Turknoy Dishes: Baked Salted Salmon

We totally missed food posts but of course was still eating salmon. We love salmon. we tried two salmon recipes: Salmon with Herbs and Baked Salmon.

This one is modified version of the two previous dishes we have mastered. Actually, more like simplified. We just make use of salt and egg whites. Bake and garnish -  Whooaaaaaaaa! YUM!

salted baked salmon with egg whites

simple, yummy and so healthy

Love. Live. Eat.

Linking this here:

Doha Easter Sunday- Color it Rainbow!

Rainbow Colors! Easter Sunday - Colorful Life - Never ending Hope! Has it been a year ago since the last Easter?!

We haven't planned anything special for this coming Easter (24th April). Taking this opportunity to rewind what we did last year.

It was momentous period for us - we gained lots of new friends and strengthened bonds with colleagues-turned friends. Of course, our Mama was with us here in Doha. How much she is being missed at all times. Sighs. Hope she's having the time of her life back home in the Philippines.

Kylie and her Easter eggs for her friends!

Kerim's 1st Easter!

Kylie posing by the marina at the Ritz with hew Easter eggs she hand painted

more Easter egg craft

Turknoys with the weirdest Easter bunny ever

More eggs!

Mama posing with the huge colorful gigantic Easter egg display at the Sharq Hotel

Life is colorful and Easter is a reminder for all of the Christian (that's half of the Turknoy family!) that  our lives are God's gift we should treasure.

The family believe in Jesus. We all believe in God's love. We all believe in miracles of God. Happy Easter everyone!


Live. Love. Believe in miracles.

Another entry for:

Doha Event: World Book Day Public Celebration!

This Saturday, 23 April 2011, come and celebrate World Book Day Public Celebration with Boomsbury Qatar Foundation Publishing.

This event reminds me of our Doha Explorers Book Club sessions every Saturday. Shame that things became so hectic that we didn't continue this. And now come summer time, it would be more difficult to go out side and read under the trees with children.

We will try not to miss this event. A good way to encourage reading yet again.






Details:

Location: Al Bidda3 Park, Corniche (Outdoor Amphitheater)
Date and Timing: 23 April 2011,  Saturday, April 23 · 10:00am - 12:00pm

More Information: 
Be among the first to arrive and receive a free copy of the special World Book Day dual language edition of "Something Else!"
With special appearance by author Kathryn Cave.
Come celebrate your love of reading and participate in fun children's activities!

Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation Publishing sure facilitate events that really motivates children to read.  During the Qatar Marine Festival 2011, they were at the Marine Library and had lots of opportunity for story telling and book reading for kids. Awesome!

Hope to see you all on Saturday at Al Bidda Park!


Keep exploring and reading!

Doha Event: Jolly Phonics Workshop with Sue Lloyd

The author the Jolly Phonics, Sue Lloyd, will be in Doha to facilitate the Jolly Phonics.

This is not a plug. We are just contemplating whether to attend this workshop for not.

For other mommies and teachers, here are the other details:

Date: Saturday, 7th May 2011
Time: Check-in: 9:00AM
Workshop Timings: 10:00AM - 15:30AM
Cost: 500QR; lunch and certificates will be provided.
Registration: Please come in and register at I Spy Bookstore located at City Centre, 3rd floor. (seats are reserved after payment.)

Jolly Phonics Training Program

9-9:45 Registration Time

10:00 - 11:00 Jolly Phonics Part 1 includes: 

• The main principles behind Jolly Phonics - bringing fun and structure to the teaching of phonics.
• Teaching the first three group of letter sounds in an interesting and multi-sensory way. 
• Developing correct letter formatio. 
• Blending letter sounds for reading simple regular words e.g., run, hat, band, legs, stamp, twig, dress, etc. 
• Developing phonemic awareness by identifying the sounds in words for writing. 

11:00 - 12:00 Jolly Phonics Part 2 includes:

• The teaching of the next four groups of letter sounds, enabling children to read and write hundreds of unknown regular words that use diagraphs e.g., train, goat, boil, spoon, sharp, chips, etc. 
• Ideas for teaching children tricky words. 
• Practical ideas for classroom teaching.

12:00 - 13:15 Lunch

13:15 - 14:15  Jolly Phonics Part 3 includes:  

•  Introducing reading books - the importance of using decodable books. 
• An easy way of teaching children to become independent writers. 
• Giving young children a simple understanding of how the vowels work. 
• Alternative ways of writing the vowels. 

14:15- 14:45 Jolly Grammar

• A short introduction to Grammar Handbook 1

14:45- 15:15 Plenary/ Questions and Answers 


15:15- 15:30 Certificates and viewing Jolly Phonics Materials

Exploring Doha: McDonald's Breakfast

You know you live in Doha if the idea of McDonald's Breakfast excites you! And big YAYY!! McDonald's breakfast is in Doha!

at Markhiya - managed to get some lovin' at 10AM - almost missed it ;)

Try it Now and get a feel of Doha mornings! It is only available at McDonald's Al Suhaim Bin hamad (along Al  Saad) and Markhiya ( close to TV R/A). Breakfast is available at these two locations DAILY FROM 5AM TO 10 AM) - Awesome!

I tried the EggMcMuffin and it tastes just like from other McDonalds around the world. ;) Out of excitement, I am posting here their menu. Oh la la!

Sausage McMuffin with Egg Value Meal - QR13
Egg McMuffin Value Meal - QR 12
Sausage McMuffin Value Meal - QR 11
Big Breakfast Value Meal (2 scrambled eggs, sausage, muffins, hash brown and coffee0 - QR 14
Sausage McMuffin - QR7
Sausage McMuffin with Egg - QR9
Egg McMuffin - QR8
Hotcakes - QR10
Hash brown - QR4
Coffee - QR4
Regular Orange Juice - QR5
Regular Apple Juice - QR5

Let's go - Start our day with McDonald's Breakfast!


Keep exploring!

Born for Each Other!

This would more of a wife-moment than a mommy moment! I have been raving about my husband's perfection the couple of weeks so allow me to wallow in that for a bit. He's been extremely great with the kids, the chores, his work and even supporting me with my work as well. We have adapted ourselves from the beginning with the the different stages of our lives but the previous days  proved that we can handle everything, well, almost at least.

 Just imagine, we are managing with two kids, two hectic jobs and almost 100% hands on parents! Talk about multi-tasking. We are indeed building our home together and we are loving every moments of it.

And I know it is so cheesy to say, but we are really born for each other. Yeah, literally. We are born both on the same beautiful day - so we get to celebrate this awesome day every year.

both drunk from love.. first birthday together - officially became a couple - yeah our anniversary as well! ;)

second birthday  - painting our room, pink! haha

3rd birthday at Bodrum, Turkey

another birthday - one Turknoy + one on the way!

2010 celebration at Chillis with family! ;)

It fits so perfectly and we both knew it, brains and heart! ;)

Now for my mommy moments - we celebrated the birthdays of the kids last year but our plan this year is NOT to make a big deal of birthdays. Saving some money and teaching them the value of simplicity.

Kerim's 1st birthday - Asian food  + Disney Cars Theme

Kylie Princess birthday celebration at Chilli's

We will definitely miss wearing matching shirts this year - but hey, we can always do that any day. ;)

Live to the fullest!

More birthday stories here:

Also linking this up here:

Book Review: Little Einsteins - Music of the Meadows

Have you met the Little Einsteins?

These four adorable preschoolers always manages to amuse and entertains the Turknoys.

Disney's Little Einsteins takes preschoolers on exciting and interactive adventures in the real world. Children join Leo, June, Quincy, Annie and Rocket on important missions packed with exciting new learning discoveries. With each new exploration, children will meet new friends and dive into great works of art and music while learning more about the world around them.

Leo is six years old and loves to conduct. He uses his magical baton to lead the Little Einsteins and Rocket, the incredible transforming ship, on their exciting missions.

June, the elegant six-year-old ballerina, loves to dance and lead the team on physical challenges. She is organized, loves to make plans, and enjoys teaching her friends new vocabulary words.

Annie is Leo's four-year-old sister. Although she is the youngest on the team, she's the most adventurous. Annie loves animals and learning about nature, but singing is her very favorite thing to do.

Quincy is five years old, and he's  a talented musician who can play almost any instrument, although the trumpet is her favorite. He's brave, always on the go and loves to make his friends laugh. 

This book, Music of the Meadow, explores the music which can be heard in the meadow. At the same time, it explores  the flowers, trees, birds and butterflies.

 The meadow seems like a very quiet and calm place. But did you know that the meadow is filled with music?




Some of the important lessons we learned from the book:

• Honeybees do a special dance. That is how they tell the other bees where the yummy nectar is. 
• Rain and sunshine help tiny little seeds to grow into beautiful flowers. 
• Frogs start out as tiny tadpoles swimming in the water. 
• Chipmunks got their name because they make a loud "chipping" sound. 
• Butterfly has its own little built-in straw.
• Grasshoppers make their chirping sound by rubbing a leg over one of their wings. 
• Sounds of meadow do not stop. May parts of meadow are sleeping. But others are awake. And cycle goes on. 

BUZZ. SPLASH. CHIP. SLURP. TAP. CHIRP. WHOOO. Some of the sounds of meadow. Music to our ears!

It usually takes us more than thirty minutes of read this book because there are lots of prompt for interaction while reading which is really good. The meadow is an interesting to explore, and this book will help a lot in gaining interest of preschools especially when they are already inclined to music, and in our Princess Turknoy case, in singing and dancing!

Keep reading!

Other Little Einsteins books we would want to read soon:

Book Review: Bear Wants More

Bear Wants More
By: Karma Wilson
Illustration By: Jane Chapman

"When springtime comes,
in his warm winter den,
a bear wakes up
very hungry and thin.."


Bear finds some roots to eat, but that's not enough. He wants more! With his friends help, he finds some berries, clover and fish to eat, but that's not enough. Bear wants more!

How bear's friends help him to finally satisfy his HUGE hunger in a most surprising way have indeed enchant the Turknoys. 

We love how some fancy words fit right in the story - waddles, nibbles, scampers by, tromp, shuffles by. Although, only implied from the story, we learned about hibernation during winter and how spring could be our favorite season!  We loved how the bear is friends with mouse, hare, badger, gopher, mole, raven and wren! What a diverse spring gang it is.

And of course, who wouldn't love surprises? In the story, since the bear was really hungry, his friends game prepared food surprises for him and he was so carried away that he ate them all up, he got fat and went to sleep. Now, his friends - want more! Turknoys loved the ending. And then we emphasized the lesson of not being greedy and sharing to friends no matter how hungry we are. (Or else, we will all get fat like the bear.. uh oh!)

The rhythmic text and vibrant and beautiful illustrations make the book a perfect springtime read-aloud to kids!


Keep reading!

PS: Other bear books by Karma Wilson