mommy the master food critic

I thought I was a pro. But Mommy showed me who is boss when she reviewed our Cedele breakfast on video.

why

Why does God bless me with so many who care for me but with too little time to love them?

surprising the tank engine

Planning 9/10
Resources 9/10
People 10/10
Response to surprise 2/10

Everything went (almost) perfectly as planned. We contacted and liaised with Serene, the organizer of the CampVision weekend camp.

Ten of us gathered quietly in excitement outside Labrador Adventure Centre at 11pm, and waited for the moment.

On Serene's cue, we sneaked into the canteen with a Cedele chocolate pistachio cake and two dozens of doughnuts. Then we waited after setting up the perfect birthday ambush.

And the surprise came, for us, when Thomas turned up behind us. You can hear the original plan briefly described in this video by the one who 'spoiled' the surprise. :P

I've grown

...Not fatter, you idiots!

I have grown to know God better. And there are a million and one things I can thank Him for:

1. Keeping and bringing me back to Him after two years of trying to convince myself that I can deal with the consequence of ignoring God who created me

2. My loving family of God at BTPC where the bible is faithfully taught and many exemplary lives are shared

• Girlies like Pih, Shiuan, Grace, Marianne, Amy and Yifen who keep encouraging me through frequent smses and warm hellos at church
• Brothers like Ben, Jenn, Justin, Jerry, Richmond, Steve and geeky Ray who shower us with much brotherly love
• Kengyi (pictured) who has been consistently reading the bible or Christian books with me for over two years and demonstrating with her live what it means to live under God's rule, for God's people.

3. Revealing himself to me through the bible and changing me slowly by the power of His Spirit.

As I read through the Old Testament this year, I learnt how great and sovereign our God is, to be able to fulfill everything He promises. He is such a just God who will punish when it is due, yet he is full of mercy when His people turns back and follows Him.

As I know Him better, I cannot help but fear and love Him. I find myself speaking to Him more, confessing how frequently I ignore or disobey him.

If you are praying for me, pray that I:

• Will persevere in living under God's rule
• Remember my need to be saved by Gods grace
• Respond to what I know about God by aligning my whole live to reflect his godliness
• Share this good news with all who I love or know, through my words and actions

Mini me

Caleb passed me a surprise today. It was an avatar of me, lovingly created by Bok Hwee.

It is so adorable! Thanks girl!

all day breakfast

On the days I take the train to work, I will have to walk pass the Bedok Interchange Food Centre. That has become my two minute low-point of the day.

I love breakfast and I envy how people can sit down and enjoy a full spread. Of course I can do that on a weekend, but it is just not the same doing that with a hangover, which so often finds me on a Saturday morning.

So it warms my heart whenever I see restaurants serving all-day breakfast. It is like they are saying, "I feel your pain, girl."

Here are my favourite restaurants for having those missed breakfasts:

3. Overeasy
This restaurant overlooking the Singapore river has a great view of Singapore's iconic Esplanade and Merlion. Great pancakes!

2. PS Cafe
I love the outlet on Harding Road. After a full English breakfast, you can have your sweet fix with the whole range of yummy (and humongous) slices of cake!

1. Wild Honey
No one is more committed to breakfast than these guys who serves breakfast and nothing else! If you want a taste of morning energy food in each country, here is where you do your research. We tried five items on the menu and all tasted as good as it looks!

tea off

My tea and dinner party coincidentally was at Meritus Mandarin Gallery, the relatively new four-storey mall at Orchard.

I would normally dread spending the whole day in the mall, but spending time catching up with good friends over carefully plated and delicious food made me change my mind.

It has been months since the last time the girlies met up. We see one another at church every week but you never get to the juicy details when everyone is rushing for service or juggling five conversations over lunch.

Pih, Kengyi, Grace, Shiuan, Marianna and I had a lovely afternoon in Lawry's. The S$15 tea set included one savoury snack, one dessert, and a drink. We tried almost everything on Lawry's 'Afternoon Indulgence' menu.

Savories

• Prime rib yorkshire roll up
• Sauteed cream of mushroom with garlic bread
• Honey baked ham on cantaloupe
• Ham cheese toast
• Smoked salmon and cream cheese puff
  

Sweets

• Homemade scones with devonshire cream
• English trifle
• Strawberries ala chocolate
• Brownie with Haagen Dazs ice cream

The food was a bonus, the real deal was the catch up. I thank God every week for these sisters in Christ who keep encouraging me.

flower power

Men love flowers. Especially a huge bouquet or basket of flowers lovingly delivered to the office.

Within a short span of two weeks, flowers were delivered twice to the Alphabet office. The strange thing is that they were both for male colleagues.

So if you are a girl, send one to that special someone today. For best effect, here are some tips:

1. Get the flowers delivered the morning after your date.
2. A basket, vase or pot of flowers works best so he can put it on his desk.
3. Do not sign off with your name. Mystery doubles the romance.
4. Mention something witty or cute from your conversation with him the night before so he knows the flowers are from you.
5. Never call and ask whether he has received the surprise.
6. If he is the type to flaunt, add balloons and chocolates to triple the drama.

Good luck and let me know if it works! ;)

singapore's first little cambodia

Cambodia has been one of my top three favourite Asian destinations after spending over a week in Siam Reap and Phnom Penh in 2006.

Since this little restaurant - Khmer Delight - landed on East Coast Road eight months ago, I have been finding an opportunity to check it out.

For the two of us, we spent about S$35. And, here is my quick review:

1. Fish amok: 4 /5
Petite pandan cup of flavour! You get hit immediately with the fragrance of coconut milk, before you sink your teeth into chunks of fish. If it is spicier, it would have a bit more kick.

2. Chicken lok lak: 2/5
Chicken cubes stir-fried with onions, green and red peppers in black pepper sauce. It tasted a little mild, but definitely a safe dish for kids and non-spice eaters.

3. Crispy khmer noodles: 3/5
It's a cross between the chinese 生面 you find at Sze Char stalls and satay bee hoon. The noodles is light and tasted like keropok, and drizzled on top is thick peanut gravy. You mix it up and ta-da, Cambodian crispy noodles!

Alicia Sok Hourng, who owns the restaurant, is a Chinese Cambodian who has left charming Phnom Penh for Singapore over ten years ago. If you ask me, she should have started this restaurant then! With its authentic, unique and value-for-money dishes, Khmer Delight might already be bigger than lots of Thai chains today!

Khmer Delight
922 East Coast Road S459114
T: +65 6449 1529
12.00pm to 10.00pm Mon-Thurs
12.00pm to 10.30pm Fri-Sun

the one time i didn't get travel insurance

You never know when things will go wrong. And when you least expected it, you might lose your camera, damage your luggage, miss your flight and more. Anything and everything can go wrong when you least expect it.

I guess that is why people get travel insurance. I normally do. But work has been overwhelming lately and with the frequent overseas conferences, I have overlooked this recently.

And just when I neglect getting travel insurance, I cracked the screen of my netbook, Ananias. Now there are dead patches and crack lines across the screen.

To double the trouble, I carelessly locked my keys to my luggage lock in my luggage. How smart.

Fortunately breaking the lock was rather fuss-free. All I needed was to go to the Information Counter just at the arrival hall of Changi Airport and they quickly sent someone down with some simple tools. Within 15 minutes, I walked out of the airport with an unlocked luggage and a damaged lock.

hooked on youchoob

They are good. They kept me up till two in the morning.

Who and what? I am hooked on KevJumba and HappySlip YouTube channels.

My favourite top three videos are:

3. Valentine

2. Put it in Purse

1. I love my dad