Saturday, October 30, 2010

Playball

Over the school holidays, we enrolled J with Kumeu Indoor Sports Centre School Holiday Programme twice a week. They taught him soccer, dodge ball, netball, cricket and t-ball (something like baseball/softball, from what J told me..) The idea was to introduce variety of sports to him and get him active.


The Centre is neat, clean and kid friendly AND they also cater for birthday parties! I'm already thinking where to hold J's 6th birthday party (which is in April), so I'm putting it down on my list. I'm always on the look out for new venues for gatherings and parties!


Outdoor playground & eating area

While I was waiting for J, I had the opportunity to chat with Rebecca, who is the Manager of Playball.

Playball is an Educational Sport Programme and has been around in New Zealand for 4.5 years.
I liked the fact that at Playball, J is introduced the basic of common sports like tennis, soccer, cricket, hockey...and he is also taught to listen to instructions, taking turns and trying out different things and learning about his body movement and ability.

Playball is suitable for children between the ages of two and nine.

Coach Keith watching J closely


Playball
Rebecca - 021-530 260 

Kumeu Indoor Sports Centre
250C Main Road,
Kumeu
Harriet: 021-228 8483
Craig: 021-228 8482


Wednesday, October 27, 2010

One and only REAL ITALIAN PIZZA in Auckland

When I was living in Zuerich, Switzerland, L and I travelled a lot. I remember eating this delicious, tasty pizza in one small town in Italy (can't recall the name of the town...somewhere near Parma)

The pizza was not like any other pizzas you get from Pizzas Chains. It was full of flavour, the base was fluffy on the crust and really soft in the middle we had to fold it up to eat it. The cheese they used was just different...the smell of the herbs was just heavenly...oohh...Delizioso!!

This is the Queen Margherita D.O.C - Tomatoes, Extra Virgin Olive Oil (E.V.O.O), fresh mozzarella di bufala, fresh basil - $19.- 
Now, you don't have to fly all the way to Italy to get that delizioso pizza, because the great news is, I've found the FIRST and ONLY pizzeria in New Zealand to receive membership into the prestigious culinary institute Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (VPN). This association is subsidies by the Italian Government to preserve the original Italian Pizza.


Here at Dante's I was told that their wood-fired oven was handmade in Italy and shipped here. Their wood-fired oven takes them four hours everyday to reach the optimal cooking temperature of 800 degrees, where the pizzas are cooked in for only 90 seconds or less!

Our pizza came out pipping hot and it was just divine. I thought I was back in Italy for a minute there. LOL

Chef Kevin Morris, who is half Italian prepares each pizza to order in the time-honoured way of manual hand-skill and there is no need for rolling pins or dough presses. Nothing is frozen and the dough does not contain additives, preservatives, dough relaxers or enhancers.  







Awards
F.Y.I - Chef Kevin only have 100 pizzas to sell a day! So, it's best to call and check if you're one of the lucky ones.
I'll be back for more!!
buono appetito!!

Dante's
316 Main Road,
Huapai,
Auckland.
09-412 86 44
www.dantespizza.co.nz

Monday, October 25, 2010

Spring Shopping

Winter is over and Spring is here. The sun is out and so am I.

I haven't been shopping for myself for a long time, so I went to the mall to check out the latest fashion. Tried on few clothes from different store.

I'm a jeans and t-shirt girl but this time, I tried on some dresses which I know looks weird on me. Heheh...

from Pagani

from Pagani

from Shanton

from Valleygirl

from Valleygirl

from Pagani
skinny jeans from Glassons

top from Valleygirl

top from Glassons
Well....I haven't bought any of them. Will definitely go back to try on more clothes and will decide later on...maybe when it's on 'sale'. Hehehe...


Thursday, October 21, 2010

Sushi Time

When we don't have much time to prepare lunch for little J (mostly happens on a Saturday), we usually get him sushi and he loves them. It's better than getting him chicken nuggets from McD or deep fried chicken and chips from KFC or some Chinese takeaways.

Take-away version

From my point of view, sushis are better because they have the right carbo (from rice & veggies), protein (from tuna,salmon & eggs) and fats (from avocado) all in one tiny piece.

When we have the time in the morning, J also brings sushi to school for lunch.
This is our home-made version of sushi with brown rice, chicken, avocado and carrots.

Home-made version with brown rice

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Gua Sha (kau sua)


No, no, I'm not being abused.

I'm trying out what ever technique there is out there to remove toxin in my body, so, two weeks ago, I went to a  Chinese Health Clinic to have this done to me. It is called Gua Sha.

Gua means 'rubbing' and Sha means 'sand' also known as the stagnant blood. It is done by using the back of a spoon or the edge of a coin to rub the acupuncture meridians of the body. I've seen my grandma doing Gua Sha for my parents when they were not feeling well. It is a well known healing technique in East Asian.

The purpose of doing Gua Sha is to remove toxin, promote blood circulation and Qi (energy), to treat fever, flu, asthma, fatigue, migraines, muscle and tendon soreness and digestive disorder.

The redness on my back faded in 2 days. I was told that if it takes more than 3-4 days to fade, it indicates poor blood circulation. So, I guess I'm in between? Anyway, I felt relieve and light after the treatment.

If its for good health, I'll give it a try.

Monday, October 4, 2010

Watercress

I grew up drinking a lot of soup during meal time and watercress soup is amongst the popular nutritional soup my parents would make. They claim it is good for 'cooling' the body.

Watercress is a member of the cabbage family along with other green such as mustard greens, kohlrabi, kale and turnip greens.

It also aids weight loss as it contains potassium which has diuretic properties to rid the body of excess fluids.

Watercress soup with tofu, garlic and spare ribs.