Steamed Stuffed Bitter Gourd

I got this sudden crave for a special dish of my mum. I immediately went off to buy the ingredients for the dish ~ Steamed Stuffed Bitter Gourd.

Firstly, i cut the bitter gourd transversely into segments about 2 cm thick. The seeds were dug out and cleansed properly.

To some, the bitter gourd might be a bit too bitter. To reduce the bitterness, just pop them into boiling water and allow to boil until the gourd turned soft. If one preferred it to be more bitter, this step can be omitted. I love the bitter taste but my wife and mother-in-law were otherwise.

At the mean time, prepare the stuff. Mince the meat of your preference, and add in some carrots, water chest nuts (or sengkuang), spring onion, a bit of corn flour and an egg. Add in some salt for taste too.

Mix the ingredient well and stuff them into the hallow of the segments. At the mean time, bring the water to boil.

Steam the bitter gourd for about 10 mintues, then pour in eggs beaten together with water at the ratio of 1:1.

Steam another 3 minutes and tadaaaa..........

Yummy.......

Suddenly i miss my mum and dad. Got to call them, after finishing the bitter gourd :-P

Junction ~ the dilemma

I knew it. Sooner or later this thing will come again. It happened two years ago and was not materialized. February this year, the wave came again, wanting our office to be moved to a far-away-land. To our dismay, three months had passed, yet not much had been done by 'them'. The future of our office is yet to be certain. Thus, i'm getting nearer to the Junction of dilemma.

Today, traveling to work takes up two hours of my day. If the shifting is certain, commuting from home to office will take 2 and a half hours. Five hours out of my 24 hours will be spent on the road. I leave my office around 7.00pm almost everyday, due to the tons of work waiting to be completed. If i were to work at the new place, I might reach home after 9pm. Definitely not the kind of life i wanted to have.

Shift my home nearer to workplace? Out of the story. If i were to choose between family and work, family is definitely my priority. Period.

Leave this workplace and find a greener pasture? Possible. In fact, i had received some offers. However, my heart is still with my current workplace. I love my colleagues. I love my students.

Somehow i'll have to make my choice, for my future, and the future of my family.

Oh God, grant me a heart with humility and the wisdom to make the right choice. Amen.

Apple and Laughter

With inconsistency in bowel movements, the pediatrician advised us to feed baby Justin some fruits. She suggested red apples. We cut the apple into half, and scrapped the fruit flesh with a teaspoon. We feed him two to three teaspoons a day for a start. Baby Justin loved it.

That was two weeks ago. Now, baby Justin enjoyed half an apple a day. He's healthier now, and very cheerful. A very happy boy he is.

Ever since he turned 4 months old, he refused to lie down on his crib most of the time. Instead, he demanded to to seated or to be carried upright. But since he's still too young to sit up-right for too long, we put him on the seat instead. He would use his best 'weapon' to attract your attention. Not screams, not cries, not noises either, but his sweetest charming smile. Even grandma (my mother-in-law) couldn't resist to spend some time with him.


We constantly look up to God our heavenly Father with prayers of thanksgiving. Indeed Justin is the best gift He had given us so far. The constant attention demanded and the interrupted sleeps at night mean nothing when compared to the joy of having this gem in our life.

More challenges of baby up-bringing coming up. We do pray for wisdom and strength from Him. Justin, papa and mama love you.