Bed bugs again!!

I refused to believe when I had bites again though they were as itchy as my previous experience with bed bugs. "They looked different. It couldn't be bed bugs," I assured myself. 

So...the bugs returned for another hearty blood meal on the whole of my right leg to prove their existence. Now, this time I am really sure it is from the bed bugs. The bite marks are in a line and it's so itchy i was awaken by it at 2.30am!! And can't fall asleep thereafter because my greatest fear has come back to haunt me. What can I do?

I have to admit, my husband and I are passive people. We only move when we need to. Quick actions are not always imperative unless it's emergency. And I hate to say I hate my husband who is a couch potato! Nothing seem to move him unless he needs to.

The last time, I made the decision to call in the pest control. But it didn't work. We were cheated. The pest control company assured us that one-time pesticides can kill all bed bugs. It was merely a month after the treatment and the bed bugs are back! I regretted calling the pest control and had to throw away our expensive mattress. 

Though I didn't see any bugs after the treatment, I couldn't be at ease. So, I took in the advice from a friend, who is also fighting against bed bugs, to purchase diatomaceous earth (DE) powder. A 1kg purchase is recommended by the supplier to battle against bed bugs. We made a quick purchase but didn't do anything until my leg was bitten! 

It was up to this week, after much pushing AND after feeling like I want to kill myself, my husband was willing to work with me to patch up the holes along the box spring and put on the mattress encasement. We pulled the bed away from the walls and let it stayed isolated in the room. We put containers (with DE powder) under the legs of the bed to trap bed bugs if there's any which climb up or down the bed. 

It's exhausting...and I feel like I'm losing though the battle has just started.

Oh, how I prayed we can be freed from bed bugs when I open my eyes the next morning but how could it be? God will help us. But we need to do something too. 

Fried dory fillet

My mom was a housewife. She was a great cook. She would wake up very early in the morning to prepare delicious breakfast for us and meals like donuts, onde-onde, etc for tea and sumptuous meals for dinner. But since dad fell sick from liver cancer and lost his appetite, mom stopped cooking nice food. In fact, she gave up cooking after dad passed away. All her life, being a housewife, she cared only to cook good food for her husband and children. But when her husband is dead and her children all married and live somewhere else, she lost her interest in cooking too. That's the end of being a housewife to being an individual who lives alone now...

I enjoy cooking too and it makes me happy when my hubby and kids love the meals I cooked. But one day, I shall cook because I love it and not because of anyone. Thence, I can be happy whether or not, I'm still a housewife. 

Pic: Dinner is ready!

Meal - mixed vege, mashed potato with cheese, and fried dory fillet 

How to cook hard boiled egg which is gooey inside

I wondered why my children do not like to eat the egg yolk. My mom said it's because the yolk is dry and could get stuck in the throat, and that's what made the kids avoid it. When we were chatting some Sundays ago, my best buddy told me that cooking egg also need skills. 

???

So, here's how to cook a hard boiled egg with gooey yolk! 😍

1) Bring a pot of water to boil

2) Put in a handful of salt (salt is to stop the egg from flowing out in case of any breakage. But you gotta be careful because salt can cause the boiling water to "erupt" like the volcano and spurt on you. Cautious not to get scalded) 

3) Gently put the egg into the pot, with a scoop or spaghetti claw.

4) Set the timer for 7 minutes

5) Bring the egg out and let it take a cool bath under running water or just let it soak in a bowl of cold water

*This pic of mine is taken after 8 minutes of cooking. I wanted the yolk to be a little solid cos I don't want my baby to eat with extremely gooey yolk that flows down her hands and arms. Too messy for me to clean up 😰😰

But for adults, 7 minutes gooey yolk is the best! 

Yummy yummy!

Sambal petai with prawn

It's been a long long time since my last post on yummy-licious food. 

I've stopped pursuing my cooking skills in exchange with my Master degree. And now that I've graduated, I should go back to my cooking and baking mode, or so I believe, since that's what most housewife does. 

I've longed to eat home-cooked nasi lemak which I've a very fond memory of because my mom used to cook that for us. 

The best part is - sambal petai with prawn paired with fragrantly cooked nasi lemak. It's simply irresistible! 

Recipe : 

1 onion (chopped)

100g petai (halved)

16 medium size prawns (shells removed)

4 tablespoons of sambal sauce 

3 tspn of sugar 

1 tbspn of water 

1) Stir fry onion till fragrant or turn translucent

2) Add in petai and fry till they turn darker in green 

3) Add in prawn and fry till almost cooked 

4) Add in water and bring it to boil 

5) Add in sambal sauce and sugar

6) Stir till well combined

7) Dish up 

Bon appetit!

Egg pudding or steamed egg

When I looked back at my previous recipes, I just couldn't believe myself. I've to apologize, my previous steamed egg was so far from perfect. After all these years, I definitely have improved in my cooking skill and this is the ultimate result for egg pudding or steamed egg - one which is smooth on the surface, soft in texture and without the sign of bubbles on top of it. 

Below is the recipe I found some weeks ago by Amy Beh, our local famous chef. 

I didn't bother to sieve the mixture after they were whisked. I believe the result would be better if I did as the pudding will have a fairer and smoother texture, without the yellowish substance. Nevertheless, I mine is good enough to look at and delicious to taste!

Enjoy! 

Recipe:

3 eggs 

200ml of fresh milk

50ml of water 

1) Beat the eggs 

2) Add in milk and water

3) Sieve the mixture 

4) Put to steam over high heat for 15 minutes 

*It's important to check on the heat. I opened the cover slightly to allow some heat to escape. Over-heated egg pudding will look crumbled up. 

Being myself

I've watched videos on making Oreo cheesecake for more than 20 times in Youtube and frankly, I'm obsessed with the videos. I can't help clicking on new videos to watch because I think the more videos I watch, the better cake I'll make. 

First thing first, I made a trip to bakery supplies shop with the recipe in hand. And that trip cost me more than RM100! I felt like a super stupid lady because I was "conned" to buy so many other unrelated things when I knew so well what I wanted!!! 😢

Today, after much hesitation, I started to make the cake. After I've completed, I felt like a loser again, with two sinks full of dishes to wash. I wondered whether other bakers have to wash as much. It's exhausting and I felt guilty as I've neglected my darlings when I was so engrossed in doing what I wanted to do. 

While I was washing, I made a conclusion - probably I should not try to do something what others do best but do something I know best. While I always wanted to be a super-mom - being able to teach, bake, cook, clean, sew and more, I should just do what I can i.e. sing, dance and read to my children, and not forgetting the skill of writing bestowed to me by God. 

It's self-fulfillment to be able to make a cake for my children's birthday, but it's even better if I could spend more valuable time with them. I believe it's not harmful to buy a cake for them, isn't it? Leave it to the professionals for the best result since God created us with different skills and if I can't be a baker, I can still be others. Cheers! 😉

Happiness is...

Recently, my baby girl likes to hold a book and walk around with it. I think it's because it has bright colours which attracted her attention. And when she sits down, she'll say, "Shit here, shit here." 😂 OK ok, that's disgusting. She actually meant "sit here, sit here" but her tongue just couldn't pronounce it properly. 

"Read cheese (this)," she'll say once I sit beside her. 

And this book, as simple as it could be, reminded me a lesson I learnt long ago yet have forgotten about it -most of the time. It's the lesson of being grateful. 

When I was reading to her, especially with the help of the illustrations, the book touched me deeply. Yes, yes, I told myself, happiness could be as simple as these but I've forgotten about it. So, here you are, a few doses of happiness for the day! 👼

Positive ways against bed bugs!

What is unseen SOUNDS scarier than what could be seen... OK (take a deep breath). I decided I need to be brave. Bed bugs are just as big as apple seeds. So why scare? 

However....Even after having pest control to come and sprayed the whole house with pesticides, the fear of bed bugs prowling INSIDE the cupboard or behind some creaks or corners gave me sleepless nights. 

I've to admit I made a very big mistake, AGAIN and it's a very costly one. Before I called in the pest control, I should have read more thoroughly than being panicked. Now that what is done is done, I've to throw away my mattresses because the smell of the pesticides is unbearable. Even if the smell is gone, I doubt I'll let my baby to sleep on treated mattresses as I read that it's hazardous to let kids sleep on bed with pesticides. You'll never know what will happen to their lungs in the long run, breathing poison while they're sleeping and breathing haze during the day! It's simply choking. 

I hate to think that I was cheated but who doesn't want business? Not many will be honest to decline $$$. 󾍀

Some simple advices to those who have bed bugs so that you don't have to dump everything!:-

1) Don't panic. Call a steam wash company. Bed bugs are afraid of heat or cold. So steaming them up will kill them completely, including their eggs. 

2) Remove all the clothes from the cupboard and have them laundered. Drown them in the washing machine and cook them up with super hot water. 

3) Use mattress encasement. The existing bed bugs will be suffocated and starved in the encasement. 

4) Uncluttered the room to reduce any hiding places for the bed bugs. 

5) Check for gaps, holes, crevices, corners which bed bugs may have a chance to hide there. 

6) Set a trap. A simple one with : one layer of masking tape and then another layer of double side tape. When the bed bugs are out hunting for blood, they'll get stuck on the double side tape before reaching you!

I've to share with you a very sincere cleaning company who's willing to chat up with me and shared his experience though I did not give him any businesses. I think he deserves a thumb up here. If you need home sanitation, you may try to contact: Fibre Care 017-2992343. He may not be able to pick up call on the spot but he'll eventually return your call or reply to your enquiry.