I have moved.........

Please kindly visit my new home www.karenyiau.com

See y'all there....... :)

"My Beautiful Myanmar" - Charity Book Project

Hi Everyone!

This is a life changing book project by the Kachin (Northern Myanmar state) Refugee kids living in Malaysia. My boss' wife, Ms. Belle Lee volunteered herself at the refugee school and came up with this class project to raise funds for the Myanmar people in the aftermath of the cyclone as well as for the 2 Kachin schools which are currently only funded by individual donors. 100% of the profits will go towards the Cyclone Relief Fund & the refugee schools.

My Beautiful Myanmar contains drawings and stories from the refugee kids about why they left Myanmar, what their lives are like in Malaysia and what their hopes are for their future.

Please support this project by buying a copy (or more!) of the book as well as spreading the word about it. Also we would be very grateful to those who are willing to help us distribute the books at your businesses, among friends, your churches, clubs, etc. on consignment basis.

This high-quality 40-page color book is ONLY RM15 each. Shipping can be done via pos laju or registered mail, and cost to be borne by buyer, as I'm not taking any profit from this, all is for charity.

If you’re keen please contact me via email (yiaukaren@gmail.com) or leave your comment here. Your help is immensely appreciated!

P/S: Trust me, besides donating to help these less fortunate children, this is a good book with touching & valuable true stories that we should let our children read, and appreciate what they are having now. RM15 for a valuable lesson is definitely worth the money.



"Kids should be running to the park and not running for their lives."

My 1st Cupcakes

After my sister got a new oven, I just can't wait to attempt to bake my 1st cupcakes. Here are the "results":



It doesn't look very nice but overall the taste was quite good.

My icing decoration didn't turn out too well as it was too "watery", perhaps next time I should keep it refrigerated first before I pipe it on the cupcakes. Another thing is that we do not have an electric mixer, we have to mix the ingredients manually with our hands. Not only it was tiring but we found that it was not evenly mixed and has somehow affects the appearance of the cupcakes.

Looking at how happily Dillon, my niece and nephews were eating the cupcakes, I'm sure going to have my 2nd attempt to bake again.

Ju Hu Char

Ingredients:

Turnips (sengkuang), Dried cuttelfish (Ju Hu), Black mushroom, Chicken meat, Garlic

Method:

1. Shred the turnips.

2. Cut black mushroom (pre-soaked) & chicken meat into long, thin stripes.

3. Heat the wok with oil, add in some chopped garlic and fry till fragrant.

4. Throw in chicken meat, mushroom & ju hu and stir for 5 minutes, add in some water and toss for another 5 minutes.

5. Add in dark soy sauce (optional) for the desired colour, and light soy sauce to taste. Cover wok until the gravy has thickens.

6. Add in a bit of sesame oil before serving, it'll smells good.

Best served with iceberg lettuce or crunchy butterheads, or you can just eat it as it is.

P/S: It'd be great to add in some shredded carrots and the dish will have a nice combination of colours and will taste better too. :)

Eating around in Bangkok - MK Restaurant

We had steamboat dinner at MK Restaurant located on the 1st floor of MBK Mall, it was fine but nothing special , I still think our homemade steamboat is the best, haha LOL.

The Seafood set comes with shrimps, scallops, cuttlefish, jellyfish, fish fillet, fish dumplings, fish balls, fish cakes & seafood tofu plus the complimentary Vegatables set & 2 omega eggs, the usual stuff like I said, nothing special, the soup base is clear soup.



Ratings:
Food - 6/10 (so so only, the chili sauce not bad though)
Ambience - 6/10 (ok, I still prefer eating steamboat in an open-air area, hehe)
Price - 5/10 (pricey to me, steambost buffet in Malaysia is much better value)
Service - 8/10 (very prompt & polite)

Eating around in Bangkok - Bobae Tower

We had lunch at the food court on the 5th floor in Bobae Tower 2 before we started doing our shopping in this clothing wholesale center.


It's a typical food court environment, nothing fancy but the Thai food is nice here. Most of the crowd are the tenants, not many people travel to Bangkok would come here for shopping let alone eating here.

Stewed Duck Rice - 45baht
Fried Rice with Shrimps - 35baht
Fish Ball Noodles - 40baht
Seafood Tom Yum Soup - 60baht









Ratings:
Food - 9/10 (Good thai food & hearty portion)
Ambience - 6/10 (typical food court)
Price - 8/10 (consider quite cheap)
Service - 7/10 (good)

How to go to Bobae Tower: There is no Skytrain access, so take a cab or tuk tuk.

Eating around in Bangkok - Chatuchak

After a few hours of shopping in Chatuchak weekend market, we stopped by this stall for a drink but then we were told that we "must" order food, well ok I was a bit hungry also so I just order a Kuayteow, without even knowing what they actually serve there......


I can't tell you where exactly this stall is, I can't identify my location in the Chatuchak all the time and if you have been there before, you'd know what I mean. :)

Then the Kuayteow soup with Chicken came and it taste so yummy! Then hubby also ordered another one with Noodles. It taste like the herbal soup chicken and they serve with drumstick, chicken wing tip & chicken feet (my favourite....!), quite value for money for a price of 40baht.


Ratings:
Food - 9/10 (Yummy yummy if you like herbal soup)
Ambience - 6/10 (well it's a stall by the Chatuchak street so....)
Price - 8/10 (reasonable)
Service - 7/10 (very prompt)

How to go to Chatuchak weekend market: Take the Skytrain and get down at BTS-Mo Chit (N8)

Eating around in Bangkok - The Loft

The Loft is located on the 7th floor of Central World Plaza. It's a upper class food court in the shopping mall that serves a great variety of pan-Asian food.

When I was snapping this photo, I was told by the security guard that I'm not allowed to take any photos (:P):



Seafood Noodle with Thick Gravy - 65baht
Pork Noodles - 50baht
Fish Ball KuayTeow Tom Yum - 50baht
Fried Oyster - 60baht









Ratings:
Food - 8/10 (excluding the seafood noodle in thick gravy, they just pour the pre-cooked gravy on top of the noodle & the noodle is so rough)
Ambience - 8/10 (the seats near the window is always occupied!)
Price - 8/10 (reasonable for an upper class food court)
Service - 7/10 (very attentive)

How to go to Central World Plaza: Take the Skytrain and get down at BTS-Chidlom (E1)

P/S: You'll be given a pass that contains 1000baht of value. Give the pass to the stall when you order food, they will swipe it and deduct accordingly. Pay the bill at cashier when you leave the loft.

Eating around in Bangkok - Grand Palace

This small shop is located on the opposite side of Grand Palace. So if you happen to visit Grand Palace, do stop by here & try the noodles soup. The taste is not bad, although the shop looks a bit run down.




Ratings:
Food - 6/10 (above average, it's clear soup & if you like spicy, add in the chili flakes, hot hot hot!)
Ambience - 4/10 (sitting outside is better, it's quite stuff inside)
Price - 7/10 (ok)
Service - 7/10 (they are Chinese, can understand English)

Eating around in Bangkok - MBK Mall

I will be showcasing some of the nice food we had during our recent Bangkok trip and also the places where we dine in, this could be a food guide for the Bangkok travellers. :)

The food center on 6th floor at MBK Mall, great variety of food in a decent environment.

We spent 160baht for our lunch on the following:

Stewed Beef & Beef Balls Noodles - 50baht
Braised Pork Knuckle Rice with Pickles - 50baht
ABC - 30baht (more than 20 types of toppings to choose from)

Durian Glutinuos Rice - 30baht

Ratings:
Food - 9/10 (for pork knuckle alone I would give 10/10, hehe)
Ambience - 7/10 (typical food court)
Price - 8/10 (quite reasonably priced)
Service - 7/10 (they understands English, some are Chinese, worst case just point at the photo or the menu)

How to go to MBK Mall: Take the Skytrain and get down at BTS-National Stadium (W1)

P/S: They used coupon system (many of the food courts in Bangkok does the same) but you can refund the unused coupon within the same day.

During my recent trip to Kota Kinabalu, after descending from Mt. Kinabalu, I have half a day of leisure time before my departure flight and my dad has brought me to eat some good food around KK town.

Fish Head/ Fish Paste Meehoon, Fish Paste Foochok and the special 3-tier Milk Tea at a coffeeshop at Hilltop. The soup taste real good and the fish meat is really fresh, super delicious and priced at RM 7.00 per serving, quite reasonable.

I ordered the fish paste and fish meat meehoon as I don't fancy fish head.

The bottom layer is brown sugar syrup, evaporated milk in the middle and tea on the top layer.

Tanjung Aru food center - Grilled "Pari Ayam". Priced at RM 3.00/100gm, this piece shown below cost us RM16.00, not a very big piece but the meat is very thick, grilled to the perfection and not overcooked. The sauce is very tasty, not too spicy.

Spicy Mushroom Pasta Sauce

Ingredients:
Black mushroom, oyster mushroom, minced chicken, crabstick.
Sauce:
Tomatoes, ketchup, butter, garlic, shallots & dried chili flakes

Method:
1. Melt butter in the pan, add in chopped garlic & shallots, fry until fragrant.
2. Add minced chicken, followed by the mushrooms.
3. Stir fry for a minute, add in crabstick, chopped tomatoes & ketchup, with half cup of water.
4. Cook until the gravy thickens, add in dried chili flakes according to the level of spiciness preferred.

5. Serve with pastas or even rice.

Cantonese Style Rice

Ingredients:
Minced chicken, mushroom, carrots, cauliflower, choy sum, egg, garlic & shallots.

Method:

1. Fry garlic & shallots until fragrant.

2. Add in minced chicken & stir fry for a while.

3. Add in mushroom, carrots, cauliflower, choy sum, and half cup of water.

4. Cover the pan and let all ingredients cooked.
5. Beat an egg (or two) and stir in to thicken the gravy, add salt & pepper to taste.

6. Serve with rice or noodles, yee mee or kuay teow.

This is one of my favourite dish because it is delicious and healthy (with more vegetables than meat), plus it is easiest to make. When I do not have much time to prepare for dinner or just simply lazy to cook many dishes (which is often the case, hehe), I will prepare this for dinner. :)

Sweet corn glutinuos rice

This is a type of dessert which my Myanmar maid has made over last weekend, I don't know what is the actual name called, but it taste good.

Ingredients:

Sweet Corn, Glutinous Rice

Method:

1. Scrap off the corn from the cob, but remember to keep the corn leaves

2. Steam the corn and blend it.

3. Soak the glutinous rice well, and then add in together with the blended corn

4. Take a scoop of the corn mixture and wrap with the corn leaves.

5. Steam it for like half hour, then it's ready to serve.

There is no need to add in any sugar, and you can taste the natural sweetness of the corn that has blend in well with the glutinous rice, with the fragrant of the corn leaves.

Yoong Kie Seafood @ Gohtong Jaya

I've got this email from a friend's friend and would like to share it with all, note that not a single word has been edited from the original content

Dear All............

Last week, I brought my guests to Genting Highlands. After a day 'above the clouds', we decided to have dinner at the Gohtong Jaya area on the way down.

We ordered some dishes and decided to have a steamed fish as well. So the captain recommended 'sultan fish'. The steamed fish came. HALF, and plain steamed. Good & fine.

But when the bill came, it came to over $500!! We were shocked!! We were told the fish was 1.4kg (& please bear in mind, its ONLY HALF A FISH) at RM 320 per kg! RM 420!! This was daylight robbery. We were not informed by the Captain that a kg of the Sultan fish would cost us RM 320 and there was also no signs of such pricings anywhere in the restaurant.

When we checked with the cashier, she told us, it's correct !!

Of cos, it was our mistake for not asking the price first.

Anyway, on the way back to KL, we stopped at Unique Seafood,PJ, where one can choose a live fish. The most expensive Soon Hock swimming in the tank is RM135 per kilo. Asked them about the Sultan fish, it is going for RM100 a kilo.

Will be sending this letter to the newspapers, Tourism board, etc etc; and friends, pls pass on to all on yr email list.

My 1st attempt making sushi

I have always love eating Japanese food especially salmon sahimi, sushi, ebi tempura, chawanmushi and unagi kabayaki. After watching the TVB drama series Wasabi D'Amour last 2 weeks, well basically the series show many scenes of preparing various type of Japanese food and then I got so tempted to do it myself.

Then I bought this Sushi starter pack and a pack Japanese Hikari short grain rice and tried to prepare my very 1st sushi roll over the weekend.

Being the 1st time preparing sushi, I was a bit kelam-kabut and I must say that most of it didn't look as nice as I wanted it to be, but the taste was not bad though.

Here are my masterpiece:

Unagi and Omelette Maki, and Nigiri - Crabstick

Nigiri - Unagi

Chuka Kurage (seasoned jelly fish) sushi

I have learned the tips from the below sources:
1. How to make sushi rice
2. How to make sushi rolls
3. How to make Nigiri sushi

Eggs recipe for toddler

I noticed that most kids love eating eggs, that includes my nephews and niece and my son Dillon too. But of course I don't give him egg everyday, the most is 4 eggs in a week.

Apart from the Steamed Egg Rolls, here are a variety of Eggs recipes he loves eating:

Steam Egg
1 - mixed with minced meat and chopped spinach/bo choy.
2 - mixed in sliced fish cake
3 - mixed with dried scallops (soaked well)

Omelette
1 - with finely chopped chives (韭菜)
2 - with minced meat & chopped onions
3 - with french beans or long beans

Scrambled Egg
1 - with chopped tomatoes & cheese
2 - with chopped tomatoes and onions

However, he doesn't really like hard boiled eggs, soft boiled eggs & fried eggs though.

Smart Kids Education Fair 2008

Smart Kids Education Fair 2008 is happening this coming weekend from 21st to 23rd March 2008 at PWTC.

Lots of fun activities, games and interesting seminars for the kids and the parents too. Some who have been there find it nothing much but it really depends what you are looking for. I personally think it's more suitable for older kids or pre-schooler, nothing much for the babies & toddlers though.

I went to the one in 2006 but didn't go in 2007 as I was pregnant. If I were to go again this year, I'll be bringing only Dillon and take LRT there as early as possible, say around 10.30am to avoid the big crowd.

Visit here for more information.

Can you give them a second chance?

Our Animal Inspector received a call today (Monday, 18th Feb) from a concerned woman who found a mother dog who had given birth to 10 puppies in a small depression in a field. 3 puppies had already died after being hit by passing cars. The 7 remaining pups were hot and panting, and were brought back and placed under SPCA Selangor's guardianship. The 1-month-old pups will not survive long in the shelter system where they will be exposed to bacteria and fatal viruses, but they may survive with gentle care and nurturing in your home. If you have experience fostering young puppies, and have a suitable space in your home to foster them for 4-6 weeks, please give us a call within the next 24 hours.

As they are young and need to be monitored around the clock and fed every 4-5 hours, we encourage only those with enough time on their hands to take them in. The puppies can be separated into different foster homes, preferably 2 per home. Please be aware that while there are many success stories for fostered homeless animals, many young kittens and puppies do not survive even with the best care and attention - however they still do deserve a second chance at life. If you are willing to take the chance, please contact us immediately! For more information, please call 42565312/ 42535179/ 42535312 from 9am-4pm tomorrow (Monday, 19th February) or send an e-mail to pr.spca@gmail.com

Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA Selangor)

Jalan Kerja Ayer Lama, 68000 Ampang Jaya

T : 03-42565312 / 03-42535179/ 03-42535312 F : 03-42528382

E : spca@streamyx.com.my W : http://www.spca.org.my/

Pureed baby food

My daughter Kaith is already 7.5 months and I've started to prepare baby food for her, as how I did for Dillon in the past.

I have started with all vegetables only and here is the recipe.

Cut carrots, potatoes into dices and cook in water until it's soft, then add in cauliflower and cook for another minute. When it turns cold, mashed it or pour all into food blender to blend well.









Portion out in small containers and keep in freezer. Thaw in fridge the night before for next day's feeding. Reheat baby food by steaming, or put the container in a bowl of hot water.

P/S: Normally I'll make a big batch of 4-5 servings for my baby's comsumption.

Online casino links

A lot of people like to play casino games online nowadays and it is hard to tell which one is the best among all, not until you have signed up and experience the actual game play yourselves. But another convenient way to filter out would be to read about the online casino reviews contributed by professional team who have done thorough research and studies about the online casinos.

You’ll find detailed information about the online casinos, and also ratings in terms of security, fair play, customer support, payout speed, game play experience and so on. The ratings are based not only on editor’s opinion but also the player’s so it is reliable. You can also find support here by reading the beginners guide and useful tips if you are new to online gambling.

If you decided to sign up with any online casino after reading the review, click on the signup bonus banners on every review page which entitles you to great bonus deals.

Reunion Steamboat Dinner

This year's reunion dinner I have decided to have steamboat dinner as it doesn't require a lot of time for preparation or cooking.

I've prepared a great variety of ingredients for steamboat, which includes prawns, cuttlefish, dory fillet, fresh scallops, jellyfish, pork fillet, abalone slice, dumplings, meatballs, fishballs, crabsticks, seafood tofu, fu chuk, button mushroom, fresh mushroom, golden mushroom, oyster mushroom, beancurd, seaweed, vegetables etc. As for the soup base, I used chicken carcass, plus some red dates, kei zi, yuk chuk and a little salt to taste. Of course, it is very important to have a spicy chilli sauce as condiment.

Chinese New Year shopping

Have you already bought new clothes, new shoes and other Chinese New Year goods? Or do you plan to do some last minute shopping next week? I'm done with my shopping but most of the things I bought is for the kids rather than for myself.

Here are various Chinese New Year decoration in a few of the shopping malls.

Berjaya Times Square

MidValley
Sungai Wang Plaza
Ikano Power Centre

A trip to Germany

The company I’m working with is owned by a German guy and he always tell us about the nice places and good food in Germany. I personally haven’t been to any country in Europe and if I have the chance, I would want to drop by Germany for a couple of days. According to my boss, it is best to book for Hotels in Germany via internet as it is easier, and the hotel rates are attractive; I can also check out the Hotels in Berlin through the same website.

Berlin’s calendar is loaded with annual fairs, festivals, concerts and parties and the best time to visit Berlin would be in April, as there will be the Festive Days where a host of concerts and operas are held over 10 days, it would definitely make the trip a fun-filled and memorable one. Apart from that, there are also other great events held in Berlin throughout the year which includes The Berlinale (Berlin International Film Festival), the world’s second largest, held in February, Christopher Street Day in June (Berlin’s big gay event), August features JazzFest Berlin while in November Christmas markets are held throughout the city. Accommodation in Berlin is not a problem too as I can find a suitable Hotels in Berlin from the website, ranging from cheap stay to luxury hotels.

Online community

There are a lot of online casinos that provides different game play and it is not easy to decided which one has the best features before we sign up. This is when we'll need to find some reviews on the online casinos and read the comments from other players.

Casino Haste has been very successful in online casino community and you can find exceptional online casinos reviews, online casino forum and tips for online gambling here. The players who joined in the community and provides reviews and tips are highly professional casino players who expert both in offshore and online casinos. Furthermore, these information and findings are being cosely monitored by a team of professional staff in-house.

So for those who like to play online casino gambling, pay a visit to the hottest online casino community and you'll sure be able to gain some useful information that would make your online game play more interesting.

Slots

Instead of going to the casinos, many people nowadays will opt for playing at online casinos as it is exciting and fun, but minus the hassle of traveling. For those who love betting games online, try to pay a visit to Privbetting.com which offers not only online slots but also some free casino games. Apart from that, you will also find reliable and original reviews of online casinos where you can read on and find out which one is the best in terms of game play, bonuses and other factors, this really helps players to save a lot of time in making the right decision before signing up.

Exclusive free online slots machine bonuses are also available on the website where you can play for real at online casinos. So wait no more, check out the website Privbetting.com and start playing the exciting games at the top rated online casinos today!

No electricity!

When I got home after work yesterday around 8.00pm, I found that the electricity supply was interrupted and my maid told me that this was since 2pm in the afternoon. The first thing that cross my mind was - my EBM (expressed breast milk). How am I going to store it when the fridge has no power supply? Luckily I still have my cooler bag, which can hold my EBM temporarily but if the power doesn't resume in the next few hours, it will be spoiled and I have to throw them away..... :(

I was wondering what took the TNB people so long to repair the problem and I asked hubby to call up to check, then we know why - no one in the neighbourhood has called to report the case at all!! I guess everybody must be thinking that "someone" would have called and thus they just do nothing but wait & see only. (typical bad malaysian attitude!)

After hubby made the call, the TNB people came & manage to resume the electricity supply around 12am. Fortunately my EBM is still cold and I quickly transfer them back into the fridge.

If only somebody has called TNB to report when it happened, all of us won't have to suffer for such long hours!

Bad credit offers

Nowadays, it is very common that the people would either have credit cards or loans, be it auto loan, housing loan or personal loan, or all that I’ve mentioned. There are just too many commitments and if one doesn’t plan their budget wisely, it is very easy to drag themselves down into a bad credit status.

But even if you have a poor credit ratings, bad credit loans would provide a solution for you. You will find a lot of bad credit offers available and you’ll sure be able to find one that suits your need, regardless of a bad credit history.If you are looking to repair your bad credit , there are some top credit repair and debt relief services available for people with poor credit ratings too. You can learn on how to improve your credit score and even get a free online debt assessment to help to understand your own financial status better.

Cash advance for festive season

Right after the holiday season in December, another festive season - Chinese New Year is just around the corner and many people have started preparing for it, which includes shopping for new apparels, decoration items, gift hamper and other Chinese New Year goodies.

However, most people wouldn't receive their pay check till end of the month and it could be a bit too rush to shop by then and the malls are sure going to be very packed. At times like this, payday loans could be a good solution where it provides people with cash in advance for emergency use.

It is quick and easy to apply for the payday loans as we can submit our application online without having to go to the individual money lender. The application will then be evaluated and if it meets the approval criteria, the loan will be approved and within the next business day and money will be deposited to our designated account. The repayment options are also flexible depending on our preference and affordability. When we get our next pay check, we can repay the loan immediately by then.

Care homes

Some people might not like the idea of sending the elderly to care homes because they think the elderly should be staying with their family and the children are suppose to look after them.

But I think it is not a bad thing at all if everyone in the household is working and nobody is accompanying the elderly most of the time, leaving the elderly at home alone is somehow dangerous too, especially when the elderly is not in a good health condition.

Nowadays the care homes are well equipped and have various facilities for the elderly. There are also qualified caregivers to take care of the elderly at the care homes. Aside from getting the appropriate treatment, the elderly can also mix around with other of similar age group and hence promote a healthy social life to them as well. Family members can always pay a visit or bring the elderly out if there is any occasion.

Bijou Mont Kiara

We had a dinner gathering at this place called Bijou in Mont Kiara on last Saturday, 29th Dec. We have 5 families, consisting 10 adults & 9 kids in the party and I have specially made a request to arrange a table closest to their outdoor playground.

Our table

The tables at outdoor

The playground area is not very big but since it is a confined area, kids can run around freely & safely while playing on the slide & swing.

The outdoor playground

The ambiance is cozy and the food is good. I have ordered a Spaghetti with tiger prawns and breadcrumbs while my husband had the Game hen consomme (chicken drumstick), both taste good. Their main course are reasonable priced within the range of RM25 - RM45; drinks are at RM10 each on average. They also have a special menu for kids and serve food like fish & chips, pasta, meatballs & mash potato, priced around RM16 each.

Overall, I would say this is a good dining place for couple, and also for family with kids. However there are a lot of steps leading in to the restaurant and to the playground so for those who has a baby stroller, it might not be ideal. I must also make a mention that the staff are friendly and services are prompt, which has made my dining experience a pleasure one.