Bing - Chinese flat bread

Before my short visit from Singapore to check in on things at Blue Sky (march 16-20), I asked my girls what would they like me to bring back from Beijing this time round.  In strange unison and without much thought, they said "Bing !" .... what? Bing?  really?  Bing made by the Ayis (caretakers) at Blue Sky.  The Bing that they loved so much on their last visit to Blue Sky. 

Bing is basically a simple flat bread.  It is eaten at Blue Sky at least twice a week, and is eaten plain, dipped in sauce or soup, filled with meats and veggie (then it's called Lao Bing), as a snack or as part of the main meal. 

So their request was placed, and on my last day in Beijing, longtime staff FanYan (chef for the season) did her magic.  She kept insisting it was easiest thing to do, and that we really should just make it in Singapore if they love it so much.  I told her we had perfected making jiaozi (dumplings, Beijing style), and Tudou Si (vinegared shredded potato) and it's regularly on our dinner menu at home.... but BING we had not tried....

During the Bing making, FanYan and XiaoHong, who was the girls' nanny when we lived in Beijing, and is Blue Sky's driver/nanny/chef/maintenance/all-round-extraodinaire since our departure 7 years ago to Singapore - decided to make an instructional video for the girls.

So here is Part 1 - making of the dough ..... Part 2 and 3 coming soon

New babies in August 2014

Blue Sky welcomes the following lovely babies into our home this August.  

Female

Tian Yu will be our 41st cleft lip and palate repair baby at Blue Sky.  So we are very sure that after 2 surgeries with us, that she will be even more beautiful than she already is.

Male

Yan Wu was born with spina bifida.  He arrived very weak and had bad cradle cap on his head.  As you can see, after a short time with us, he's filled out nicely.

 

Female

 Yong Jun arrived very thin and malnourished.  She was barely 3 kg at 2 months old! But our ayis have been working hard to fatten her up, and she's slowly filling out.  According to her orphanage, they had thought she was a boy (hence a chinese boy' name) - but tests have shown that she is chromosomally a girl.  We will be further investigating and consulting with doctors once she is in a stable condition. 

Other updates:  

Ailin (our baby girl who had open heart surgery in June) - is almost back to her usual self (post-surgery she had lost feeling on her left side).  She's gaining weight nicely and has her temperamental moments - which is great !  She's always been a feisty one and we are happy with her recovery.