It is my birthday today...
Thank you to my mummy for enduring the labour pains when she gave birth to me 34years ago.
Thank you to my DH who gave me a lovely candlelight dinner treat and then a wedding proposal ring 4 years ago.
Thank you to my two darling angels for always amusing me with their innocent childlike-ness. I hope I can spend more time with them before they grow up too fast.
Thank you to my wonderful and beautiful Savior Lord Jesus Christ for blessing me with this abundant life!
Friday, August 27, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
Banana Walnut Cake with Chocolate Chip Toppings
I've been wanting to better my maiden attempt at baking this cake so I thought "why dont I give it a shot today?"
And I did with my wonderful little helper, Rachel. :)
She enjoyed greasing the baking pan with butter, transfering pieces of chopped walnuts from the chopping board into a bowl, mashing the bananas and I guess the most enjoyable part is to sprinkle the cake with her favourite chocolate chips!!
Here's the recipe adapted from HHB's blogsite.
Banana Walnut Cake
Ingredients:
100g butter, soften at room temperature
160g caster sugar (i use 125g as my maiden attempt yielded a very sweet cake)
3 eggs, lightly beaten, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large ripe bananas, mashed (i use 3 medium sized "Ang Bah Jios")
210g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
50g walnuts, chopped
Method:
- Grease (with butter) and flour the sides of an 8" or 9" round pan and line the base with parchment paper.
- With an electric mixer or a manual whisk, cream butter and sugar till light and fluffy.
- Dribble in the eggs gradually and beat till incorporated in the batter. (The mixture may appear slightly curdled.)
- Add vanilla extract and mashed bananas. Mix till smooth.
- Sieve over flour and baking powder and mix till smooth.
- Add chopped walnuts (reserve some for sprinkling the top, optional). Mix with a spatula.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth out the top with the spatula. Sprinkle the top with the remaining walnuts or arrange some banana slices (dipped in some lemon juice to prevent it from turning black) on top. (In addition, Rachel sprinkled her favourite chocolate chips!)
- Bake in pre-heat oven at 180degC for 60 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the cake.
- Leave the cake to cool in the pan for about 5~10 mins. Unmold and transfer to wire rack to let cool completely.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Of Triglycerides, HDL & LDL...
A couple of weeks ago, I went for a basic health screening test at Dayspring Medical Group. I took the most basic package so that only required a blood test. (I need to fast the night before; for at least 10hrs prior to the test). The results were out a few days later.
I received a good report. :)
My BMI is within the normal range.
My blood pressure is within the normal range.
My total cholesterol level falls within the desirable range. The breakdown is as follows:
For some of you who have no idea what the above means, here's the definition.
HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) Cholesterol is known to be the "good" cholesterol as it helps remove cholesterol from the tissue and transport it to the liver for harmless excretion. A high level of HDL cholesterol lowers the risk of atherosclerosis (thickened artery wall due to buildup of fatty materials). A low level increases the risk of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease.
LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein) Cholesterol is the "bad" cholesterol as it transports cholesterol to be deposited as fat on the walls of bloof vessels. An increase in LDL is associated with increased risk of coronary artery disease.
Triglycerides are a type of fat found in the fat tissue of the body. They are converted from excess calories and stored in fat tissue providing a major source of energy for the body. Consumption of food rich in animal fat and alcohol are known to elevate the triglycerides level. Very high levels are associated with obesity and coronary risk.
The main objective to take the test is to find out about my cholesterol profile because I have no idea what mine looked like. Now I know.
I give thanks to my Lord for giving me a good report.
About a year ago, I heard Pastor Joshua's preaching on diet and health. He testified that he prayed to God for a healthy body and then he went about eating whatever he desired. He would sometimes stop eating what he was eating and went on to buy another plate of food just because his body no longer desired eating that food. If he feels full, he would stop eating as opposed to many of us who would finish the entire plate of food because our grandmothers once told us not to waste food. In the process, he gained a healthy body without the need to diet and he gave God all the glory.
That sermon left a deep impression on me as I wanted to have a beautiful, healthy and trim body. A year ago, I weighed 59kg. My height is 1.62m and that weight on the scale was not ideal. I decided to go by F.A.I.T.H.
I prayed to God to give me a beautiful, healthy and trim body.
He told me to eat when I feel like it and stop when I am full. He also said I should eat whatever I desire.
That sounded very good to me and I followed His advice.
One year on, I weigh 51.6kg now (without the need to diet and I also did not do any exercise apart from doing housework).
Most friends who saw me commented that I looked good and I do feel alot better now that I am trim.
To God be the glory!!
The medical report is a testament of His goodness to me.
I really believe that in every thing that we do, we should always seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 6:33)
I received a good report. :)
My BMI is within the normal range.
My blood pressure is within the normal range.
My total cholesterol level falls within the desirable range. The breakdown is as follows:
Total Cholesterol : 173 (Desirable)
HDL Cholesterol : 80 (High)
LDL Cholesterol : 88 (Optimal)
Total/HDL Ratio : 2.2 (Normal)
Triglycerides : 27 (Optimal)
For some of you who have no idea what the above means, here's the definition.
HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) Cholesterol is known to be the "good" cholesterol as it helps remove cholesterol from the tissue and transport it to the liver for harmless excretion. A high level of HDL cholesterol lowers the risk of atherosclerosis (thickened artery wall due to buildup of fatty materials). A low level increases the risk of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease.
LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein) Cholesterol is the "bad" cholesterol as it transports cholesterol to be deposited as fat on the walls of bloof vessels. An increase in LDL is associated with increased risk of coronary artery disease.
Triglycerides are a type of fat found in the fat tissue of the body. They are converted from excess calories and stored in fat tissue providing a major source of energy for the body. Consumption of food rich in animal fat and alcohol are known to elevate the triglycerides level. Very high levels are associated with obesity and coronary risk.
The main objective to take the test is to find out about my cholesterol profile because I have no idea what mine looked like. Now I know.
I give thanks to my Lord for giving me a good report.
About a year ago, I heard Pastor Joshua's preaching on diet and health. He testified that he prayed to God for a healthy body and then he went about eating whatever he desired. He would sometimes stop eating what he was eating and went on to buy another plate of food just because his body no longer desired eating that food. If he feels full, he would stop eating as opposed to many of us who would finish the entire plate of food because our grandmothers once told us not to waste food. In the process, he gained a healthy body without the need to diet and he gave God all the glory.
That sermon left a deep impression on me as I wanted to have a beautiful, healthy and trim body. A year ago, I weighed 59kg. My height is 1.62m and that weight on the scale was not ideal. I decided to go by F.A.I.T.H.
I prayed to God to give me a beautiful, healthy and trim body.
He told me to eat when I feel like it and stop when I am full. He also said I should eat whatever I desire.
That sounded very good to me and I followed His advice.
One year on, I weigh 51.6kg now (without the need to diet and I also did not do any exercise apart from doing housework).
Most friends who saw me commented that I looked good and I do feel alot better now that I am trim.
To God be the glory!!
The medical report is a testament of His goodness to me.
I really believe that in every thing that we do, we should always seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 6:33)
Monday, August 2, 2010
Conversations with Rachel
Here are some of the interesting conversations we had with Rachel...
Looking out from the bay window, Rachel pointed to the man who cleans our pool thrice weekly and asked,
Rachel : "Mummy, what is that fisherman doing?"
Mummy : "Fishing leaves."
Rachel (with a wide-opened mouth) : "Leaves??"
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We were getting to go for a walk around the estate and the kids were all set to go. They had on their shoes and socks and cant wait for us to open the door.
Daddy : "Wait for me, I need to change."
Rachel (who, by this time, was already standing in front of the lift): "Okay, why dont you go and change and I'll go and poo poo. Wait for me okay?"
----------------------------------------------------
Looking at a picture of the desert in the August 2010 National Geographic magazine....
Rachel : "Mummy, I want to go to this place."
Mummy : "This is a desert. It can be very hot in the day and there is hardly any water there."
Rachel : "It's okay Mummy, I will bring my water bottle. If I run out of water, I will take some from the camels."
----------------------------------------------------
Looking out from the bay window, Rachel pointed to the man who cleans our pool thrice weekly and asked,
Rachel : "Mummy, what is that fisherman doing?"
Mummy : "Fishing leaves."
Rachel (with a wide-opened mouth) : "Leaves??"
----------------------------------------------------
We were getting to go for a walk around the estate and the kids were all set to go. They had on their shoes and socks and cant wait for us to open the door.
Daddy : "Wait for me, I need to change."
Rachel (who, by this time, was already standing in front of the lift): "Okay, why dont you go and change and I'll go and poo poo. Wait for me okay?"
----------------------------------------------------
Looking at a picture of the desert in the August 2010 National Geographic magazine....
Rachel : "Mummy, I want to go to this place."
Mummy : "This is a desert. It can be very hot in the day and there is hardly any water there."
Rachel : "It's okay Mummy, I will bring my water bottle. If I run out of water, I will take some from the camels."
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