Dinner @ You & Me Kitchen Corner, Zest Point

 

Hubby and I found this newly opened restaurant at Zest Point: You & Me Kitchen Corner.

 

Address: ZP2-27&28, Zest Point, Lebuhraya Bukit Jalil, Bandar Kinrara 9, 47180 Puchong.

 

Tel.: 03-8071 0339

 

Cuisine: Chinese & Western, non-halal

 

Plus points: They use natural oils, sea salt, organic eggs.

 

 

The restaurant's atmosphere resembles that of Wong Kok and Kim Gary but slightly posh-er. You need to take off your shoes before you can enter the premise.

The main attraction is the "outdoor" setting. There are three wooden tables and swings that serve as chairs. I love those pretty rainbow ceiling fans!

 



 

Top: Stuffed Portobello Mushroom with Minced Pork and Mozzarella Cheese

Bottom left: Stir-fry Spaghetti with Kimchi

Bottom right: Four Leaves Fried Rice

 

The mushroom dish is a delightful snack. Kimchi and spaghetti combo works out pretty good surprisingly. Four leaves are actually potatoes, petai, long beans, and brinjals. This dish is quite spicy to my taste. Food portion is considerably big. If you're a small eater, you might want to share the main dishes.

 

I'll be back to sample the rest of their dishes and desserts. :)

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2013: The year we become three :)

2013 is a year of phenomenal achievement for my husband and I. We are now three!

Let's recap.

• Announcing the arrival of our baby
• Relating my birth story
• Experiencing the first four weeks of motherhood
• Surviving the first four months
• Life as a working mom

Baby is now 4.5 months and he's getting cuter and wrigglier each day. :P

What can he do nowadays?

[Source]

• Smiles spontaneously, especially at people
• Likes to play with people and might cry when playing stops
• Copies some movements and facial expressions, like smiling or frowning
• Begins to babble
• Babbles with expression and copies sounds he hears
• Cries in different ways to show hunger, pain, or being tired
• Lets you know if he is happy or sad
• Responds to affection
• Reaches for toy with one hand
• Uses hands and eyes together, such as seeing a toy and reaching for it
• Follows moving things with eyes from side to side
• Watches faces closely
• Recognizes familiar people and things at a distance
• Holds head steady, unsupported
• Pushes down on legs when feet are on a hard surface
• May be able to roll over from tummy to back
• Can hold a toy and shake it and swing at dangling toys
• Brings hands to mouth
• When lying on stomach, pushes up to elbows 

Life is good with baby! :)

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How to resolve plugged / blocked milk ducts

 Photo source

I just had my fourth episode of plugged / blocked milk ducts during my breastfeeding journey for the past 4.5 months. The first episode actually morphed into mastitis, a very painful experience.

Thankfully, plugged ducts only happen to one breast at a time. If both sides are affected, there goes my baby's food. :S

A plugged or clogged milk duct usually feels like a hard, tender swelling in the breast which can vary in size from a pea to a peach and may feel painful while breastfeeding. The skin over the affected area may be red and the area around the plug may feel full even after a feeding.

Sometimes a small whitish-yellow milk plug can be seen at the opening of a duct on the nipple. Plugged ducts occur when milk flow is restricted, or there is a delay in removal of milk from the breast resulting in poor drainage of the breast.

Contributing factors may include:

• Missed or irregular feedings and/or an unusually long interval between feedings (a sudden long sleep stretch).
• Pressing the breast to provide nostril space for the baby.
• Wearing a tight or poorly fitting bra that impedes milk flow.
• Having an overabundant milk supply and insufficient breast drainage.
• A plugged nipple pore/nipple bleb (looks like a white head).
• Rapid weaning.
• Practicing vigorous upper arm exercise.
• Extreme exhaustion.

[Source]

How to unclog milk ducts that caused painful engorgement? 

1. Apply warm compress (hot water bottle / hot pads) to the affected area to loosen the plug.

2. Take a hot shower and let hot water flow over your shoulder to the affected breast.

3. Massage the affected breast while in the shower or between compresses, pressing with your thumb from behind the plug toward the nipple.

4. Soak the affected breast with in a mixture of 3 tablespoons of Epsom Salt and warm water for 5 minutes. Then, massage your areola and nipple with virgin coconut oil and try to remove any visible whitish-yellow milk plug.

5. Start and continue breastfeeding on the affected side to drain the affected area better. Nurse (direct latch) baby more frequently than usual and do not skip any feedings. Try position the baby so his chin “points” to the lumpy areas.

6. Pump the affected breast for 10-15 minutes after nursing.

Alternatively, take one capsule of lecithin (1,200 mg) 3 or 4 times a day to prevent recurring blockage. Lecithin thins your milk (lowers fat content) in order to release the plug. You might want to stop after the blockage is cleared. 

You may also use cold cabbage and wrap around the affected area. But don't do this for more than 15 minutes because cabbage as cold compression is an effective milk buster.
 
More info:

• Blocked Ducts and Mastitis How To
• Plugged Ducts and Mastitis
• Blocked Milk Duct Home Remedies

Happy breastfeeding!

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Christmas fun: Decorating gingerbread cookies

Pink, blue, green, and white icing on gingerbread cookies that come in different shapes and sizes.

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My mother-in-law's Mini Malaysian Pancake (Mini Apam Balik)

Ingredients:

330gm flour
1 ½  cup warm water
1 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp bicarbonate soda
1/3 cup sugar
3 eggs
Sesame seeds (optional)
Margarine (for greasing)

Filling: Red bean paste

Utensils: Pan, Egg Rings and Turner

Method:

1. Mix the flour with instant yeast and bicarbonate soda.
2. Make a well in the flour and put in the eggs. Mix well.

3. Put in the water and sugar and mix into a smooth batter. Mix until the sugar is dissolved.

4. Leave the batter for 30 minutes for the yeast to work.

5.  Heat pan and place egg rings on pan.

6. Put a little margarine into each egg ring. Sprinkle in some sesame seeds. (The presentation side will have the sesame seeds.)

7. Scoop 1 dsp (dessert spoon) of batter into each egg ring.

8. Put in about 1 tsp of red bean paste into each ring.

9. Spoon in 2 dsp of batter to cover the paste.

10. Remove the rings when almost done on one side. Turn over the pancake to cook the other side.

11. Remove  from pan when cooked.
(Makes 18 mini pancakes, can replace red bean paste with creamy sweet corn.)

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My loot from BBW book sale 2013

 

Hubby and I brought baby to the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale 2013. We did a dash-in-dash-out and baby behaved very well. :)

 

We bought some nice books for baby:

• My Itsy Bitsy Spider Tab Book
• Baby's First Bible Stories
• Little Yellow Chick plush storybook
• Snowman plush storybook
• Lil Goat (with two slots for fingers to move the goat's ears)
• Jolly Christmas mini plush storybook
 

 I also bought two books for myself:

• Superfoods for Healthy Kids
• Quick and Healthy Recipes (free plastic kitchen spoons)

 

How things have changed after baby's arrival. Now, baby is everything!

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Nursing in public (NIP)

Baby is almost 4 months old now. I'm glad I can still breastfeed him. I will nurse in public (NIP) when I can't find a nursing room to feed my baby. It's fun!

I bought my nursing cover from summerglitz.com.my but if you prefer to sew your own nursing cover, here's a tutorial for your reference.

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