, Bara, was a moose cake. The MIL's birthday was actually just 2 days away from Big K's hence I had to get her a little something too right? Especially when her own 3 flesh and blood do not do much (if any at all) to celebrate for her. This, despite the fact that she isn't a big fan of cakes. So I really hope she appreciates this gesture of mine!

Next, I gotten some brownie popsicles from Garden Slug. I thought it was pretty cute and got a couple. Took out one to serve as a cake to another birthday boy -- the SIL's husband. yeah, once again, I go the extra mile for these people who don't really give a hoot about birthdays. 

On decorations. This year's effort was pretty minimal. The buntings were bought from Taobao and the rest were either printables that are easily obtainable on the net, or stuff we've already have at home. I was pretty pleased with the outcome. :)

My birthday girl, all grown up. Awwwwww....

Everybody's birthday is their birthday!

Baked cheese green mussels with Thai sauce

Food packed from a nearby Zichar store. 

Cereal prawn

Claypot rice

Herbal Chicken

Food glorious. Another tricky thing with the oldies. You see, my dad is a pretty fussy person and not a very adventurous one. He only eats Chinese. My in-laws are very critical and would comment about how bad the food is instead of pouring compliments. In addition to that, we had a small crowd. Most buffets catered to a minimum of 15 pax. I was this close to taking on the task of cooking myself which THANKFULLY I did not! How would I have been able to pull off everything plus cook? So I googled around and was glad to have found Stamford Catering. They had mini party sets catered for 8-10pax! That was awesome as we were expecting a crowd of 9 adults and 2 kiddos. Perfect. The food arrived on time and the standards were more than satisfactory. The number of receptacles given plus the whole presentation was amazing! I got to keep the claypot which came with our claypot rice! As well as a wooden container which came with our Double Boiled Herbal Chicken. All these were packed in an insulated bag which again, was mine to keep! So aunty! I don't even know when I'd have a chance to use such a big bag! The quantity of food however, in the hub's opinion was a little too little for 10pax. In fact, upon unpacking, he immediately sent me down to pack extra dishes and rice! End of the day, we had leftovers. 

So that was Part one of our little celebrations. 

On to Part two -- Celebrations in school. Even though it was a mere school party, I tried to make it as pretty as possible as well. My own obsession mostly. Big K was very excited to share this day with her friends so I had to make it as memorable as possible for her right?

Starting with the all important cake. I had waited for 2 years before Susanne from LovingCreations4u agreed to bake me a cake. Our timings somehow never seemed to gel, hence the long wait. I love how she is able to turn a simple chiffon cake into a 3D creation. In addition to that, she uses natural food colourings. It was a hit with the kids and the teachers alike. Our form teacher even emailed me later to say that she overheard the teachers raving about the cake. I was initially a little worried as the kids just had a birthday cake the day before and it was the typical creamy fondant cake. You know how kids and sweets are? They are inseparable. However, the little mashmellow surprise plus the taste of the cake went well with the kids. Many asked for seconds!

I even went to the extent of dressing up my Vitagens. haha..the kids named it Peppa-gen.

This year's party packs were of minimal effort too. I always seem to be DIY-ing something for their packs but this year, they were all bought instore and put together. A lot of thought was put into it though. Like how the girls should get a pink bag and the boys a blue. I wanted the bags itself to be useful too, and was mighty happy that I managed to source for a drawstring bag. 

So that rounds up our little celebrations for my big girl. Sigh, I can't help but wish that time would freeze! Baby, may you grow up to be a fine young lady with abundance joy and wisdom! 

Happy Birthday my apple cheeks!

Day in a life of Janice Wong

This has been a mandatory post which I had always wanted to do. Procrastination got the better of me (what's new?) but finally, I pushed myself into writing, so that 10 years down the road, I am able to look back and feel darn good (or not) about myself. Life is a story and this is mine.

Photo credit: http://www.doubleedgefitness.com/life/

This is probably the period in my life when I am at my busiest. I have two little ones -- Big and Small K. Many wonder how I manage to pack so much in a day/ week. In all honesty, I don't know. One thing's for sure though, it is the severe lack of sleep which allows me to do more. Not something I am tremendously proud of but something which is bo bian (no choice) You see, Small K is still not sleeping through the night. On lucky nights, he would wake up once at dawn for his feed and go right back to sleep. On unlucky nights, well, let's not even get there. In addition to that, we are training Big K to go diaperless at night so when she needs to pee at night, guess who she looks for? No prizes for that. And by 'we', I really mean ME ME ME!

Here's how a typical weekday looks for me:

0800- 0830 hours

I am typically awake by 8am as that is about the time which Small K would potter into my room. If I'm lucky, 830am. Don't be too envious as my bed time could be as late as 4am! Small K's average dream feed is at 3ish so that is the reason for the late hours. Don't get me started on why I'm still giving in to him. It is mostly because I do not want him to tear the house down with his cries of bloody murder and more importantly, he is now sleeping in the same room as his sister who, though has improved by leaps and bounds, isn't exactly a deep sleeper. I certainly do not want to risk having two crying babies at 3am and spend an hour coaxing them back to sleep. So, the CIO (cry-it-out) method does not work for us. I can only pray.

0830 - 0900 hours

During this hour, I have to make the boy poop, clean him up, cuddle him and make him milk. You may ask why do I need a whooping half an hour to do these? Well, namely because while he poops, I will probably still be snuggled under my comforter! *smiles. On good days, while he is doing his business, I might start preparing breakfast.

0900 - 1000 hours

This is typically my zen hour. The kids and I will have breakfast and after which they will free play whilst I catch up on social media or other news. If I am a little hardworking, I will engage them in breakfast making. However, I try not to as this might drag till 11am if I do.

1000 - 1100 hours

I tend to pack too much in a day and this is particularly with regards to home learning. Every night before sleeping, I'll have great grand plans as to what I wish to execute the next day. However, mostly, it would end up an epic fail. It is really not easy trying to teach both children of different ages. If I were to do something with the younger one, the older one would also want a piece of the easy action. Hence, some of my materials have to be duplicated, just so Big K can be involved. And when I am engaged in something with Big K, say for example trying to teach her a tune or two on the piano, Small K would be trying to squeeze up the chair and bang those white and black keys. Exasperating at times. But I do have my good days where I will do at least 3 activities. Some of my activities include the Glenn Doman series which I am trying to discipline myself into doing everyday (it hasn't been all that successful though); thematic activities like Halloween stuff for the month of October, catching up on her school or Chinese enrichment homework (both of which are given once a week. Phew!) If time permits, I will try to squeeze in a craft work which makes Big K beam from ear to ear. In the event where I have completely depleted my energy, I will just throw them some colour pencils and paper to draw or some lego to play. They keeps them entertained for hours! This, unfortunately, happens rather often and the guilt would eat me up the entire day.

Look at the mess! Sigh

My trusty magic clean on days when i don't feel like exerting too much strength. 

1100 -- 1145 hours

Depending on the complexity of lunch, this is approximately the amount of time needed to prepare and cook lunch. During this period, the kids will once again engage in free play.  On top of that, if I'm in the mood, I will schedule in laundry as well, otherwise, that usually takes place at night whilst I am making them sleep. We mommas have to learn to multitask.  So if it isn't laundry day, i will be mopping the house with my trusty magic clean mop. Seeing the mess really gets me frustrated but mostly, I would simply shut their playroom door and pretend that my house is showroom condition. I do the minimal, and that is to ensure they have clean floors to step on.

After cooking, I will then wet mop the entire house. This is usually done every other day by the husband. However, his constant travels meant that I have to take charge of this area. It didn't help that the whole of last month, we were sandwiched between to units of renovation! One upstairs and one downstairs! The dust accumulated was an inch thick by evening. Ok, I'm kidding, but seriously I sometimes ended up mopping twice.

1145 - 1245 hours

The most infuriating hour of the day! ok, actually the second most. Read on to find out which is the most irritating hour of the day. Meal times are relatively easy if the dishes are to their liking or if it is a one pot dish like pasta. However, mostly, I will be nagging the children incessantly about finishing up their food quickly. I have to sometimes feed Small K as I eat my own lunch as he is a terribly messy eater and I don't have time to clean up his mess. Thankfully Big K is independent enough to finish her food. Only problem, I have to urge her to hurry.

An elaborate meal when I am in the mood. 

Some simple dishes to race against the clock

1300 -1315 hours

Shower time for the kids! Big K is able to shower on her own so my attention is only on the younger one. Phew!

1315 -- 1330 hours

My turn to shower and get ready for work! The mornings are always rush rush rush and peppered with lots of cajoling and sometimes screamings. Things don't always go the way I want as hiccups like breaking up fights or cleaning poop 3 times in a morning would throw things off the usual curve. 

1400 hours onwards

During the interval, I would be sending the younger one to his alternative caregiver and thereafter, I would send the big one to school. Following that, I would be off to work as an educator. If time permits, I will run my errands in between. 

6 hours is the average work hours I clock on a weekday. This is excluding the work done at home.  Nothing much here and certainly less stressful than looking after kids!

There are days when I really need some adult social interaction before heading to work and that is when I will rope in my mom who would gladly take my kids before lunch hour. I am so thankful that daddy dearest is able to pick Big K from school and that my kids are in good hands. However, I try not to bother mom too often as she is a social butterfly herself and well, she is still in the learning stage where looking after two kids is concerned. You see, she didn't have much experience in this area. She only had me. Things were pretty bad at the beginning. She couldn't even put on diapers for my kids. *shakes head. This week, I was very thankful that she was able to help me with the kids. Because of this arrangement, I was able to sneak out for lunch with a bunch of awesome mommy bloggers! Having a proper adult conversation for a full hour is pretty rare these days, much less making new friends!

From left: Jayme, Natasha, Liang May, Susan, Me, Dawn

2100 - 2300 hours

If the hubs is overseas, I would have to pick the kids up. The poor things would be uber high and overstimulated by their grandparents hence making my life a little tougher when we get home. Winding down does not happen immediately when we step home. I don't like the feeling of asking them to sleep the moment I pick them up. So sad to have to associate mommy to sleep. If the hubs is in town, things are a little easier. He would have settled the story reading bit and gotten them to drink their milk. If I am lucky, he sometimes would have already put Small K to bed. By now, I would mostly be starving as I usually have no time for a proper dinner. But I have to grit on else, I will never get my precious me-time! This is actually a love-hate period as the both of them may take an hour to sleep! By then, I would have fallen asleep myself!

2300 hours - 0230

Shower and me-time! Yes, my average bedtime is 0230 hours. Me time is really precious as it is the only time I am able to catch up with mundane chores or work related matters. Activities at night may include working on a diapercake order gotten through my other baby Rhapnroll Diapercakes; marking those stacks of exam papers, preparing lesson plans for my classes, replying emails, settling orders for Mary Kay or Young Living (if any), catching up with shower or dinner, washing the dirty dishes/ milk bottles, online shopping, following up with administrative matters, watching my Hong Kong dramas, blogging, folding the mountain of laundry, exercising, picking up the big mess of lego, doing my online grocery shopping or preparing my home learning materials. Gosh! That really sounds like quite a lot, but hey, I don't do all of them every single day! Sometimes I may also take this opportunity to have a quick chat with the hubs  (if he isn't preoccupied with his games or his dramas) or prepare the next day's soup. 

No matter how tough it is, to spend hours completing a diapercake actually brings me immense joy. Every creation is filled with love and it is really therapeutic to be engage in this little business of mine. 

#examfever

Preparing Big K's show and tell materials. This happens once a week. Many would just grab a soft toy or print a picture for the child. However, I go the extra mile in hope that my daughter will be more engaged and say a little more. She is a bit of an introvert you see, so having such manipulatives really helps in getting her to speak up. Communication and collaboration are key skills.

This is how messy my desk can get! Can you see how many things are happening at the same time? Catching up on my drama, online shopping, having a cup of hot milo and preparing materials for home learning or for my students. I somehow feel competent and achieved when I see the mess! It is this ability to pack so much in a day that keeps my adrenaline high. Strange I know! Things certainly isn't a bed of roses. What is posted online may look instagram worthy but the effort that goes behind them is immense. However, when I see how my family benefit from my hard work, my heart warms up and it spurs me on to do better! Some think I am a little saddistic, but I think I'm just a supermom wannabe. :)

This post is part of the Day in a Life blog train hosted by Mum in the Making. Click on the button to take a peek into a day in a life of other mummies!

Next up, we have Ashlyn on this blog train to share how her family spend their Sunday. As a full time working mummy to 1, Ashlyn writes about her life, faith, parenting, child, travel and crafting "adventures" - yes, with lots of ups & downs! Over these years, motherhood taught her so much and she learnt that life isn't all about sunshine and rainbows, and that it's really alright not to be perfect. All because, God has his perfect plan and makes all things beautiful in His time. Like how she has benefited from many blogs, she wish that her personal sharing will bring forward some love, joy and hope! Come, join her over at www.ashlynthia.blogspot.com.