I Am Back!

I thought I could cope with my family life, my medical treatments and a very busy work life easily. In reality, my physical condition is far from the past. Stress, mental and physical demands had taken a toll on me. To make matters worse, I went through a worrisome 6 months - being closely monitored for suspected metastasis of cancer to my bones. That explains my total absence from postings for a long time. With the continual tests and screenings, I was left with little energy to write.

I am lucky. My cancer did not spread as suspected. I fought it through once more. It took me another few months to overcome and re-adjust. Here I am  back again!

It is different this time. I have since retired from my very stressful job. I know that family and health have to take precedence. I am now a simple Stay-At-Home-Wife! 

The transition was not easy. The initial days of staying at home left me feeling extremely bored and restless. I felt rather useless. It took me a while to accustom to a domestic lifestyle (which I had never experienced before). In the few months of adjustments, I slowly made time for things that I had wanted to do (but never had time to) in the past. My daily schedule is now so packed with activities! 

• Houseworks / Laundry
• Food & Grocery Shopping
• Simple Workouts 
• Acrylic Painting 
• Sewing
• Music
• Learning New Stuffs (I just registered for a Malay Conversational Class)
• Gardening
• And not forgetting COOKING and baking for my husband and a dog!   

My favorites have to be Gardening, Cooking and Baking. I actually set up my own 'herbs & vegetables garden' on my roof terrace. It's not my first choice as I have to climb few storeys to water and harvest everyday. And I have to harvest my fruits early in the morning before the birds get to them. But the abundance of snails have been eating up my herbs and vegetables on the ground floor. I have no choice but to convert ground floor to planting florals instead. It is actually nice to see butterflies and bees visiting my blooms everyday! Seriously, what had I missed in the past when I didn't even pay attention to anything outside? I now grow and cook my own harvests. It is simply therapeutic  to see through the process - from seeding, harvesting, cooking and serving them on the table. 

The camera captured a portion of my plants. Guess what I have? Rosemary, Pandan Leaf, Ginger, Cilantro, Spring Onion, Lemon Grass, Green Chilli, Red Chilli, Chilli Padi, Sweet Basil, Thai Basil, Curry Leaf, Laksa Leaf, Lime, Arugula Rocket, Wild Rocket. Tomatoes etc.

The initial setup saw me 'murdered' a few plants due to ignorance and overzealousness. They have finally stabilized. I am elated to see my plants growing well and getting stronger day by day. Like a proud Mama, I will introduce them to my cooking. My future recipes will see some of my own harvests as ingredients...