Little Things

Little things that kept me sane during the frentic month that was. 

From the little dinky plastic fish tank that we've had, Hubs finally agreed on upgrading to a 12 gallon glass fish tank. We now have red cherry shrimp, guppies, cardinal and rummy nose tetras. Family bonding time nowadays consist of Bubs holding the net while Hubs and I plunge our arms into the tank to catch pesky aquatic snails, I kid you not.

I'm starting to feel wistful whenever Bubs brings home one of his crayon decorated paper bags containing bread he made at school. He makes them in the weirdest shapes sometimes. I fished out what I thought was a snowman. "It's a muscle man, Mummy." Bubs corrected, frowning.

Lovisa opened at Queensbay and we flocked to its glitzy accessories like magpies. These were happily added to my shopping bag.

A friend got these gorgeous Havianas for me from Brazil at a fraction of the retail price here and they couldn't have arrived at a better time. I accidentally tore a bit off my toe nail and the the wound was agonising that I ended up wearing these brightly coloured beauties to the office for a week.

I've never read these Puffin classics as a child so I eagerly popped them on my to-be-read pile. There's something comforting and cheerful about reading vintage childrens books. I got hooked after completing Anne of Green Gables this year and look forward to devouring these.

Over the Weekend

The best weekends, are often the most uneventful ones, time spent with family and friends, good food and just pottering around.

Bubs met up with the 2 Nats at the Spice Arena public pool. Stoked that we were the first customers of the day, we had the entire children's pool to ourselves for a good part of the morning. They frolicked in the chilly water for hours, chasing and splashing each other.

Weekend uniforms are mainly a white top and skinny jeans with a statement necklace added for some bling. Hubs calls this my Cleopatra necklace.

With Bubs photobombing in the back :) Since it's a somewhat shaky close up, let me tell you how much I love my Cambridge Satchel cloud bag. It's a structured, stiff leather but fits in all my stuff and the twist lock is a much welcomed change from its previous leather buckles.

I went succulent shopping again! The nursery at Green Lane (past the Caltex station) has a wide range of small succulents, from prickly ones that I eschewed to pretty leafy stems. The friendly owners are full of handy tips for looking after plants - an alternative to watering the succulents is to just soak the pot in a shallow tray of water for the roots to suck in moisture.

Here's to hoping that this can last more than a few weeks. I got this unglazed, wide pot from the pottery shop close to the Waterfall Gardens for just RM13.

The Kimberly Street duck noodle stall has been operating for decades. When I was Bub's age, my parents used to take us there for dinner and it seems fitting that now, Hubs and I brought Bubs along with my parents and brother there. We ordered up a storm and Hubs is still in awe of how much food we managed to polish off.

3 Things

The Big Bad Wolf book sale and a bunch of other recent acquisitions have added a bounce to my step lately. What can I say, retail therapy (especially in air conditioned malls) works wonders during a a gloomy hazy period.

I've started using an eyebrow pencil after I've chanced upon Shu Uemura's Hard Formula 9. Its secret lie in its specially sharpened tip, designed to be like a katana blade, which you've to bring back to counters to get re-sharpened at no extra cost. It doesn't swatch on the skin but miraculously, it shows up on eyebrows very naturally. The only thing I didn't realised initially was that the long, flat tip breaks easily if you applied too much pressure on it. The best way to apply it, even in a rush, is to gently use it in semi-longish quick strokes along the brows.

I've always adored animal flats so I was squealing with happiness when I found this pair - in of all places at Gap Kids - for myself. The sales staff didn't even bat an eye when I tried these black velvet cat ballet flats. The jeweled eyes add the subtlest sparkle and Bubs calls them my "witch's shoes".

I got the Lego City advent calendar for Bubs ... but I'm intending to swipe some of the minifigures for my own collection, hehe. Bubs is madly excited about it and keeps asking "Is it December yet, Mummy?"

3 Things

Bubs and I caught colds this week, think phlegm-y coughs and lots of moaning about how awful we both feel. Hubs has been busy making hot drinks for us, running around to get cough/nose meds and rolling his eyes - all in that order - so we have been in huge need of finding happy lil things to get us through.

It's our 6th wedding anniversary and over the years, Hubs and I have been getting more practical (read: dull) with gifts. We usually just get something that the other wants and tell them that it's an all-in-one birthday-anniversary-Valentine's gift. He'd already gotten me something nice for my birthday earlier so I wasn't expecting any gifts so I was flabbergasted when he surprised me with this dainty Thomas Sabo charity bear charm that has a red enamel heart on it. I feebly murmured half hearted protests of how he shouldn't have but secretly reveled in delight! It also soothed my conscience that proceeds from the charity bear charm funds the Thomas Sabo Charity.



I was obsessed with four leaf clovers since the days of Enid Blyton. Each time I found a clover patch, I'd finger through them in hopes of finding a four leafed one for good luck. Never did happen for decades ... until I saw a colleague posting up photos of her own four leaf clovers on Facebook (thank you, technology) and begged for some of my own. She very kindly dug out a clump for me and I now have my own small pot of green, leafy luck.

Over here, we're very familiar with dried dates. The small red ones are used in cooking Chinese soups and desserts and the larger, sugary ones that are so yummy during the fasting season. I've just noticed these ones lately: fresh ones at the supermarket. They look like miniature red apples and even taste slightly like them too! Bubs was most fascinated with them and loved chomping on them.

Making a Spectacle

I realised my past few posts have been very Bubs-centric, mainly because the whole family has been down with multiple bouts of flu/coughs/and other not so pleasant things that go along with it so we haven't been out and about as much.

I'm still waiting for my yucky conjunctivitis to run its course. Part of the reason why I dislike it so much is that I'm forced to wear glasses for a couple of weeks :( I have been wearing glasses since 9 and always feel so dorky in them, regardless of how many types of glasses I've tried on.

Making a mood board to inspire me for the next few days ahead before I can switch back to contact lenses. Once thing helps though ... when in doubt, always put on a dab of lippie and smile!

ps - I placed an order for the One Line a Day journal, it seems like such a fascinating concept. Can't wait to receive it in the post!

5 Things

Here is a round up of tiny and not so tiny things that made my heart beat faster this week.

I made crepes (well technically, I prepped the batter while Hubs did the frying) and served it with home made berry coulis and double cream. It was out of the world fantastic! Bubs and I were scoffing them down faster than poor Hubs could churn those delectable morsels out.

We started growing a pot of ladies fingers (okra) from seed and Bubs was thrilled to see them grow. After the flowers wilt, we watched entranced to see little ladies fingers growing out. I steamed them with some chilli sambal.

Stripes are the new neutrals. Mixing a striped tee with a floral pencil skirt.

I saw the cutest items at Daiso: a crab chopstick rest, the tiniest porcelain jug (perfect for maple syrup with pancakes) and a mint green plate. Siew dragged me away from them, firmly pointing out that I don't even have chopsticks at home *pouts*

Found these Topshop gold jacquard ballet flats at 50% off - such a bargain because I'd already been lusting over them when they were at full price. The pink and pink ombre beaded necklace was a find at Forever 21 and also comes in an equally gorgeous version of turquoise and mint.

Bits and Bobs

Trying to incorporate more accessories into my weekend outfits and also mixing and matching a couple of Chinese New Year additions for my wardrobe.

I was ooh-ing and aah-ing over this pair of Charles and Keith heels, trying to decide if I should get such an impractical pair of platform stilettos ... until Aussie Godma showed me a pair of heels that she fell in love with online ... and they were the exact same pair! I took it as a sign that it was meant to be.

Who would have ever thought that coral and green would go together? Hubs says they don't but I don't really care, I like the bright pop of colours together.

I've got this Dorothy Perkins bonded lace dress in white and ink blue so when it was re-released in navy and black, I couldn't resist getting another one. The muted colour would be perfect for office wear.

Have a happy weekend, peeps!

All About Food

There are a million reasons why I love Penang and the good FOOD is one of them. There are so many yummy bites around and last week, I revisited an old love plus found a new one.

The Pulau Tikus night market serves an amazing array of Penang hawker food at its best. Seriously, what other place serves lok lok, laksa - both assam and Siam, char koay teow worth waiting for ... no wonder it's packed every night.

 

It's impossible for me to turn down a stick of lok lok, or two, or three ... oh what the heck, I usually just dip a whole bunch in at a go. Since these are all sliced in tiny bites, they don't count as actual food, right? I usually drown them in a mixture of peanut sauce and garlic ;)

 

A delicious bowl of ice kacang is simplicity at its best. The auntie is always very accommodating to let me pick my own toppings.  

 

Poor Bubs - I'm still a little iffy about feeding him street food so I usually bring along dinner for him. He eyed the ice kacang longingly and I lied that the red sugar syrup on it is chilli sauce so he didn't dare try it.

My friend was raving to me about Oink Oink pork burgers which used to operate in a van at the Jelutong night market so when I heard that they have moved to a shop, I was more than excited about giving them a try.

The shop is now called Ric's Burger and it's at the One Terrace Plus. It's no frills though it has air conditioning and service is fast. A basic pork burger starts at RM5 and you can add on extras.

 

We went all out to make our burgers decadent by adding cheese, a fried egg and bacon slices. The result? It was sloppy to eat with bits and pieces of the burger falling apart but we fell head over heels for it at first bite. The patty was very flavourful and juicy, though a tad on the greasy side.

Ric's Burger
2-1-28, The One Terrace Plus, Tingkat Mahsuri 4, 11950 Bayan Lepas, Penang.
Tel: 012 - 405 1586
Business Hours: 11:30am - 2:30pm & 5:30pm - 9:30pm (Closed on Sun)

Arm Candy

I'm taking baby steps towards building up a wrist party by mixing and matching the Vincci bracelets I got in December. Couldn't resist wearing it with all of the new clothes I got as well ;) The navy blue Padini top with exposed zip details at the end of the 3/4 sleeves has a roomy structure that goes well with a fitted pencil skirt.

It's been a while since I've last worn stilettos this high. The sensible part of me says it's an extravagance and it's going to be hell to walk in ... however the lil devil sitting on my shoulder (looking at you, Stacey!) told me you only live once. These will be strictly meant for occasions where I won't have to totter around much on these.

Wrist party of the day includes the same set of Vincci braclets with Thomas Sabo turqouse beads and a red, enamel heart. The navy top is incredibly versatile and works well with a casual pair of faded denim but the lining makes it far too hot to be worn to anywhere that doesn't have air-conditioning.

Are you all prepared with new clothes for the coming Chinese New Year? :D

Boosting the Retail Economy

I'd told myself after my earlier spree that I needed to Cut Back and just Quit Shopping.

Famous last words ;)

My Singaporean friend Stacey was such an enabler and it was just so hard to say no to her ... plus someone's gotta stimulate the retail economy since it's such a tough job *sigh*

I lost my last Fresh sugar lip treatment and as it has become a beauty essential, I needed a new one. Xmas is the best time of the year to get beauty products because of all the gift sets. I was thrilled to see a mini trio of sugar lip treatments all in shades that I'd never tried before at Sephora.

It's been a while since I stepped into Padini as I always thought they stocked just work wear but after seeing Stacey getting this very Massimo Dutti-sih navy top, I couldn't resist. The quality is phenomenal, it is thick fabric and has a caramel lining inside with zipper details at both ends of the 3/4 sleeves and the back of the top. It is slightly cropped so I need to to make sure I'm not exposing a muffin top when wearing this with low rise jeans.

We had an invitation for a Bollywood themed wedding so in addition to a saree, I thought these skinny gold H&M bangles would be perfect. This is just one set and I found it was enough to be used on both hands. I can see myself wearing these on weekends too, maybe not the whole stack at one go though.

Arm candy is always tricky for me. I've always liked it on other people but I've never had much luck at replicating the look myself until I saw Stacey picking them out at Padini. Mixing metals is something that divides the masses. I'm a Joiner in this case :D

This pair of Opera ankle strap open toed heels shall be officially my last shoe purchase for 2013. They kind of remind me of the Zara ones and they also come in my favourite shade of mint green but Stacey kept persuading me to go with these all black ones instead. I've been eschewing heels for a while since Bubs goes through a clingy phase where he insists on being carried but I couldn't say no to these. Plus every purchase of RM50 at Opera gives you a RM5 voucher which you can use on top of member cards for a 10% discount. Stacey, it's all your fault :p

Fashion Friday: the Cambridge Satchel Company

Look what my Mum got me from London - my very own Cambridge Satchel, yay! I've been lusting over one for the longest time ever. I requested for the 11" since I wanted something small and picking the colour was soooo hard. They're all so gorgeous and available in jewel hues - should I go with something classic like a chestnut brown? Something safe but unusual like a deep red or a rich blue? A trendy shade of metallic gold? In the end, I picked orange based on how it looked on other bloggers.

Mum called me from London in the middle of the night at the shop itself.

"You can't get orange, it's far too bright and glaring!" Since it was past midnight, I groggily agreed to light turquoise even though I'd no idea what colour it was.

I was a little afraid, to be honest, and was thinking of Mardi Gras shades.

When I finally got my hands on it, I heaved a sigh of relief. It's such a pretty colour, turns out that light turquoise to my Mum meant a pastel shade of Tiffany blue.

The buckles are fiddly and Hubs always laughs to see me scramble for them each time my mobile rings. Hmmph.

I love how structured it is and adds a schoolkid vibe (yes, I know it sounds deluded given that it's been decades since I last stepped into a school). The leather is stiff but I've heard reviews that it should soften down after a few wears.

It's been very versatile for me from pairing it with a girly, floral print dress.

To a tee and jeans - who'd have ever thought that baby blue and pale pink would go so happily together?

Fashion Friday: Stripes and Sparkles

I'm loving the idea of mixing something casual and chic, like a striped tee with something fabulous as a intricate necklace. Looks like you no longer have to wait for a fancy party to rock your best jewels.

Credit

If you need help on finding the perfect statement necklace, etsy seller Bayila has a stunning collection.
 

Credit

The Anna Karenina has to be my favourite, it'll look drop dead glamourous from a little black dress to something casual as a gray marl tee and skinny jeans.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to everyone celebrating it! Growing up, I kinda took everything my Mum did, from cross stitching personalised pencil cases for me, crocheting and sewing dresses, cooking my favourite dishes ... even doing my art homework when I couldn't do those hideous paper mache craft that every kid was forced to do ... for granted. Even when I was studying abroad, she wrote me letters with detailed recipes when I was craving for a decent Penang assam laksa and shipped over a bunch of bedsheets, pyjamas, even crockery so I could save my precious allowance on other essentials: new additions to my wardrobe makeup ;)

It took being a mummy myself to fully appreciate all the sleepless nights, worries, hopes and dreams that each mother has for her children. A piece of advice I read during pregnancy has stuck throughout motherhood: the day you become a mummy is the day you stop sleeping undisturbed. When Bubs was a newborn, he'd wake every couple of hours to cry for milk/demand to change his poopy diaper and during growth spurts, there were 45 min interval feeds, hoo boy, fun times indeed. As he grew bigger and started sleeping through the nights, I started worrying if he was fine since he was so silent. I remember tip toeing to his cot and trying to see if he was breathing in the dark and poking him just to make him move so I could go back to sleep assured. And that epic night where he was ill, refused to go back to bed after his medicine and we'd to bring him to walk around in the garden at 3am ...

Bubs sticking out his tummy when asked to strike a pose

Despite all those, it's definitely worth it whenever Bubs comes over unasked for a cuddle and a kiss, when he flashes that trademark cheeky grin of his, when he tumbles into bed and asks for a bedtime story :)

This year Hubs ordered mille crepes from Humble Beginnings again in my favourite flavour, Reeses Surprise, so very yummmm and more-ish. No prizes for guessing who had the largest slice.

Look what we got for Bubs - Jenga! I've never played with it before and I thought it'd be good to fine tune Bubs's motor development and teach him some patience.

We did lots of this ... plus crashing and restacking. I'm still a little surprised at how good Bubs is at this and how he's understanding the concept of rules. Anyone keen on challenging Bubs to a game? ;) When we got bored playing, we stacked the wooden logs like dominoes and set them all falling down in neat little piles.

And something arrived in the mail as a post Mother's Day pressie. I paid using Hubs's PayPal which he totally forgot about it until it arrived and he joked that if he knew about it, he'd have skipped the mille crepes. Cheapskate.

The prettiest pair of lapis lazuli earrings from Etsy seller Nell Belle Designs. She has the chicest and most elegant designs on her Etsy store and it was so hard to just narrow down to a single item. I'm getting really hooked onto Etsy shopping, I love how I'm supporting small business owners plus you are getting really good value for quality handmade items. The striking blue with pretty gold flecks and delicate gold wire wrap make these my current favourite pair of studs to wear daily.