Whirlwind In A Mama's Head

As we walk our lives day by day, it's so easy to get into a routine and feel stale. In Canada, life was good and we were easily trapped into comfort and being complacent, while in Indonesia it's always about making more money and working more. Neither of them is good, I think, because wherever we are, we need to break from the routines once in a while and do a variety of things that makes us sit back and think about what really matters in life. We've been in Jakarta for over 5 months now, and what we've done so far are work, go to the mall, go online, work again, to the mall again, and online again. What the heck were we thinking?! We are in the tropics! No snow to complain about, the heat is manageable, we're just not creative enough! Well, on Good Friday we dressed up to go out, thinking about just another mall. Then suddenly Miss Kiki talked on her 'cellphone' and planned an outing with Pocoyo, Ellie, and Patou. Then she said "Mama, I'm meeti...

This is what happens when baby spends too much time with daddy. :) In my household, that is. Between the Blackberries, Macbooks, iPads, iPods, and iPhones, Miss Kiki had gotten quite savvy with technology. The funny thing is, she thinks that all screens are touch screen. We would pass electronic stores at the mall and she would go to the LCD TVs on display and starts pressing and swiping the screen with her little finger... and would get upset because it doesn't work! Her latest gadget is this Barbie laptop, generously gifted by Oma. Miss Kiki wanted it so she can spend some quality time with Papa. Or so I like to think :P

I'm finally back to my 'making and baking' mode (for now) and I hope it will last longer than my last one. Today I made Penne Schotel (my improvisation from Macaroni Schotel) and pizza dough. This time it's a thin crust pizza and it turned out good. Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures, so I'll just post the result picture next time. They're sleeping in the freezer at this very moment. *now posted* What You Need: 500 gr All Purpose Flour, sifted more flour for rolling 1 package (11 gr) instant yeast 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tbsp sugar 4 tbsp olive oil 350 ml warm water The How To: Mix 500 gr flour, yeast, salt, and sugar with a wire whisk or fork Mix in warm milk and olive oil Knead the dough Form a ball, put it in a large bowl, cover with plastic cling wrap Let it rise somewhere warm for about an hour, until it doubles in size Open the wrap, punch the dough down once to let the air out Split into 5 parts and roll each to about 0.2" thick, gene...

Here in Jakarta, when the streets are over populated with motorized vehicles, the faster way to get around is to ride a smaller vehicle. I've driven home once from work and saw a guy on a bicycle, and saw the same person still on the bike 90 minutes later near my home. That is sad! For me, at least... I would say a motorcycle would  be the fastest way to get around the city, though it won't be the safest option. I just wanted to share this picture of a Kancil (name taken from a small animal. A jackass, I think?) which is a cheap version of a smart car, but operating like a taxi, and not as common in Jakarta as it used to be. And the other picture was of my old Smart Car. We all know that the Smart Car is a two-seater, but Kancil officially fits four, but in practice there could be 6 people in it!

First of all, please pardon my selfish promotion on this post today. With low salary and no health insurance, I'm all for extra income. To top it off, some things that we are used to in Canada are just soooo expensive here, but I'm not willing to live without them yet. And did I mention that school is not free? So I've started a small online store for children and moms. To start with, I have pettiskirts and tutus for little princesses and pretty headbands for the moms. I hope to expand to other stuff in the future, but I hope that this will be a good start. I will ship worldwide so both my friends in Indonesia and Canada can buy the merchandise, and with very reasonable prices. So please visit Kiki's Online Boutique  today and happy shopping y'all!

When Miss Kiki was younger, she was so curious and were willing (and wanting) to try all kids of food. This picture is a proof! This was taken in March, just over a year ago. I remember when she was barely 6 months old, she hadn't even started her rice cereal yet, she would be staring at whatever I ate. Strawberries, rice, oranges..... She would give me a pleading look and lick her lips. Then she started eating cereal, veggies, fruits, eggs. Then something happened. I'm feeling slightly guilty because maybe when she was at that curious age, I didn't feed her properly, and without a schedule. I know I sometimes forget to feed myself, so I wouldn't be surprised if I had been late in giving her food more than a few times. She sometimes doesn't want to eat, she started rejecting food, and had rapidly lost her baby fat and barely gained any weight in the past year. She had a period where she would only eat burger patties, and then sometimes just sausages, and then ...

When in Rome, do what the Romans do.  That is a generally acceptable saying, honoured by any self respecting individual all around the globe. we try to, at least. Is it really that simple, though? There are waaay too many downfalls when one tries to follow customs that are not (or not anymore) their own. Lack of knowledge, misunderstanding, old habits, difference in principals and perception, just to mention a few. I am no exception. I was born and raised in Jakarta, and had spent my first 18.5 years of life there. Then for the following 11.5 years, I made Canada my home. Having moved to a totally different place at that age, not knowing the local culture, I was super lucky to have had people who guided me and supported me through. I was shaped into an individual that I am, I eased into the open western social standards. Or so I think. God knows if I offended anyone during those years. Now at 30, I'm back at home, living like I was over a decade ago... NOT! I'm not sure i...

Something from a friend that I want to share... Heavy rains remind us of challenges in life. Never ask for a lighter rain. Just pray for a better umbrella. That is attitude.  When flood comes, fish eat ants & when flood recede, ants eat fish. Only time matters.  Just hold on, God gives opportunity to everyone !   Life is not about finding the right person, but creating the right relationship, it's not how we care in the beginning, but how much we care till ending.   Some people always throw stones in your path. It depends on you what you make with them. Wall or Bridge ? Remember you are the architect of your life. Every problem has (n+1) solutions, where n is the number of solutions that you have tried and 1 is that you have not tried. That's life. Search a beautiful heart, but don't search a beautiful face'. Coz beautiful things are not always good, but good things are always beautiful. It's not important to hold all the good cards in life. But it`s important...

Since we didn't have TV when we lived in Canada, my first encounter to this little dancer is on Playhouse Disney Channel in Jakarta. She is a little mouse who really, really loves to dance. And yes, she is a very good dancer, I must say! Excellent spotting, good posture, elegant movements, and she looooves to practice her dance. It seems like Treehouse channel runs the series in Canada. Do any of you like this series, or is it just moi?!  

Good night, Baby I hope you have sweet dreams We've turned the page on this day And now it's time to sleep Good night, Baby It's faster than it seems I used to be the baby And my mom sang to me Good night, good night I watch you as you sleep The world love little babies And you're the world to me ! I love this song! When I sang it for Miss Kiki, I would get all misty eyed. She used to ask me to sing it all the time, and she would give me a big hug and a kiss too. Now this is her bed time music. She would listen to it over and over again until she falls asleep. Thank goodness for the repeat button!

My Geek was so impressed when he saw me come out of the book store with this book. "Aawh, are you trying to get to know me better?" said he with a wide grin on his face. "Yes of course, Dear! Why wouldn't I?" I replied teasingly. Geeks are so sweet and easy to love. Once you can see past their geeky-ness, that is. A whole lot of my friends would agree, I know, since they already are going out with one, or are married to one. Just like me. Sometimes I would wonder what the heck he could have been doing, sitting 8 hours straight being on the computer (yes, through lunch break) and come home and be back on it some more waaaaaay past any normal human bed time. Yet, he still says that he needs more computer time. Thank goodness this doesn't happen 365/year. On the other side, they are very loyal, and they would always try giving you solutions to make your life more efficient to show their love. Don't resent it. Just try to be open minded, and as soon as y...

One of the perks in living in a city where regulations are not honoured is that I get to see weird, cool, and crazy stuff on a daily basis. One time on the way home I saw a guy on a motor bike with a huge python around his waist. Another time I saw this flattened van being driven on the street. I wonder what I'll see today? :P

This sweet treat is the latest indulgence of mine (and my mom's!). Located at Gandaria City Shopping Centre, Roppan is relatively close to our home. For all my friends who want to try this but is not in Jakarta, this is how I think they made it: Cut a 2" slice of WHITE bread. Cut out the inside of the bread, cut into 1" cubes. Toast the cubes lightly. Drop the cubes inside the skin. Drizzle lightly with melted butter. Add 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream on the cubes. Top with strawberry and peach slices. optional: drizzle with chocolate sauce ENJOY!

Two things that I missed doing with Miss Kiki since we moved are going to Baby Signing class and to Dance class. I truly believe that these two things had enriched her and our relationship. Being able to communicate before she started speaking by signing, and being able to express her feelings through dance made her such a happy baby and toddler. The hubby and I had so much fun watching her and communicating with her (and dancing with her!). If you do have time, I would highly recommend taking up an activity with your little ones. It's definitely worth the time spent! ps: We LOOOOVE the  Baby Signing Time  DVD series. A lot of repetition, fun songs throughout. Miss Kiki learnt a lot of signs from them.