Happy Halloween 2010!

Once again, we've our halloween celebration. This year, we had it on Saturday instead of Sunday so that kids do not need to worry about school on the next day.

My lovely nieces are definitely not the "Too School To Be Cool" type!

And my sis-in-law has always been a good sport. She was an ugly & scary witch in '08 serving kids with "finger" food (she baked cookies that looked like real fingers). In 2009 she transformed herself into a sexy witch with bats on top of her head, and this year she decided to wear her mom's dress and swing into the 70s!

The sweet little mermaid...the pirate found her in an island and
made her the pet!

The pretty devil is my special guest this year. She's a very dear friend of mine since Primary 1.

My boy and his friend YS are "Mercenaries" ( I thought it's called
"Killer" or "Assassin" but he corrected me and taught me a new terminology instead). YY the special guest is a cool Ninja.

The first group of trick or treaters arrived on time.

More joined in for trick or treating...

Wanna get an autograph from"Lady GaGa" ?

I found my Mini Me!

It cost me less than RM10 to transform my maid into a squid (a simple art and craft). She was a Pontianak in 2009 and this year decided not to scare the kids anymore.

Let's make strange faces!

Some simple quizzes to win "gold coins" from the pirate.

"Which monster is blue and loves cookies?"

"Which monster is green and has a lot of stitches all over his face and body?"

"Which is the friendliest ghost?"

"Which monster kills people in their dreams?"

"What do you call the witch's brewing pot?"

HAPPY HALLOWEEN to those who know the answers!

Colorless Halloween

My house...staring at those passerby...

I Got A PINK Form! $$$!

A few months ago, I received a pink form. Don't get me wrong, it's not the type that will help me to make a profit from the share market. There's really nothing to be happy or proud about.

Why? Well...some enforcement officers "visited" my house and found mosquito larvae in a pot with water plant. My maid used Abate (larvicide) all the time but seemed to have missed out on that particular pot.

I rushed home from the office after my maid informed me. Fortunately, it just took me a few minutes to reach home. But unfortunately, the officer was already holding a small glass tube with larvae inside.

He asked me, "What do you want me to do now?" (Do I have an option?!!)

I told him instantly,"I'm sorry. It's my fault. You can fine me."

Then I turned to my youngest daughter and said,"It's our fault... so we have to accept the fine." (good moral lesson for her)

The officer did not say much. He filled in a pink form with RM100 clearly stated on it.

A few of my neighbors also received the pink forms on the same day. We later sent a representative to pay the fine and each was reduced to RM50.

If ever there's an objective question in the moral paper that asks...

What are you going to do if an enforcement officer finds mosquito larvae in your house compound?

a) Ask him what other option(s) I have besides paying the fine

b) Give him a beautiful flower pot in exchange of waiving the fine

c) Accuse him of pouring larvae into my pot

d) Apologize and pay the fine

Halloween Flag Flying High

This year, I bought the cheapest orange fabric from Kamdar (1 m= RM1.80) to make a Halloween Flag.

After I've drawn the outline, my daughter used a permanent marker to fill black into the pumpkin's eyes, nose and mouth.

I used ipad to select the font type...

Gothic font is suitable.

My neighbors are getting excited and kids can't wait for our annual trick or treating!

It just doesn't taste the same!

During the recent family trip to Australia, I brought home my favorite beverage - MILO. I've been drinking MILO ever since I was a kid. Every morning, a cup of hot MILO and a few slices of bread make my perfect breakfast. No wonder my hubby said I'm a very low maintenance wife :-P

However, ever since I tasted the Australia's MILO, I must say that it tastes better and richer. It made me curious to find out the "hidden" ingredients...

Made in Malaysia:"Malt Extract (Contains barley), Skimmed Milk Powder, Maltodextrin, Sugar, Cocoa, Palm Oil, Minerals, Vitamins. Contain Permitted Flavoring (Vanillin). All additive are of plant or synthetic origin.

Made in Australia:" Extract of Malted Barley (16%) and Rice of Wheat or Barley (Total Extract 35%), Milk Solids, Sugar, Cocoa, Minerals (Calcium, Magnesium, Iron), Maltodextrin (Corn), Vitamins (C, A, B1, B2, D), Emulsifier (Soy Lecithin)
Contains Gluten, Milk and Soy

I wonder whether in the future I should order the beverage from Australia (but the maintenance will be high!)...
On the second thought, I'll be supporting the Palm Oil industry if I choose to continue drinking the MILO which is made in Malaysia.

Well, for the time being, I better stick to be a low maintenance wife and a loyal citizen :-)

The Powerful Adults...

Recently my youngest daughter transformed me, my hubby & my maid into 3 "powerful" heroes.

Each of us is given a special Initial on our superhero suit... and a few Gadgets to represent our "power".

I'm the Super Mom, and my power is "Working" (does she mean I'm a workaholic??)

I asked her why is there a heart in my hand (besides the mouse) and she replied,"because you kiss me." (Yes, I do spend some time with her and kiss her every morning before going to work)

As for her dad, there's a mouse and a keyboard in his hand. In fact, her loving dad is the one who goes to market most of the time. He deserves to have a basket in his hand too!

Now let's take a look at the Kakak who takes care of her and the household. She's young and Zi gives her a more fashionable hairstyle than me! Her power is cleaning and she's holding a few brushes!

Best of all, we're all smiling. Yes, we do enjoy our roles!

Hey Zi, how about a Super Kid? You shouldn't have left yourself out!

Hmmm.....do remember you should be holding pen and book, and not TV remote controller and a packet of junk food!

Feeling unsafe...

I live in a gated and guarded community. A few neighbors moved in after robbers broke into their previous houses.

One of them told me,"My silly husband always put his car key next to his bed. When the robber came in but couldn't find the key, that fella had no choice but to break our bedroom door to get the key," That neighbor bought a house in our community a week after that traumatic incident.

A few days ago my hubby's friend called and said he desperately wanted to get a house here. Two armed robbers "visited" him at 7 o'clock in the morning, took lots of his cash but fortunately no life was taken.

I've heard many horror crime stories and can sense that our country is getting unsafe now.

The place I stay is considered safe & surreal where kids can dress up as devil or robber during halloween and go around trick or treating. However, in the real world, the real devil has no costume and you just have to be more alert and careful!

It's an eye opening trip!

We gained a lot from our recent family trip to Australia. It's fun & eye opening...

Apart from my earlier posting on our close encounter with nature & wild life, we're impressed with many other things in this beautiful and well managed country...

The streets are clean and there're many artistic and well designed buildings

Feeling safe, even at the beach...

Kids said they "don't mind" to pursue their higher education there!

I better work harder now... and they too!

Being eye opening also means...

During one dinner, someone in our group suggested to add an expensive dish - abalone.

My daughter was "shocked" to see an abalone which was still alive & moving. Fortunately it looked very different when it's cooked and she did take a few bites too.

In short, this trip will stay with us for a long time :-)