ASHton + ETHan + kayLEE = ashethlee | the drivers of my life

I'm adjusting to coming home at dinner time now. All I have left is the energy for my meal, and to relax with the kids. Thank goodness this is post-exams and we are in the holiday mood now. So I brought the kids down for a skate/cycle, and Kaylee got into the mood to dance. Can I say, I find this a beautiful mix of self-expressive 'street' style contemporary? Whatever that means, that is. :p I hope she finds joy in dancing, and never stops so.

I decided a few months back, to get a regular full time position. It was time to relook at my portfolio, I felt I would start falling back in times and demand if there was any further delay. I used LinkedIn for my job hunt, and the more I browsed through, the worse I felt. I could sense the need to improve myself in today's context, especially for people from my 'era' of graduating before social media became the buzz. What I do have is the hands-on experience, perhaps a bit of different departments, not a niche expert though. The problem about looking at LinkedIn I felt, was that only the big brands stood out, and as such, the number of applicants per job was ridiculous. It was just too easy to click "Apply Now" in today's digital platform. Naturally, many of such applicants would have just clicked without reading much about the job description. I began to wonder what a tough time HR would have had going through those hundreds of applicants per position.

Today, I disappointed myself in something, and walloped in self-pity, felt very down. I came home in the evening, plonked myself in bed and went straight to nap abit. Kids probably knew something was amiss and this was not my usual self. Well, Ashton stepped up and ordered me to shower, like I always do to him. But I dozed back to sleep. I got up after a while, and it was their bedtime. I told them I was upset and I asked if they would put themselves to bed just for one night, so I could go wash up and rest. Ashton told me, "Don't worry mummy, just go and rest. I will settle my brother and sister." Such a grown-up. I took my daily hugs and kisses early tonight, and out they went from my room. Kaylee obeyed my instructions and got changed, brushed her teeth without any delay. In fact, she fell fast asleep! I later peeked and saw Ashton and Ethan scribbling little post-it notes, they were speaking in hushed tones and told me to stay in the room. Thereafter, they i

Had an intense craving for kong bak bao, and since I have lotsa Chinese spices, I decided to create one for dinner. Here's what went in: 400-500g fresh pork belly, sliced to thick strips 3 shallots, sliced thin 6 cloves of garlic, crushed 1-inch of old ginger 4 tbsp black soy sauce 1tsp salt 2 tsp brown sugar 1-2 packs Leaf buns / mantou (purchase from a supermarket) Spices:- 1 stick of cinnamon 2 star anise 5 cloves 1tbsp 5-spice powder 0.5tbsp cumin powder  1. Heat about 2tbsp oil in pot. 2. Stir fry the shallots for a while, then add in the crushed garlic cloves. 3. Add in the strips of pork belly. Fry till slightly browned. 4. Add in the salt, sugar, spices, ginger and soy sauce. Add in 500ml of boiling water. 5. Let it boil up, then cover and simmer for about 1 hour. Just before the braised pork is ready, prepare the buns for steaming (about 10min). 6. Steam the buns on a plate for 10min.  ENJOY! I made a mistake of purchasing just one pack of ma

My usual weekdays are packed non-stop juggling 3 kids and all their different activities and timings, homework, on top of social media (work & leisure), work stuff, and also managing the home and meals! No mean feat, I get so tired sometimes. Like today, I had to scoot off at 2.45pm to pick Ash up from his CCA, and I was having a tough time keeping from falling asleep at the wheel. And then, the drive back home. Alas, I got back and got the kids organised and sorted. I started to make my shortcrust pastry. Here's what went in the Shortcrust Pastry : 100g softened unsalted butter 200g plain flour 2 egg yolks 1tsp white sugar pinch of salt remaining egg white for coating 1. Cream the butter with sugar and salt just by using a spatula. 2. Add the flour and yolks and combine well. Knead a bit with hands. (I really like it that I didn't need to use and wash my kitchen mixer, lazy!) 3. Cling wrap it and chill for at least 30-60min, best overnight. Then I realis

Yearly, CHS does a huge English week, where a book theme is selected, and we parents gotta start cracking our heads on making costumes out of recycled materials for a presentation or mini-parade. Usually, the P1 and P2 levels are more hands-on about it (as usual yea... still play-years). So for this year 2017, Ethan (P1) was given the theme "The Enormous Crocodile" by Roald Dahl. He had to make a mask! Daddy helped to join carton boxes up for the shape, and then I did the securing, and arranged the kids to do the painting. Ethan decided to add in some blood and gore (the bloodied teeth and arm) since this crocodile likes to eat children. Here's what the trio all chipped in to help with: we didn't have green, so we mixed blue and yellow! adding in the 'blood' Here's pics from his class today: It was 100% participation in Ethan's class! Can you spot him? And the best part... he won a medal!!!  For Ashton (P3 this

Somewhere in 2016, I had some fun being part of a kids' variety show challenge from China's CCTV channel. Well, of course what I had to say was kinda directed... so was me conversing in Mandarin, and the host calling me a 模特儿 (model), so don't laugh! Filming is indeed tiring... all the NGs (retakes) and waiting around for each film segment, etc. The director and the cameraman have to be on alert mode and action all day too, definitely more tiring for them. It's no mean feat. Catch me at about 28.2min time stamp. Pororo Park is at about 2.43min time stamp. Alive Museum  is at about 25.5min time stamp. Thanks to Director Yin Lu for including me in this!

Do not miss the popup Coco cafe coming 8-16 Apr 2017,  to Dhoby Ghaut Green, Visual Arts Centre. It's a place to enjoy beauty, bubbles and dessert curated by CHANEL. Register to get priority entry and enjoy a complimentary drink on them as they provide you with beauty tips. That morning shall be well-spent testing beautiful Chanel lip colours with my girlies, while the kids are all in school.  Click here to sign up before all seats are filled.  What excites you more? The Chanel desserts or the Chanel lips? 

NOOOOoooooo! I barely started to enjoy the vacation, and it's about to end. My kids' school bags lie untouched since they returned home on the last day of Term 1 (I pray there is no leftover food inside).  School shoes - thank goodness they've been washed.  Homework - I don't know!  Spelling - No idea.  Am I feeling lousy? Yea, kinda. Why did I not check their bags for homework or pack for term 2 yet? I think, I deserved the school vacation as much as they did too! During the school term, Ashton had almost 1-2 tests weekly (something they call AMODES) and it's graded. Both the boys had 1-2 spellings weekly too (EL and/or CL). This meant weekly drilling by me too. It's kinda stressful and pressing not just for the kids, but for me (and the gramps too!). So when the last day of the term came, the kids and the adults both just turned on the "HOLIDAY MOOD". I wonder, perhaps I should have insisted all homework, preparation and packing be done

Kaylee has been bugging me to get her a mermaid swimming costume for a long time. So I went to source for one... and today, we received our package! Look how beautiful she looks when she is happy~ Here's my sunshine! Poses all done by herself. The quality of this particular supplier I found is good, and we brought it into the pool today!  Flippin' her fin Mermaid and her fish friend It's a 3-piece set! There is the bikini bottom inside, which is this cute little thing! So if your kid gets tired of flippin' around, just remove the tail, and it's still a lovely mermaid-bikini! Some friends have asked me to get this set for them too, so... I'm opening a pre-order now, for only SGD$22.50 per set . Local Singapore regular mail will be at SGD$1.00 (I can arrange to ship worldwide too if you need, and postage will be as-charged).  Available sizes for girls about height 100cm, 110cm, 120cm, 130cm, 140cm, and 150cm. Color

Goal for today: Have fun with the family with the least cost! Since I have just bought the Islander membership card, why not make full use of it and drive into Sentosa for free since it's so near me? Plus, I found out that the previously-known Port of Lost Wonders, has now changed hands to be run by Sentosa directly, and it's FREE! We grabbed local food, and drove right in for a relaxing afternoon. Just look how happy Kaylee and I were! Foam pool! She even got picked to get on stage for a balloon sculpture! Got an Elmo balloon! After a splashing good time, we washed up and went back to Sentosa Kidz Flea, this time as customers. And no, the day was not done! I had packed fishing gear into our car just in case. And we drove towards Bedok Jetty to extend our relaxing afternoon into the evening. I don't remember ever coming to this part of Singapore, but the hubby remembers he went there probably when he was about 12. It's kinda nostalgic a