Red Dot Mum

  An article contributed for Calvary Community Care (C3) ‘Read With Me’ Literacy Campaign When the children were preschoolers, I incorporated reading aloud or hearing stories read aloud as part of the children’s bedtime regime which assisted with ‘bedtime challenges’. Routines and schedules always help with a child’s emotional development because when the routine kicks in, the child living in an ‘adult world’ knows what to anticipate in the whirlwind world of adult life. Admittedly, I never liked reading a storybook to my own children more than once – parents will know a child will ask you to read a book again and again because for some reason the content resonates with them and they want to continue learning about themselves and about the world from the book. So I substituted in other ways. During that time, we had a domestic helper who was good with children and would read the whole book in my place. My children liked her and looked forward to her reading with them. Or I put on a...

5.  MEAT CONGEE I could use the same chicken stock as the ‘white’ bee hoon to cook this (Knorr stock cubes) but when I or someone else in the family fall ill, I prefer to rely on the homemade garlic-rich chicken stock  I have on hand to cook congee – I could be just imagining it – but I feel better after consuming congee made from it 🙂 Homemade chicken stock cubes always ready on hand for ’emergencies’ The congee is also a great breakfast food for children who are sitting for exams. It is comforting and satisfying to eat a small bowl of warm chicken or pork congee in the morning. A great morale booster! What is more, if you, the main cook in the family, fall ill, you just need to cook one dish which you, as well as the rest of the family, can partake. Honestly, I only eat congee when I am sick but after experimenting with different ways to confirm a surefire way to prepare it, I may think about whipping it up on any other ordinary day 🙂 The surefire way I cook it is inspired...

6.  Fried White Bee Hoon A detoxification (detox) tea like lemongrass ginger tea should have a simple dish to go with it and what better than ‘plain’ bee hoon like this (you can prepare this in advance for a lazy Sunday lunch and thereafter enjoy the lemongrass ginger tea..) I was inspired by this link but as I always ‘shop from my pantry first’ I made some modifications.. I had an extra packet of bee hoon (400g)so I used that. I also had on hand a packet of frozen seafood (400g) as well as a packet of minced meat (300g) (might as well clear everything!) It’s that hard to get your daily serving of greens rich in vitamin C when you eat out so I bought about 4 packets of greens (‘xiao bai cai’ was on offer at 45cents per pack at 200g each) to supplement the bee hoon. As in the recipe, I did not want to put onions so I replaced it with leeks (quantity up to you and even this is optional-remember..keep it SIMPLE) You can actually follow the steps in frying the bee hoon from the above l...

This post is Part 4 of ‘An Organised Home’. 9.  Streamline organisational tools and boxes I use the same organisation system throughout my home… i. Binder Clips ii. Same-sized Storage Boxes iii. Clear Pockets Clear pockets stretch the dollar compared to clear holders; order of pages can be easily changed and the quantity is easily customised They have saved a bundle for me over the long run. Invest in some storage boxes and receptacles after surveying and measuring your available empty spaces, may it be in your cabinets or inside your fridge Of course, it’s easier if you are in a new home and therefore can anticipate using similar-sized storage containers and prepare the renovations for that 🙂 If in doubt, just recycle and reuse the boxes of some consumer items your purchases come in for the time being. Oftentimes, the cheapskate I like to gain that ‘win-win’ situation by buying a supermarket food item so that I can reuse their empty receptacles once we finish eating out their con...

This post is Part 3 of ‘An Organised Home’. 6.  Setting Up Routines Set up some routines to follow up …on your tidy, clean, ‘purged’  home   a) Firstly, tracking your expenses (or what others call keeping a ‘spending diary’) I do this at least once a fortnight (or else my wallet will be bulging with receipts) I scan my receipts and record my expenses in Evernote   In this way, I -keep my weekly spending in check(budgeting) -am informed of my buying history eg. I know how many crates of eggs on average we purchase every month or when it was I bought a bottle of laundry detergent This regular routine allows me to set aside an annual budget for the next year in many categories-groceries, holidays, children’s spendings etc. It, therefore, allows me to carry out Tip 8 above “Stock Up” and I can buy ahead and save time and save some more money!   b) A second routine is paying your bills before time and filing away documents at least once a month will help you tame tha...

 This post is Part 2 of ‘An Organised Home’. 4. Stocking Up As the saying goes, ‘Out With the Old, In With the New’ According to an article in Frugal Housekeeping, “After you’ve gotten rid of the stuff you don’t use, make sure you have stuff that makes sense for the space.” For me “makes sense” is also translated into “makes cents” 🙂 After habitual purging, and having done the TKSD (Throw, Keep, Sell, Donate), I have occupied the ‘vacant’ spaces with items my family regularly use… The items I stock up are toiletries, groceries and cleaning supplies and paper products.  This VERY MUCH lessens the trips I need to make to the stores. In fact, we have honed this so well until we only buy toiletries once a year This once-a-year purchase is made possible because we keep an expenses diary (I compute mine in the app Evernote) We had been able to count the number of dishwashing detergents, rolls of toilet paper, shampoos, dental floss, etc. needed in a year based on the recording of o...