Fever

Baby E was down with fever a few days ago, and I was worried sick. It started on Wednesday night when his body temperature suddenly shot up. He kept waking up at night and was crying most of the time. I was totally exhausted, but had to take care of him alone because hubby was down with flu and was sleeping in another room. As soon as morning arrived, I told hubby to bring him to see Dr. Kwan. When he was at the doctor's place, Dr. Kwan was concerned about whether he had any symptoms of the Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD). It seems that there is an outbreak of HFMD lately and many children, even adults, have been infected badly. But thank god, there were no such symtoms found on Baby E. So he only prescribed a bottle of paracetamol for us to give it to Baby E if his temparature exceeded 37.5°C.

We have been using a digital thermometer all this while, and each time we inserted it under Baby E's armpit, he would become very restless and start moving around. It was very hard to get an accurate reading under such circumstances, and it took the digital thermometer forever to give us a reading. So I decided to invest on a good ear thermometer for long-term usage.

After doing much research online, I found that Braun Thermoscan Ear Thermometer was one of the highly recommended brands among pediatricians and mothers. So without much hesitation, I decided to get one. If only I didn't have to get it so urgently, I would have bought it online for a much, much cheaper price. But because I needed to get the thermometer badly, I couldn't wait. I had to get one instantly. I called up a few pharmacies, and none of them sold this thermometer. Most of them were selling Microlife or Omron. After calling up many pharmacies, I finally found out that Vitacare in The Gardens (next to CIMB) were selling it! The model that I got was IRT4520, which cost me RM289! (Now I'm beginning to understand why most pharmacies don't sell them).

It's very easy to use!

We had to constantly sponge him with water especially when his temperature exceeded 38°C. We also got some fever patches for him to put on his forehead.

These come in handy for sick babies or children

It's not easy looking after a sick child, especially a baby. So be sure to get ready with all the necessary things before things turn bad. No matter what situations you are in, as long as the situation worries you, never feel hesitate to bring your child to a doctor!

Flying Chillies @ The Garden

I have always had a soft spot for tomyam despite it being one of the spiciest and most 'fiesty' soup around. You may be amazed by my devotion towards this food. I remember when I was in Europe for 2 weeks last year, the only food I could think of was tomyam - yes, not nasi lemak, not roti canai, not curry laksa, not char kueh tiao, not pan mee... BUT tomyam!

So one fine day while we were shopping for some stuff in Mid Valley, my colleague suggested that we should have Thai food for lunch, which was much to my delight. He asked if I wanted to try the food at Flying Chillies in The Gardens. Hmmm.... I've always passed by this restaurant but never thought of dining there, partly because I was intimidated by its somewhat classy interior. The decor of the restaurant is top-notch, and I couldn't help wondering if it was just one of those restaurants that only focuses on its interior but serves so-so food at a very high price. My colleague reassured me that the food was good, so half-heartedly, I agreed to give it a try.

Flying Chillies is just one shop away from Sushi Zanmai and next to Spices of India, so it's quite easy to find this restaurant with a bright pinkish sign on top of it.

Our stomach was rumbling like a tiger by the time we sat down, so we ordered quite a number of dishes. To start off the lunch, we ordered Thai Fish Cakes and "Royal Thai Money Bag" (whoa, glamour betuih namanya!) for starters.


The Thai Fish Cakes came in 5pcs, and I was like "wow" after trying one, because it actually tasted very good and the texture was very chewy (even the thought of it now makes me drool).

The Royal Thai Money Bags are very similar to fried wan tons, except that they gave the 'wan tons' a makeover to enhance the look and make it more presentable. Took a bite of it and the skin was crispy, and I took a peek inside the 'money bags' to see what 'treasures' they had in store for us.  

The "Money Bag" was filled with minced chicken, carrots, corns, mushrooms and some other ingredients. Although I would have preferred to have minced pork instead of chicken, I had no complaints over this dish! Oh, and before I forget, they served a small plate of transparent-looking sauce to go with the dish.

We had no idea what it was, but it tasted kinda sweet like honey or sugar, which surprisingly went well with the 'money bags'!

Next on the list was our first main course - Baked River Prawns with Glass Noodles.

I had very high expectations for this dish, however, it did not give me the 'ooomph' that I was anticipating for. The prawns were no doubt huge, but the overall taste was not very pleasing. Maybe because these were river prawns, which explains why they don't taste as good as deep-sea prawns. I don't think it would be fair for me to rate this dish, because there was nothing wrong with the cooking - it was just that I didn't really enjoy the 'river-ish' taste. (The funny part was, we actually finished the whole pot of prawns and glass noodles haha!)


And then came the 'Flying Chillies Special Fire Pot' that we ordered earlier.

The pot of tomyam was not very big, and the soup looked mild to me. It was filled with seafood, and coconut milk was also added into the soup. Now let me warn you here - do not be deceived by its look!! It isn't called the 'fire pot' for no reason, because the soup was extremely, unbelievably, and tremendously spicy! When I took a sip of the soup, it didn't really taste spicy to me until after a few more sips, the spiciness began sending messages of alarm to my tongue! I started perspiring and my eyes started tearing. Even the iced lemongrass drink could not put out the fire in my mouth! The level of spiciness was incredibly insane! BUT, I loved it! I really loved it! Yes, it was spicy, and yes, it sent fire down my spines, but that was the tomyam experience that I desired and would never forget! Gah, it was awesome!



After cooling down from all the fire in my mouth, we had mango with sticky rice for dessert.

The mangoes were sweet and I loved the coconut milk that came with the dish. It gelled pretty well with the rice, giving the rice a refreshing fragrance.



I must say, I was wrong about the restaurant. I judged too soon based on the interior. The food was amazing and even though the price is a bit pricy, I had no regrets. It has won my heart and will definitely be one of my favourite Thai restaurants!



Flying Chillies
Add: Lot T219, 3rd Floor, The Gardens, Mid Valley City.
Tel: 03-2287 7708
Fax: 03-2287 7710
Business hours: 12.00noon-10.00pm

Dave's Pizza, Pasta, Vino @ One Utama

Ok, so, I have a confession to make. I never knew that this restaurant actually existed in One Utama until hubby brought me here to try their food. The name is Dave's Pizza Pasta Vino (not to be confused with Dave's Deli which is just a few shops away), and it is just opposite TGIF in the Old Wing (or some would call it, the "New Old Wing"). Without making any reservations, we walked in around noontime for lunch, and thank god there was a place for us because right after we sat down, crowds of people turned up!   

Nice ambiance, nice setting

We were seated at a table near the cashier, when something caught my eyes - a row of cute little piggies displayed along the counter!

 

 *Oink oink!*

I felt like a little girl gushing over the pigs haha! After all the oooohs and aahhhs and being such a drama queen over the piggies, I finally went back to my seat to continue with my initial purpose here.


Hubby ordered a glass of Cookies and Cream Milkshake, while the not-so-adventurous me went for a glass of Ice Chocolate. Personally, I preferred the Cookies and Cream Milkshake. It was delicious, and you could taste the cookie bits in the milkshake. A few sips of the milkshake was enough to evoke a relaxing fascination to my taste bud!
 

An oozing feeling of relaxation

The Ice Chocolate, on the other hand, was just like any normal Chocolate drink. It wasn't too sweet though, so it was just nice for me.

For starters, we ordered Nachos. You can either choose Nachos with beef, or Nachos with ham and mushrooms. Well, we weren't feeling the love for beef that day, so we picked ham and mushrooms to go with our Nachos. I never expected the presentation to be so tempting until they served the dish right before our very own eyes! The Nachos were covered in a layer of melted cheese, with the ham and mushrooms filling nicely tucked inside. It was also served together with salsa and sour cream.

Delicately, I took a slice and placed into my mouth, and boy oh boy oh boy, the taste was just as good as it looked! Every ingredient was perfectly put together to bring out a plate of flavourful masterpiece!

Then came our main course. I ordered the Spaghetti Bolognaise with Homemade Meatballs, which was priced at RM32. I had expected the dish to be a huge one with lots of meatballs, sauce and pasta. But when the dish arrived, I wasn't quite impressed. The plate was huge yet the portion was not up to my expectation. Plus, there were only two meatballs. I couldn't believe my eyes! (In the end, I found out that I could enjoy a 50% discount on this dish as they were doing a lunch promotion for selected dishes, and this was one of them. So the price came down to RM16 a plate. OK, now that's better!)

Taste wise, well, I have to give it to them. The sauce was lip-smackingly delightful and the meatballs were chewy and tasty. Wasn't the best that I've tasted, but it was still good.

Next came the Baby Rack BBQ Pork Ribs (half slab), which comprised of 4 - 5 pork ribs. This dish came in a generous portion, and I digged in right away. 

 

The ribs were evenly grilled, and the texture was soft and tender. However, I felt that the gravy did not soak into the meat thoroughly, thus making the taste of the meat a tad less juicy. Now, if I hadn't tried the pork ribs in Chicago Rib House @ One Utama before, I would have said that the ribs here at Dave's are fantastic. But having tasted the pork ribs there, I didn't find this extraordinarily great. Don't get me wrong though, coz the pork ribs here are delicious too, just that I've tasted better ones.

On the bright side, the mashed potato was nicely whipped and I loved it! Took a few mouthful of it and it melted nicely in my mouth. Simple but perfectly done!

All in all, it was a pleasant experience here. The ambiance was soothing and the waiters/waitresses were attentive. Food wise, it's up to par (although there were some hit and miss here and there, it wasn't too serious).

So will I be coming back again? Definitely yes!

Dave's Pizza - Pasta - Vino

Add: Lot G209, 1 Utama Shopping Center, Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Tel: 03-77254017

Mom & Baby Expo 2012 @ Mid Valley, 11 May 2012

One of my contacts on facebook had recently posted that there was going to be a Mom & Baby Expo in Mid Valley from 11-13 May 2012.

I wanted to go to the expo over the weekend but couldn't because I already had some other plans, so the only way for me to visit the place was to steal some time during lunch hour on Friday and sneak into the expo. I kept reminding myself not to spend too much time there as I didn't have the luxury of scrutinizing every booth and comparing their prices. Hence, due to the shortage of time, I only managed to buy a few things (which was much to my dismay).

A lady was busy unpacking heaps of battery-operated fans, which attracted many customers to her booth. I wondered what was so special about the fan until I found out that the lady was selling it for only RM10! Doesn't that sound like a good deal? The kiasu-ness suddenly awoke in me and without much hesitation, I put on my armour and joined the crowd so that I could get one and fix it to Baby E's stroller.

Cute, isn't it? :P

Then, I went over to a booth to buy a pack of Carter's rompers. Initially, I wanted to get the size of 12 months for Baby E, but after looking at the size, I decided to buy the 18 months rompers. I asked the guy whether he could give me a discount, but he was quite adamant with the price. He was selling them at RM39 per pack. Sounds reasonable to many people, but I've bought cheaper Carter's rompers for only RM27 per pack of 5! Yet, I had no choice, coz like what I said earlier, I didn't have the time to visit every booth.

You know, I don't really like the one with polka dots... looks too girly to me...

I also bought this cute little romper (12-18m) for only RM15 from the same booth.

It says, "SMART like daddy, SWEET like mommy" hehe!

I was already running out of time by now, and decided to leave the expo until I saw a booth selling something that I was looking for - Tommee Tippee products! You must be wondering what's so special about this shop??  Well, let me tell you this - I got it at a very good deal!! I had wanted to get the Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature teats for 6m+ (pack of 2) for quite some time. Most of the shops (and even online) sell it at around the price of RM24.90. But guess what? I got this at the booth for only RM16!! My goodness, I was shrieking with joy inside! Oh, and I also got the Soft Silicone Orthodontic Soother (6-18m) for only RM11 (original price is RM17.90)! *Double shrieks!* The name of the shop is myBBstore.com (www.myBBstore.com), and I'm definitely gonna visit them again in the next expo!

Great, great, great bargainnnn!!

So there you have it! My short adventure at the Mom & Expo on 11 May 2012. If only I had more time, I would have made sure that I burnt a hole in my pocket with a big smile!

Be sure to check out the next Mom & Baby Expo from 27-29 July 2012 at Mid Valley! Don't miss it! :D

Man Sifu @ Sri Petaling (文师傅)

My love for fish head noodles is beyond comprehension. Why? I really don’t know. I can’t explain my addiction to it, but one thing’s for sure - I simply love the taste of the soup, because the soul of this food lies within the soup. Not only does it have to taste nice, it has to taste RIGHT. Oh, and the fish should not be too bony either as I wouldn’t want to be worrying about choking on fish bones while enjoying my food!

I’ve been to a few famous fish head noodle shops in the Klang Valley, but I personally think that there’s one particular shop by far, serves the tastiest fish head noodles. The name of the shop is Man Sifu Enterprice and it is situated in Sri Petaling, same row as Restoran Oversea Dian Xin.

They offer a wide variety of fish head noodles, and I got lost just by going through their menu!

It was hard for me to decide on which dish to go with, and since I had cravings for pork that day, I ordered the Fish Head & Meatball Mee Hoon. You may also request them to add some wine into your soup to give it a different kick. Besides that, if you happen to be very hungry and you could swallow a cow, you may even ask them to add in more mee hoon at no additional cost!

The taste of the soup is simpy MAR-VE-LOUS!

Hubby is not a fan of fish head noodles (or anything related to fish), so he ordered a bowl of Meatball Mee Hoon in tomyam soup, and as usual, I curi a bit of the tomyam soup to see how it tasted like. At first, I was quite taken aback by the sourish taste, but the more I tasted it, the more I got hooked to it! Hey, I actually like the soup!

We also ordered two side dishes. One was a plate of Fried Pork Belly (small), and the other one was Tauhu Rolls (small).

What can I say? I lurveee both dishes! The Fried Pork Belly was chewy and delicious while the Tauhu Rolls were soft and gave my tastebud a simplistic satisfaction! (Btw, there are supposed to be four tauhu rolls in the picture, hubby was too hungry that he chomped down a tauhu roll before I could stop him!)


So there you have it. Man Sifu is definitely my favourite Fish Head Noodle Shop to date!



Address: 59 & 61, Jalan 1/149J Bandar Baru, Seri Petaling, 57000 KL.
Tel: 03-9056 1128
Business Hours: 9am - 10pm