Happy 9th!

My wedding anniversary presents came early this year. :)



This pouch fits my iPad. I love the two women smokers. Please don't ask why. ;)






Can you guess what this is?



It's the Abstract Signature Bow Velvet Marga. The color, design and material - I LOVE it to bits!

Random

Spotted in a hotel lobby. I get the 'R' button, it probably stands for 'redial'. But what about 'F'?



A bell jar of my favourite keropok! Heavenly!



A bowl of wanton mee but where is the wanton??



After 'digging' and 'stirring' around, I found ONE. One miserable looking wanton!
Is this oneton mee or wanton mee??
J suggested that the next time I order, I should say 'a bowl of wantonS mee, please'. Grrr!

Boutonnieres

I first noticed Kang Ji Hwan because of the boutonnieres he wore in the Korean drama 'Lie to Me'. I have never liked lapel pins but his boutonnieres look pretty!



So I asked J if he would consider wearing these. He surfed the Internet to see if these could be bought and to our horror, we discovered that one of these cost $28. In a spur of a moment, I told him he's not to buy them and that I will make them for him instead. I mean, it's just a flower cut out from a felt and some sewing right? Uh, how hard can it be?? *panic sets in*

Turns out it really wasn't too difficult. Thank God!



The eventual product. Not too shabby, yeah? :) I'm quite pleased. *beam*

J has an overseas conference in September. These should go well with his black business suit. I chose blue because J will probably wear his suit jacket with jeans. Maroon because he likes that colour.



Black button sewn at the back to match the colour of his jacket.



Oops, the colour is a little off here. His jacket is black and the flower a royal blue.



Kang Ji Hwan's boutonnieres get really fanciful but I don't think I will attempt to make these! Too complicated!



I love this one! Kinda reminds me of Hello Kitty's ribbon. I don't think many men can carry this off!

47

Happy National Day!

Pretty eh?

Don't waste that bread bag tie

First the clock, then the sofa and now it's the TV. Slowly but surely, they are coming to the end of their life span.

In preparation for the new TV, we used bread bag ties to sort out the different cables.

Good idea, isn't it? I learnt it from Pinterest. :)

Embracing messy hair

I have always wanted to bun up my hair but never knew how. My former boss used to come to work with her hair all bunned up and looking pretty. And I would think, 'God, I want to look that stylish when I'm in my 50s!'

Anyway, I rediscovered Pinterest the other day and chanced upon the sock bun. Literally, it's hair rolled into a bun using a sock! Search for 'sock bun' on Youtube and you will find many clips that show you how to do the bun.



My first attempt wasn't very good. You can see part of the black sock!



Second attempt looks better, yeah?



There's a lot of hair sticking out all over. I think with some pins, I should be able to achieve a neater look. J thinks there's nothing wrong even without pinning those strands down. Maybe it's time I learn to embrace a little messiness. :)

Keep calm

For a month, J's spanking new phone was naked with no protection.



Today, he finally used the iPhone case I bought in Sheffield.

*beam*

They all fall apart

After 5 years, things in the house are starting to fail us. :(



The clock
We didn't even notice it at first. After all, the clock is working well. But the calendar, whatever you call it, oh how it refuses to move. We thought the batteries had died so we tried changing them. Didn't work even though we tried several brands of new batteries. It's kaput. :(



The sofa
Oh we love our air sofa! It's called 'trunk'. I know, it's so weird right? But after 5 years, I still remember its name. I love that there is no armrest so we can seat 4 comfortably. The back of the sofa can be raised so you get a nice neck/head rest.



But the other day, my in-laws told us that the synthetic leather had cracked and there is this ugly slit right in the middle of the sofa. Actually, we had been warned that leather is not a good choice for a sofa that is to sit in a room that gets a lot of the morning sun. But when I see something pretty, logic and common sense escape me. Now, I have to pay a price for it. Boo hoo.

Rainy Saturday

We had this for breakfast today.

Sprite, vodka and fresh lychees

Refreshing!
It's a very simple drink to make, perfect for lounging around on a rainy day. :)

Shakespeare quotes coaster, part of a set of 6.

Wish I had bought more than a box. It would make a lovely gift!

J meets the AS doctor!

The Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) patients in J's support group met up for an annual dinner thingy and this year, the hospital invited Dr Asim Khan. J was to introduce him before he gave his talk and after the whole event, he grabbed the opportunity to get the man's autograph!



When J was diagnosed with AS in 2005, we were desperate for answers. We found them in the book that Dr Asim wrote. It was the only copy in Kinokuniya, which probably explains why none of J's friends in the support group has read it. AS is a chronic, progressive, painful inflammatory rheumatic disease. However, because J does not complain even when he is in immense pain and he tries not to let the illness cripple his life, many of our friends and even our families don't know or think much of this disease. We are grateful that the attacks come on and off and he is not in excruciating pain 24/7. Plus, there are now drugs that can combat the pain to a great extent. The down side to the drugs? Possible heart failure. :(

Nevertheless, we are thankful for each day and certainly we draw inspiration from Dr Asim, the doctor who has the disease himself and devotes his life to finding ways to help others with the AS.

Read about Dr. Asim Khan's story here.

June

Too cute! Pink Hello Kitty cup lid which matches my pink kate spade cup!

Loreal eyeshadow. Pink, green or silver?

Desperation

I have fallen sick way too many times this year. The plan to fight the sick monster includes an ionizer, loads of vitamin C tablets and probiotic capsules. NO MORE MCs from now to December I pray!

J cooks

J finally used the Happycall pan I bought him. Hurray!

I didn't manage to take pictures of the first thing he cooked. Think it was an omelette that fast disappeared into my stomach!

This is beef I think.

Yummy fried rice! Egg, fishcake and Chinese sausage (lup cheong) and luncheon meat

Fabulous Friday

Dinner at Chang, a Korean restaurant at Dempsey Hill.

Fried vermicelli (Jab Chae)

Kimchi Pancake  (Kimchi Jeon)

Spicy chicken stew (Maewundakgalbi-Jjim)

Colourful parrots at Dempsey, just outside Chang

Of bags

I bought this kate spade stevie for travelling and it turned out great. Roomy, light and secure with a zip top closure. It went on its first trip to England recently. I hope there will be more trips with this bag. :)

J received many compliments for this Coach bag I got him. You won't believe how difficult it is to buy something for him. For one, he has better taste than I. I'm almost sure that anything I choose is not good enough. Turns out he likes this enough and didn't chide me for the money I parted with in exchange for it. Thank God! :P

London May 2012

We did not manage to catch Wicked in Singapore and decided to do so in London.

Musicals are really not my thing. I fell asleep every time someone started to sing!

kate spade in London, Sloane Square

Paddington stall at Paddington Station

And we brought home not one but two Paddington Bears!

Sheffield May 2012

A very unnerving flight - filled with worries and turbulence that lasted over an hour

 Celebratory champagne for Dr J!

Even Sheffield has one.

This was taken at 8:40 p.m. on a night in May.

Long but cold summer days in Sheffield