Aloha, I'm Donna, known everywhere on the Internet as "Champuru." I'm a Christian, blissfully wedded to my perfect match (the yang to my yin) of 16 years and a stay-at-home mom to my miracle baby, born in October 2008. Living life in Hawaii, less than 5 miles from my hometown, seeking balance in my pursuit of family, faith, recreation, and rest. Read more on the About page.
crispy chicken with green beans and tofu combination plate
Phuket Thai restaurant (Mililani, Hawaii)
My neighbor and dear friend Jan and I went out for lunch today at Phuket Thai in the Mililani Town Center. Having been out for Thai food on only a few occasions, I am not familiar with the dishes. Jan’s keen eye spotted this dish on the Specials board and suggested that we try it. We ordered it “medium” spiciness and found that it was flavored just right. In other words, it didn’t incinerate the taste buds right off my tongue. It was perfect, as it allowed for the flavors to come through without being overpowered by the spiciness, as can often be the case.
sticky rice with vanilla ice cream dessert
To top it all off, we ordered the sticky rice with vanilla ice cream dessert. The creamy and sweet flavor is delightful after a spicy meal and would quickly extinguish any flames still burning in your mouth. The sticky rice lends an almost tapioca-like texture to the ice cream which makes it an interesting and delicious dessert.
Phuket Thai
Mililani Town Center
95-1249 Meheula Parkway, #A6, Mililani, Hawaii
Phone: 808.623.6228
Open Daily 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
On the date of the official release, my copy of Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon came in the mail today. I can’t wait to start reading it!
Did you order your copy yet?
Cindy Pon is also giving away some great prizes on her blog for helping spread the word about the release of Silver Phoenix. Go to her site for details on how to enter for your chance to win an original framed Chinese brush painting by Cindy or if a $100 gift card to your favorite book seller. You don’t even need to have your own blog to be eligible. So, check it out!
Never before have I been so excited about the release of a book. Cindy Pon’s debut novel, Silver Phoenix: Beyond the Kingdom of Xia will be released on April 28, 2009. I pre-ordered my copy on Amazon.com and according to the shipment confirmation, it’s due to arrive on April 29.
Aside from the compelling storyline (check out the trailer), I am especially thrilled about the publication of this book because Cindy Pon is an online acquaintance of mine. We’ve been following each other’s online journals since the early days — even before “blogging” became a buzzword. I’ve been reading with interest about her dreams of becoming a published author and seeing it come to fruition right before my eyes. It’s inspiring to see someone set a goal, work hard, and achieve it.
Cindy’s warm personality and witty writing style has made her one of my very favorite bloggers. I will soon be adding her to my list of favorite authors!
on the day of her first betrothal meeting–and rejection–ai ling discovers a power welling deep within her. she can reach into other people’s spirits, hear their thoughts, see their dreams…and that’s just the beginning.
ai ling has been marked by the immortals; her destiny lies in the emperor’s palace, where a terrible evil has lived, stealing souls, for centuries. she must conquer this enemy and rescue her captive father, while mythical demons track her every step. and then she meets chen yong, a young man with a quest of his own, whose fate is intertwined with hers. here is a heart-stopping, breathtaking tale for fans of action, fantasy, and romance–of anything with the making of legend.
Check out the trailer below. It will make you want to order your copy of Silver Phoenix immediately. I promise.
Baby Champuru turned six months on April 4, 2009, which means I have less than six months to plan her first birthday party.
First birthday parties are a big deal in Hawaii. Some locals may spend thousands of dollars on their “baby luau,” pulling out all the stops with entertainment, kiddie rides, clowns, face painters, balloon artists, jumpers, party favors, centerpieces, and of course, the food. Those are the folks that probably had a gala wedding, too, dropping well over five-digits for the event. That’s just not us.
Now that we’re a single income family in an uncertain economy, it’s even more prudent to watch our finances. Having a “baby luau” is almost expected, and for a child as long-anticipated as Baby Champuru, it’s only appropriate to celebrate. However, we’re going to do it without breaking the bank.
We’re having the party at the community recreational center. Nice, comfortable and convenient facilities but capacity is only 68. Paring down my guest list to fit that will be a challenge. I want to invite everyone, but that’s just not possible. Not without breaking the fire code, that is.
Next, the food. I decided to go with Ige’s Halawa. I enjoy their food — good, local-style food and their shoyu pork and andagi satisfies my Okinawan palate! It’s also very affordable. A definite plus. I called and placed my catering order today. I’ll likely buy a cake and a few sushi and appetizer platters from Costco as well.
With the essentials all set, now I have to decide on the extras: entertainment (my iPod?), favors, centerpieces, activities, games, prizes…? That’s where I need help. I have about five months to think about it, but if you have suggestions, please share!
I recently did an entry on Kabocha (Japanese Winter Squash), sharing my simple simmered kabocha recipe. Kabocha is one of my favorite vegetables and I was eager to introduce it to my baby. As much as possible, I’m trying to make her babyfood with organic ingredients. I was pleased to find organic kabocha at Star Market (Mililani, Hawaii).
Be aware that the kabocha, like many other squashes, is very hard to cut. Make sure you use a sharp knife and cut it on a stable surface to prevent injury. (I don’t want to hear about how you lost a finger trying to cut your kabocha!)
Here’s what the kabocha looks like cut it in half.
Using a spoon, scrape out the seeds and stringy bits.
Then, using a vegetable peeler, peel off skin completely. When preparing the kabocha for adults, it is preferable to leave the skin on as it gives it a nice texture and holds everything together when simmered. However, for babyfood, peeling is essential.
After the skin is peeled, cut the kabocha into 1″ cubes.
Steam the squash to cook. I used my Beaba Babycook machine to prepare the babyfood. In the machine, it took approximately 15 minutes to cook.
When cooked, the kabocha should be very tender. I test it by piercing it with a chopstick.
Puree the kabocha in a food processor, adding water to achieve the desired consistency.
When complete, I pour the babyfood into Baby Cubes (BPA-free!) and covered ice trays to freeze. The covered ice trays are especially handy, as you can freeze the food, then store them in ziploc bags and they don’t take up as much space in your freezer.
My baby’s reaction to kabocha babyfood was instant love. The natural sweetness of the kabocha makes it very palatable for babies and it has become one of her staples. I’ve been adding a couple of baby spoonfuls of sweet peas to her kabocha and she eats it without a fuss. Thumbs up for the kabocha babyfood ~ Baby Champuru approved!
Baby Champuru celebrated her 1/2 birthday (6 months) on April 4, 2009. I’m a bit tardy with this update, but time has a way of slipping through my fingers lately.
Age: 6 months 7 days (at the time of her well baby checkup) Height: 25-3/4 inches (47% percentile) Weight: 16 lbs. 2 oz. (52% percentile) Head circumference: 41-1/2 cm
Baby Champuru has two teeth! Initially, when she was teething – before the teeth erupted, I had a problem for a few days when she was biting me while nursing. As you can imagine, that is no fun. I queried the moms of my Twitterverse and they suggested simply unlatching baby and saying to her gently but firmly, “No. No nursing if you bite,” or something to that effect. Somewhat skeptical, I tried it. Amazingly, it worked. I haven’t had problems with her biting me ever since.
Baby now drinks from the bottle without a fight! This happened, perhaps out of necessity, as it seems that with the increased introduction of solids and the decrease in nursing frequency, my milk production has dropped. I guess she decided that taking the bottle was better than going hungry. The process of transitioning her to the bottle only took a few days, but I’m still a little sad that nursing isn’t her primary source of nourishment anymore. My goal was to breastfeed for at least six months, but I was hoping to make it to twelve. I’m still nursing about half the time: before bed, if she wakes up in the middle of the night, first thing in the morning, and usually once or twice during the day. I usually have to bottlefeed her 4 oz. of formula about two to three times per day in addition to nursing.
Solids galore! Baby is doing great with the solids, although she faced a bout of constipation a couple of weeks during month five that was rather problematic. After unsuccessfully trying to give her baby apple juice (straight, undiluted — as per doctor’s orders) and diluted prune juice, we ended up giving her dark Karo syrup with water. Within 24 hours, the poop was back to a normal consistency. In between nursing/bottlefeeding, this is what her diet looks like these days:
Breakfast: 1 T. rice cereal + 1 T. applesauce and formula to dilute Lunch: 2 T. squash + 1 t. sweet peas + 1 t. rice cereal and formula to dilute, 1-2 T. applesauce, 1.5 oz water + 1 oz. apple juice Dinner: 2 T. squash + 1 t. sweet peas, 1-2 T. applesauce, 1.5 oz water + 1 oz. apple juice
Since introducing applesauce and diluted apple juice into her diet, we’ve been able to keep the constipation at bay.
She’s still a great eater, a total trooper when it comes to new tastes. Even when I introduced the sweet peas this week, mixed with her kabocha, she made faces but ate it without a fuss. The tart flavor of the applesauce also caused her lips to pucker the first few times around, but she really seems to enjoy it now.
New this month:
Crawling and fast!
Sits up unsupported, albeit still a little unsteady
Enjoys climbing on pillows and people, stands briefly while supported
Babbling, incorporating consonant sounds: “ba ba ba ba…”
Very interested in what we eat, seems to enjoy her solid food
Started introducing fruit and juices into her diet
Liquid vitamins with iron and fluoride
Stranger anxiety is in full force
Smiles come much more easily now – I can even capture them on camera!
Being able to stay home with Baby Champuru is wonderful. Seeing her develop and grow, making such huge strides in these early months is absolutely priceless. I am so grateful that I have a husband who is willing to work extra hard, putting in many hours of overtime to enable me to be a stay-at-home mom to our baby. My mom stayed home to raise me until I was in junior high. Those formative years she spent with me were invaluable and created bonds that made me feel comfortable enough to make her my confidante even during my teen years when most kids would rather keep their lives a secret to their parents. I hope I will be able to have that same level of closeness with Baby Champuru as she grows up.
Dot’s in Wahiawa Photo used with permission (Photo credit Norm G.)
Dot’s, it’s where my parents had their wedding reception nearly 40 years ago. A Wahiawa mainstay, an icon of good local food with a dining hall for casual gatherings of families and friends to celebrate milestones such as graduations, birthdays, and weddings. I’ve only been to Dot’s on a handful of times, but when a couple of Twitter friends mentioned the “sizzling hamburger steak,” I knew I had to give it another go.
Sizzling Hamburger Steak
The hamburger steak indeed arrived on a sizzling cast iron skillet, the plate covered with a piece of wax paper to prevent the gravy from splattering your shirt. Honestly, it was probably the best hamburger steak I’ve had — and I’ve had a good number of hamburger steak plates in my lifetime, as it’s my go-to choice when I can’t find anything else on the menu to order. To me, the gravy is what makes or breaks a hamburger steak — and the Dot’s brown gravy definitely makes it. Add the grilled onions to the mix and you’ve got a winner! No wonder it’s one of the house specialties. It’s one of those dishes that I can see myself craving in the future. I already foresee many trips back to Dot’s just to indulge in the sizzling hamburger steak, although there are many other dishes on the menu that I’d like to try.
Tempura Mahi
My friend Jan had the Tempura Mahi and gave me a piece to sample. This dish was excellent, too. Crispy on the outside, moist and tender on the inside. It was tasty enough that it didn’t even need the tempura sauce.
The verdict? I will definitely be back. I’m all about supporting small, local businesses — especially ones with such a rich history and contributed so greatly to the fiber of a community like Wahiawa, my hometown.
Dot’s
130 Mango Street, Wahiawa Hawaii
Phone: 808.622.4115
You can make a difference in the life of a child -- I am! Our family is sponsoring Melvin, a 9 year old boy in the Philippines. Click the image below to find out more about child sponsorship and how your pocket change can change everything for a very special child.
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