No, it wasn't from me. Actually, nobody would have been able to think of it. But Colin, the apple of Joe's eye - made his birthday something special. When Joe was putting Colin to bed, they talked about Jesus (we've been making more of an effort these days to make Christmas being Jesus' Birthday).
We read him the story of the birth of Christ, and in the end explain to him that he was really really special. I don't have all the details - but Joe came down after having put him down, and his eyes were smiling. Apparently, Colin had told Joe that 'Jesus lives in his heart-house'.
I may try as hard as I might to save my son from anything; pain, hunger, bullies, baggy pants with his underwear showing - but I cannot give him Salvation. Only Christ can, and although he may not grasp the whole concept yet, he is on his way - and I hope and pray that he will grow up to be a man that loves Christ.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Sushi Birthday Cake
Happy Birthday Joe! My main squeeze is a grand old 28. He's a special guy, and he deserves the world when it comes to his birthday, and the best way I could think of making him feel special? Taking the time to make him a cake.... of (one of) his favorite things in life.
Sushi.
So, here is my attempt at the most epic sushi roll ever.
When it comes to cake, there is the 'lazy' side of me, and then the crazy anal perfectionist side. Both come out when it comes to baking.
How am I lazy? I use Betty Crocker's cake mix. And I try to find short cuts for everything I do, but when it comes to the making an imitation giant sushi roll, the short cuts can only go so far.... I had to be creative. And nothing short of perfection was expected for my husband.
I thought my idea of a sushi cake was pretty unique, but alas, the interweb loves to prove me wrong and deflate any creative self-esteem I had built up. It appears that everyone has done a sushi cake or cupcake. But I still looked around for ideas on what to use for the decorations. But it was a flop. Mostly on the seaweed front. Everyone used either green fruit roll-ups, or diluted-til-you-turn-hulk green food coloured icing.
I didn't want to go either route, so I picked me up some lovely green sprinkles (and during Christmas it's available up the wazoo) - I would sort out how to actually apply the sprinkles against gravity later. I ended up just trying ever so slightly to hold my cake at an angle, and pour it on... and then used a knife to spread on the excess sprinkles bottom up. On the realism front, the little specs of sprinkle resemble the little tiny flakes that Joe sprinkles all over the counter when he eats nori (seaweed)....
The Salmon Roe - ah, J-E-L-L-O came to the rescue - my miniature ice cube trays for making frozen baby food (that was when I had Colin. No such things for Cara) came in handy.
The Wild Salmon (that's right, only the best for Joe), cucumbers, wasabi, and pickled ginger was a whole lot of icing.
A lot of other recipes used coconut flakes, or yogurt covered raisins... and some pretty random stuff (I'm pretty sure I saw some white beans on some of the cake images...) - i just shaved some white chocolate. duh. Clearly an easy and realistic rice.
It was a success. sushi for Joe, cake for Colin, and the satisfaction of perfection for an anal retentive creative 'lazy mom'.
Joe also subconsciously had a great idea while devouring his cake - he swore he tasted green tea. There was no such ingredient - but the next time I make this, I will most definitely use Matcha for the green icing beneath the seaweed (and perhaps for the cake flavour)! THAT would be perfection. Happy Birthday Hubs, enjoy your mega-roll, and the present I bought you with your hard earned money :)
Sushi.
So, here is my attempt at the most epic sushi roll ever.
When it comes to cake, there is the 'lazy' side of me, and then the crazy anal perfectionist side. Both come out when it comes to baking.
How am I lazy? I use Betty Crocker's cake mix. And I try to find short cuts for everything I do, but when it comes to the making an imitation giant sushi roll, the short cuts can only go so far.... I had to be creative. And nothing short of perfection was expected for my husband.
I thought my idea of a sushi cake was pretty unique, but alas, the interweb loves to prove me wrong and deflate any creative self-esteem I had built up. It appears that everyone has done a sushi cake or cupcake. But I still looked around for ideas on what to use for the decorations. But it was a flop. Mostly on the seaweed front. Everyone used either green fruit roll-ups, or diluted-til-you-turn-hulk green food coloured icing.
I didn't want to go either route, so I picked me up some lovely green sprinkles (and during Christmas it's available up the wazoo) - I would sort out how to actually apply the sprinkles against gravity later. I ended up just trying ever so slightly to hold my cake at an angle, and pour it on... and then used a knife to spread on the excess sprinkles bottom up. On the realism front, the little specs of sprinkle resemble the little tiny flakes that Joe sprinkles all over the counter when he eats nori (seaweed)....
The Salmon Roe - ah, J-E-L-L-O came to the rescue - my miniature ice cube trays for making frozen baby food (that was when I had Colin. No such things for Cara) came in handy.
The Wild Salmon (that's right, only the best for Joe), cucumbers, wasabi, and pickled ginger was a whole lot of icing.
A lot of other recipes used coconut flakes, or yogurt covered raisins... and some pretty random stuff (I'm pretty sure I saw some white beans on some of the cake images...) - i just shaved some white chocolate. duh. Clearly an easy and realistic rice.
It was a success. sushi for Joe, cake for Colin, and the satisfaction of perfection for an anal retentive creative 'lazy mom'.
Joe also subconsciously had a great idea while devouring his cake - he swore he tasted green tea. There was no such ingredient - but the next time I make this, I will most definitely use Matcha for the green icing beneath the seaweed (and perhaps for the cake flavour)! THAT would be perfection. Happy Birthday Hubs, enjoy your mega-roll, and the present I bought you with your hard earned money :)
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
After thoughts - Hong Kong 2011
It's been a crazy whirlwind of a trip. From packing, flying 14 hours, jet lag with a 10 month and 2.5 y/o, meeting tons of family (and new faces for the kids) - not to mention tons of spoiling for them and people fighting to hold or play with them - let's just say it's been busy, without even trying to be.
But, all in all, the main purpose for this special trip was for Colin and Cara to spend time with their extended family in Hong Kong. Joe's side of the family lives over here, and we want to enrich their lives with as many people that love them, so it was such a great opportunity to just spend time with them, letting the kids wake up in MaMa's house, and doing their daily things we do in Vancouver with a HK twist (ie. going out for macaroni/ham soup breakfasts, and eating sausage buns fresh from bakeries).
Our stroller was a hit too - we walked around like celebrities with people pointing at us, gawking, and staring in pure amazement. We were kings... with our Hummer of a stroller in Hong Kong. We have a Phil and Teds Explorer with the double attachement (so it's a tandem) but apparently it's absurdity here. Mind you, everyone here as a dinky umbrella because you have to be able to get on and off a mini bus at a moment's notice, and also weave the crowded streets. But we're used to our stroller, and can do just the same - but with the addition of huge air-filled wheels that can roll over people when they're in my way (especially when it comes to those budging mainlanders at theme parks).
But I'd like to collect some of my likes and dislikes from my endeavor over seas with 2 young children.
- I thoroughly appreciate their governing system - where in a matter of 4 years (last time we came), 3 NEW MTR lines popped up. That's 3 new railway systems, that just simply appeared when there were none 4 years ago. And why is that great? because it takes about 20 or never years for ANYTHING to get done or even break ground in BC (Evergreen Line much?)
- not so huge on the cockroaches - I was told one was stuck under a pane of glass and survived for 3 months and could probably also survive a nuclear blast. But I learned that plain detergent kills them instantly...?
- no ovens, no dryers, no dish washers, and no microwaves.(boooooo)
- but everyone who has a kid also has a nanny following them (i could live with that)
- 20 degrees Celsius is the tipping point for everyone here to start wearing toques and down jackets
- The public transport system: there will always be a bus that will take you from where you are, to where you need to go. always. you just have to figure the chinese out, or know someone that knows the bus routes.
- it's the land of where you can see where you want to go - but you can't get there (all the streets are somehow fenced off to keep pedestrians from walking out)
- vehicles have the right of way - not pedestrians. If you think you taking one step out on the the street expecting a car to stop for you - you're wrong, and you will have one less leg.
- stroller-wise, it's friendly in the sense that there is A way to get somewhere, but it just may take you forever to find the accessible route - in which case it'll just be faster taking the escalator or picking up the Hummer.
- I thought the fashion sense in Hong Kong was whack, but the fashion sense of Mainlanders IN Hong Kong is even whackier. (sorry Hongers, you're not off the hook. Some of those hairstyles only belong on poodles, and even they don't deserve that treatment)
- people here are very good at storing things. With a 800 sq/ft home, you don't know what treasures each cabinet holds - but they're all stuffed to the brim. Hoarders could learn something from them.
- it takes a 10 month old about 5-6 days to adjust, and a 2.5 y/o 2-3 days. So, if you plan to have a decent trip, don't make your trip less than 6 days, or else you'll just have a really bad trip of waking up at night and then flying back just to adjust back to the time again.
- Car seats are only 'suggested' here. (there are likable things about this loosely enforced 'suggestion')
- the presence of the mainlanders in Hong Kong was not as prominent last time we were here (Dec-Jan 2007/08) - but now there are huge LINE UPS outside Cartier, Gucci, Chanel? WTF
- Oh, and there is a strip of just high end baby stores: Gucci, Chanel, DKNY, Fendi - a Polo shirt is about $150CDN for the record.
- but I was able to run over all of them with my Hummer.
- expect to realistically gain 3 pounds (1 pound can be attributed to po-tats or any fresh baked goodies)
- I love my Ergo - if it wasn't for it I wouldn't have a sleeping child while hopping in and out of taxis
- HK is a lot like NYC, but with malls. a lot of malls.
- and the elevators in the malls are annoying. none of them ever go to the level you need to get to, because only certain elevators go to certain levels. oh, and some of them have express escalators, that will skip levels - so... this is efficiency not at its best. it is 10 times more difficult to navigate.
- if you have a stroller, don't go to MegaBox - it's like a 18 storey 'mall' with only like 4 or 5 stores on each level. not. stroller. friendly. this compounded with the previous issue (re: elevators), makes for a very problematic experience.
- some malls, however, are very friendly. They even have a mother's room, for changing diapers, breastfeeding, etc. However, it's located in a very discrete area, and you have to go through 3 sets of doors to find it, and then when you do get to the room, there's another set of doors to a private locked room - you know, just so you don't flash a nipple.
- Hui Lau Shan. google it.
There is a lot more to write down, but these are just a couple of the things right off the top of my head. We've still got a couple more days here, but will soon be back home, suffering through Mama's house withdrawal and adjusting back to our west coast time. On the bright side, it'll be Christmas shortly, so we won't feel too lonely and will be surrounded by family soon enough!
But, all in all, the main purpose for this special trip was for Colin and Cara to spend time with their extended family in Hong Kong. Joe's side of the family lives over here, and we want to enrich their lives with as many people that love them, so it was such a great opportunity to just spend time with them, letting the kids wake up in MaMa's house, and doing their daily things we do in Vancouver with a HK twist (ie. going out for macaroni/ham soup breakfasts, and eating sausage buns fresh from bakeries).
Our stroller was a hit too - we walked around like celebrities with people pointing at us, gawking, and staring in pure amazement. We were kings... with our Hummer of a stroller in Hong Kong. We have a Phil and Teds Explorer with the double attachement (so it's a tandem) but apparently it's absurdity here. Mind you, everyone here as a dinky umbrella because you have to be able to get on and off a mini bus at a moment's notice, and also weave the crowded streets. But we're used to our stroller, and can do just the same - but with the addition of huge air-filled wheels that can roll over people when they're in my way (especially when it comes to those budging mainlanders at theme parks).
But I'd like to collect some of my likes and dislikes from my endeavor over seas with 2 young children.
- I thoroughly appreciate their governing system - where in a matter of 4 years (last time we came), 3 NEW MTR lines popped up. That's 3 new railway systems, that just simply appeared when there were none 4 years ago. And why is that great? because it takes about 20 or never years for ANYTHING to get done or even break ground in BC (Evergreen Line much?)
- not so huge on the cockroaches - I was told one was stuck under a pane of glass and survived for 3 months and could probably also survive a nuclear blast. But I learned that plain detergent kills them instantly...?
- no ovens, no dryers, no dish washers, and no microwaves.(boooooo)
- but everyone who has a kid also has a nanny following them (i could live with that)
- 20 degrees Celsius is the tipping point for everyone here to start wearing toques and down jackets
- The public transport system: there will always be a bus that will take you from where you are, to where you need to go. always. you just have to figure the chinese out, or know someone that knows the bus routes.
- it's the land of where you can see where you want to go - but you can't get there (all the streets are somehow fenced off to keep pedestrians from walking out)
- vehicles have the right of way - not pedestrians. If you think you taking one step out on the the street expecting a car to stop for you - you're wrong, and you will have one less leg.
- stroller-wise, it's friendly in the sense that there is A way to get somewhere, but it just may take you forever to find the accessible route - in which case it'll just be faster taking the escalator or picking up the Hummer.
- I thought the fashion sense in Hong Kong was whack, but the fashion sense of Mainlanders IN Hong Kong is even whackier. (sorry Hongers, you're not off the hook. Some of those hairstyles only belong on poodles, and even they don't deserve that treatment)
- people here are very good at storing things. With a 800 sq/ft home, you don't know what treasures each cabinet holds - but they're all stuffed to the brim. Hoarders could learn something from them.
- it takes a 10 month old about 5-6 days to adjust, and a 2.5 y/o 2-3 days. So, if you plan to have a decent trip, don't make your trip less than 6 days, or else you'll just have a really bad trip of waking up at night and then flying back just to adjust back to the time again.
- Car seats are only 'suggested' here. (there are likable things about this loosely enforced 'suggestion')
- the presence of the mainlanders in Hong Kong was not as prominent last time we were here (Dec-Jan 2007/08) - but now there are huge LINE UPS outside Cartier, Gucci, Chanel? WTF
- Oh, and there is a strip of just high end baby stores: Gucci, Chanel, DKNY, Fendi - a Polo shirt is about $150CDN for the record.
- but I was able to run over all of them with my Hummer.
- expect to realistically gain 3 pounds (1 pound can be attributed to po-tats or any fresh baked goodies)
- I love my Ergo - if it wasn't for it I wouldn't have a sleeping child while hopping in and out of taxis
- HK is a lot like NYC, but with malls. a lot of malls.
- and the elevators in the malls are annoying. none of them ever go to the level you need to get to, because only certain elevators go to certain levels. oh, and some of them have express escalators, that will skip levels - so... this is efficiency not at its best. it is 10 times more difficult to navigate.
- if you have a stroller, don't go to MegaBox - it's like a 18 storey 'mall' with only like 4 or 5 stores on each level. not. stroller. friendly. this compounded with the previous issue (re: elevators), makes for a very problematic experience.
- some malls, however, are very friendly. They even have a mother's room, for changing diapers, breastfeeding, etc. However, it's located in a very discrete area, and you have to go through 3 sets of doors to find it, and then when you do get to the room, there's another set of doors to a private locked room - you know, just so you don't flash a nipple.
- Hui Lau Shan. google it.
There is a lot more to write down, but these are just a couple of the things right off the top of my head. We've still got a couple more days here, but will soon be back home, suffering through Mama's house withdrawal and adjusting back to our west coast time. On the bright side, it'll be Christmas shortly, so we won't feel too lonely and will be surrounded by family soon enough!
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