My Chap Goh Mei 2018

It is the end of the 2018 Chinese New Year celebration on Chap Goh Mei today.  Lots of fire crackers and fire works in our neighbourhood tonite from dinner time till almost midnight now.

I started my day by lighting a candle at the alter and say a little prayer asking the Lord to grant us with lots of love, safety & health for our family.

I had a lunch feast with my colleagues at a seafood restaurant just a walking distance away from my office today.  I pre-ordered the dishes yesterday to avoid the long wait because our lunch time is only 1 hour. I am the eldest among them in this photo. 

  A group photo after our lunch.  

We had a very simple dinner prepared by my better half at home tonite, 3 dishes : Chinese sausage, baked lamb, green amaranth with rice. 

It is a stay at home night for us, tomorrow is a schooling day for our girls, exams is just 2 days away.  We do not practice throwing mandarin oranges into the river or sea but it would be fun seeing people doing that.  We did not buy or eat any mandarin oranges this year because all of us in the house are prone to cough after eating it.  

Wishing those who read this post a Prosperous & Fulfilling year of the Dog 2018!!

The Eve of Chinese Lunar Year 2017

As usual we had our reunion dinner with my parents at my brother's house. It's a small reunion as both of my brothers are in tourism line, it's the peak season with lots of Chinese tourists this time of the year. Leaving my youngest brother & family joining for the dinner.

simply food...blessed reunion and happy tummies to welcome a brand new year of fire Rooster..

**just for laugh, my mum was born in the year of Rooster, she told us that she will not cook and eat chicken for the reunion dinner, why ? she said  how come one cook and eat chicken while herself is a Rooster..😄😄😄**

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR EVERYONE !!

立春 Lap Chun 04.02.2016

This was the 2nd year in a row we had "standing of the eggs" ceremony in the office on Lap Chun, 4th February 2016.  It is believed to have a good year ahead if our egg stands.  It is fun too where most of my colleagues joined in the activity.  It's a fine day to start the year of Fire Monkey.

This is my egg standing firm

Here's my colleague trying hard to get the egg stand.  Believe it or not one of  my colleague brought in unsalted duck eggs too..the 2 white ones are duck eggs.

The eggs remain standing when we left the office

Our eggs still standing firm till the next day morning.  One thing we can confirm is that our office is insects free, with the cockroaches and rats around, our eggs would have fallen. 

Wishing all a smooth, healthy and prosperous in the year of Fire Monkey.

Pineapple cookies

I baked these lots of Pineapple cookies for Chinese New Year of Goat,  I did a lot of other baking before and around the new year until I got sick for being too much time spent near the oven.  It took me more than 1 month to recover from the bad cough. Now, just a recap and share my venture into making the Pineapple cookies. The pictures say it all...:D

Made 3 small containers.  Not long after new year, I brought the last container to the office, my office mates helped me to finish off before the cookies become expired.

Angpows for Chinese New Year

Red is an auspicious colour in Chinese festivities.  Chinese New Year is the time to give and receive Angpows 红包。

It is fascinating to see the various designs of Angpow packets from the banks, companies, hypermarkets and other organisations who give out Angpow packets (empty ones of course) to their customers.  They have different  designs each year. My collection of angpow packets has becoming more and more each year too.

I have collected so many that I have difficulty in deciding  which design to use to stuff the Angpows money.  

The eve of Chinese New Year 2015

I like the fragrance of pamelo leaves, it is so refreshing and full of Chinese New Year festive smell. 

It is a tradition in our home to shower with boiled pamelo leaves water on the eve of Chinese New Year to wash off the bad chi before our family reunion dinner.  I guess most of the local families do the same.  I brought together this tradition into my own small family after  marriage.  Clet will also splash our cars with boiled pamelo leaves water after washing them.

This year, we celebrated our family dinner at youngest brother's home..we were very disappointed that our papa admitted to the hospital the day before due to lungs infection.  Instead of having dinner at home, he had it in the hospital  with  the  packed dishes from home.  He generously gave away his hospital food to someone in the hospital as a gesture of good deed.

Thanks to the  effort of Albert and SIL Shirly for preparing nice and special dishes for us on this  eve of Chinese New Year.

Home baked cookies for Chinese New Year 2015

My oven has been made full used of on this Chinese New Year after more than 3 years sitting in the kitchen.

I have attempted 5 types of cookies this time with 3 of the recipes shared from a cousin whom baked cookies for sale for the past years.  She didn't  bake any this year because she has started a full time job.  While the pineapple cookies and colourful butter cookies, I found the recipes online. 

Now then I realised making cookies for sale is not an easy task as I first thought.  It is not just time consuming, the produce are not as many as I expected, the cost of ingredients also becoming costly..the profit margin is not as good. 

I made some for sale, some to give as gifts and whatever left are for self consumption.  The most satisfying cookies that I have made would be the pineapple cookies.  It is also Clet's favourite.

Pineapple cookies

Chocolate rice peanuts cookies, Butter Cookies and Cornflakes Cookies

Butter with Chocolate rice cookies

Butter Cookies

Colourful Butter Cookies

Gong Xi Gong Xi 迎接马年

Gong Xi Fa Cai everyone!!

I have set my mind to relax on the 1st day of Chinese New Year.  There are every reasons to do so because traditionally we are not advised to work on this very day. Thus I woke up at 9.30am, no cleaning (in particularly no sweeping), I also give my staff 2 days off on the 1st and 2nd day so my kids fashion shop is closed for Chinese New Year, I guess most of the shopping complexes remain open for business though it is Chinese New Year.  We also have no invitations or visiting to relative and friend's home during the day, pretty relax that we went shopping after breakfast.   

I gave my girls Angpows before going out for breakfast

Our Chinese New Year decorations

Cookies on the dining table which Pearl is in charge to keep them tidy

We shopped at the nearby hypermarket.  Pearl has been asking for her new set of comforter, she got to choose the one she likes (purple princess print).  She is happy with it, entertaining herself with the Tab while waiting for the rest of us finish our shopping.

Not intend to cook at home, we are thinking of having nice dinner at night.