Pandesaldreamer's Cafe

Belated Birthday Gift Post.

2011-01-19T11:51:00.000-08:00

I don't even know where to begin when talking about my love for the Keurig. My lovely parents, as a birthday gift, bought me a Keurig Mini Plus for my morning ritual. Since the husband isn't a daily coffee drinker (why? I have no idea!), making coffee out of our coffeemaker was starting to become a chore. I cursed myself every morning for not setting it on the automatic scheduled mode and ended up most days just not having my coffee which made for a sorta grouchy self.

So, when my Keurig finally arrived at my doorstep, I was ecstatic to use it! It was easy peasy, too! The greatest pro: you only need to wash a mug, that's it!

Most people think that they are going to have to spend a grip of money on the pods that contain coffee or that they won't like the coffee that is offered for the Keurig. Your solution: purchase the KCup Filter and then you can use your absolute favorite coffee and not have to spend money coffee you don't really care for. I recently tried the KCup filter so that I could enjoy some Peet's Coffee and had no problems whatsoever.

Now, every morning, I don't have to stress about washing a gazillion pieces of the coffee machine just to make a few cups of coffee. I just use my Keurig and I'm a happy girl. Now, go get one :) It's strongly recommended that you do!

Happy 2011.

2011-01-18T09:27:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! 2011, I welcome you with open arms and hope for the best! The husband and I had a low key HNY. We initially had dinner reservations at a local restaurant, but decided to cancel, stay home, and make a home cooked meal of turkey burgers, oven baked fries, and apple pie from Apple Hill, CA. All the while, watching Dick Clark's countdown.

I think it was the best decision ever!

This year, I started something new. Bikram Hot Yoga. There was a great deal at Living Social.com for a month long of hot yoga for $25. I just couldn't pass it up. Went to my first class a couple of weeks ago and have been loving it every since.

First class was kinda gruesome though. I ended up puking my brains out after class outside the studio. Second time, I was nervous about having the same experience, but thankfully, I didn't and it ended up being a terrific experience. Third time, absolutely fell in love. I love how it relaxes me, keeps me balanced, challenges me, and lets me sweat out all the toxins away.

Right now, the most challenging pose is the camel pose. It feels so unnatural to bend backwards, not to mention scary. But eventually, I know that I can do it. When that day comes, I am celebrating!

Calistoga, Hot Springs, Girl Time.

2010-11-24T18:21:00.000-08:00

Have I ever told you that I am just grateful to work with some of the best people? I love my coworkers, aka work besties. They make going to work not to dreadful and most of all, fun and that's a good thing!

A few weeks ago, we took a mini trip to Calistoga, CA for some rest and relaxation. I can't believe I worked the night before and I was running on zero sleep the entire day but yet, I was wide awake because I couldn't just let the day slip by me.

On our way to Calistoga, we stopped at a winery named, V. Sattui. I've always heard good things about this winery. It always seems to be hopping and bursting with tons of people on pretty sunshine days. But, it was just never on our list of wineries to go to. Finally, I get a chance to sample some of their wine and nom on some of their yummy food and cheeses.

We shared a bottle of Gamay Rouge which was one of my work bestie's favorite. I thought it was okay. Tasted more like a wine cooler to me and probably would be great on a hot summer day.

Once our tummy's were full of deliciousness, we headed on up to Calistoga. Calistoga reminded me of the Lake Tahoe mountains. There were so many trees surrounding the cute little city plus the downtown reminded me of an old western town that you forget where you are for a quick moment.

There were tons of cute little boutique shops, wine shops, and oh, an antique shop that I just had to duck into. Unfortunately, I left with nothing in my hand but it was fun perusing the sweet goods.

We stayed a night at the Calistoga Spa Hot Springs. It's not a fancy schmancy place, despite the cool name, but it's a good place if you want to take advantage of their several warm mineral pools, massages at a reasonable price.

We plan on making this an annual trip in November and I can't wait until next year to return! Yay for work besties and relaxation!

Tis' The Season....

2010-11-23T14:24:00.000-08:00

Usually, I"m a traditionalist and wait to decorate the house and start Christmas shopping until after Thanksgiving. But the other day, I got the itch to decorate the house.

Can I just express to you how excited I am to have a mantel this Christmas season? Last year, I was bummed that we couldn't hang up our stockings. It looked pretty ridiculous with the white 3M rubber hangers.

I decided to go with a multicolor assortment of ornaments this year as opposed to the last two years where it's been a gold-bronze color. I am kinda diggin' the multicolor theme, I must say. It makes me smile.

I got to use some of the ornaments that I purchased during the post Christmas sales last year. Like these bird cage ornaments. Cute, yes?

Two Years Old Already.

2010-10-22T18:40:00.000-07:00

This past Wednesday, our dear Maddie turned a whopping 2 years old. That puts her a full fledged teenager in dog years. Waaah. Where is all the time going? She's growing so fast.

It seems just yesterday, she was this small. Can you believe she actually fit in that weight scale?

In the morning, I quickly made a little birthday cone hat for her and with some stern talking, she managed to stay still and let me snap a photo of her, which pretty much explains the pissed look on her face.

She went for a morning walk, had some extra treats, dined on some gourmet dog food and had some organic frozen yogurt for dessert. What a life, this dog has! She sure deserves it because she's a wonderful dog. Love her! Happy Birthday Sweet Maddie! I hope you enjoyed your day.

Mainland Hawaiian Restaurants not so Hawaiian?

2010-10-14T07:00:00.000-07:00

A few days ago, I was craving Hawaiian food badly. I could literally taste the mayonaissey macaroni salad in my mouth.

So, I up and ordered a mini meal at our local Hawaiian restaurant. It came with three pretty descent sized boneless bbq teriyaki chicken breasts, one scoop of macaroni salad and one scoop of white steamed rice. It was more than enough to fill one's need. I can't imagine ordering a full sized meal as it is double the size!

The food itself was your average tasting mainland Hawaiian food. What got me is that I noticed that it was Chinese people cooking our " authentic Hawaiian food" which makes me wonder do Chinese people also own this Hawaiian food establishment? Regardless if they own it or not, it totally took away the feel of the place. Made me not want to order from this place again because, well, frankly, they ain't Hawaiian. Am I wrong for thinking this way?

I mean, I know that there are plenty of Korean places that are owned and cooked by Japanese people and visa versa and I really don't have a problem with that, oddly enough. Then there is Panda Express who have Hispanic workers making the Chinese food.

Last night, we made homemade loco moco's. Totally worth to make this dish at home. Moreso because you can control what goes in the dish. I sometimes make it a bit healthy by using ground turkey meat and brown rice. But last night, I went all out and used ground beef. Oh how it tasted much better!

My question is, do any of you feel slightly cheated when you go into a certain ethnic restaurant and come to find out its not that ethnicity creating the food for you?

Pottery Barn Inspiration

2010-10-13T14:11:00.000-07:00

I received the Pottery Barn, " Give Thanks" catalogue today and found so much inspiration to decorate the house for the holidays. Let's take a look, shall we?

Maize.
These are so adorable and not to mention, easy peasy! All you have to do is gather a bunch of dried Indian corn and wrap it all together using raffia. Voila, you have an instant centerpiece to your dining table!

Leaves/Twigs.
If you get a fresh tree each year or a fresh wreath and trim it, you can use those trimmings to fill a clear glass vase and a candle in the middle of it.

Manzanita Branches
I've always loved the look of manzanita branches. Always. They just scream nature chic. So, why not use them to make them Christmas chic. Hang a bunch of ornaments on the stems and placing them in flower pot.

Clear Bottles.
Turn those clear bottles into instant candle holders. Wouldn't these look darling over a mantel, a console table, or heck, even a dining table centerpiece lined along the middle? Romantic holiday
, yes?

An Aphrodisiac Weekend.

2010-10-13T10:18:00.000-07:00

A couple of weekends ago, I planned a trip for my family and some friends to Tomales Bay Oyster Farm. I love oysters. I can eat them raw or bbq'd and love to have them with some spicy vinegar, or a squeeze of lemon, or some dashes of hot sauces.

The day started bright and early for me and the hubs. The farm is a first come first serve basis for the tables. So, we wanted to ensure a a good spot for our party. We arrived at the farm at 8:00 am which is right when they open and we were seriously the first people to arrive to snag a table. There were some people that dropped by to pick up a bag or two of oysters, but that was it!

We knew that it was going to be a long 2 hours as our family wasn't going to arrive until 10-11am'ish and plus we had no cell phone connection. Can I say bonding time?

From the looks of it, we figured out the best time to arrive at the farm in order to get a pretty good table is around 10:00 am which is just like many people said on Yelp.

Going to the farm is somewhat similar to camping. You literally have to bring everything ranging from table cloths, utensils, cutting boards, towels, charcoal, liter fluid, matches, cups, plates, drinks. The list goes on and on. The farm does sell the absolute necessary items but they charge an arm and a leg because they can.

Finally, what seemed like days, our family and friends arrive and the fog finally burned off. Yay! Be warned, the trip up to the farm is a very windy road as alot of my cousins and friends got motion sickness. One had to even pull over and throw up!

We get to finally eat our oysters! They sell oysters ranging in sizes from extra small to large. We opted for a bag of 50 smalls ($40.00) and a bag of 50 mediums ($48.00). I personally thought the smalls were a perfect size for oysters. I really don't like it when the oysters are insanely huge.

It's good to have pretty good shuckers! We couldn't believe how expensive they were though. They can range in price from $9 to $12! Unfortunately,we found the more expensive ones to be way better. Ofcourse, right?

Dogs are allowed so long as they are on a leash. Naturally, we brought Maddie and my other family members brought their dogs too. All together we had 6 dogs at our camp. We sure looked like a dog pound there.

The day although long was a fun filled day spent with close family and friends. We all agreed to make this event a yearly event. Let's hope we can start this tradition.

Oh, Ludobites. You excite me!

2010-10-12T19:24:00.000-07:00

Ever since I read about Ludobites 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0 Weezermonkey's blog, I just had to have a reservation on the next adventure of Ludobites. Luckily, I entered my email address to subscribe on his upcoming events because Ludobites 6.0 is in a couple of weeks!

Obtaining a reservation was no easy feat, especially online. I'm not sure what is worse. Trying to call them and get a busy signal or trying to upload a page very slowly online. It was pure torture. Unfortunately, I had no luck obtaining a reservation. I came pretty close, but my connection ended up being timed out. However, the husband was lucky enough to snag not one, but three reservations online. I swear, the man has the biggest luck when it comes to getting things online. He was able to snag my iPhone 4 in June online using his Dell computer while standing next to me as I was trying to get it on my Apple computer. Something is wrong with that pictures, yes?

We got one for October 22nd and will probably give it a fellow foodie friend. We also got two reservations on October 29th for 6:15pm and another one at 6:30pm. We plan on inviting 4 other friends to enjoy the delightfulness we are going to prey upon. I should mention that they will be offering a communal table for "walk ins" that seats a total of 12. So, if you weren't able to snag a reservation, you can always come way early and try and get a seat on the big table.

I'm so looking forward for this delight. Honestly, I wasn't a fan of his food on Top Chef Masters nor was I a fan of his personality. But, something about his food and his inventiveness surrounding it intrigued me while reading about his infamous Ludobites. My palette cannot wait!gt

Boo!

2010-10-12T12:19:00.000-07:00

Did I scare you? It's been a long time since I've been in here... so I'm not surprised that I did scare you. Been hiding :)

Halloween is in full swing at our house. I'm not one for Halloween, but I sure love the decorations. Recently, I spruced up our living room with just a couple of items purchased from the dollar bin at Target.

I snagged these adorable ghost candy dishes for $2.50. Halloween is a time when I wished I had a desk at work so that I can display these cute little things and let everyone help themselves to some candy. Isn't he a cutie?

They also have a candy corn shaped dish and a pumpkin one too!

I also got these pumpkins made out of twig material that is a bit messy. Everytime you pick them up, they leave a little bit of twigs behind. Hopefully. they'll last a long time. At $2.50 a piece, I don't care though.

Oh, and Maddie. Sweet Maddie. I picked up a costume for her. The hubs wasn't too keen on it, but to each his own. She's going to be a ladybug.

She doesn't look too pleased to be in this getup, yes?

Her face says it all! It's only once a year Maddie. So, don't worry. :)

Weekend Shenenigans

2010-08-10T10:09:00.000-07:00

I live for the weekends. I think part of it has to do with me working every 3rd weekend of the month and usually when its my weekend on at work, something exceptionally fun is going on and I can't participate in the festivities. Boo.

This past weekend, it was bitter sweet.

Sweet.

Celebrated my BFF's 36th birthday by having a decadent soul food lunch at Sandra Dee's BBQ and then later on trekking down to Berkeley to just literally "hang."

It's a good thing that we changed to jeans and a sweater because it was freakin' cold in Berkeley. The weather forecasters are not joking that the bay area is not receiving a good summer this year. It looks and feels like winter. What?

We perused one of our favorite stores, Anthropologie while we were down in Berkeley. Love, Love, their clothes, accessories, and shoes there. Why do they have to be so darn expensive?!? I'm waiting for these sunglasses to go on sale. Yeah, I know, they are only $24.00, but I refuse to pay full price at this store.

In the evening, we dined at Cafe Rouge and noshed on Hog Island Sweetwater Oysters and minty mojito's.

Love me some oysters. I'm hoping to make a trip to the Hog Island Oyster farm soon and bbq them there.

The Bitter {sweet}.
The next day, the family and I headed down to SF to visit my lovely grandma that passed away three years ago. It still feels like yesterday when we lost her and the pain is still there of missing her. I'm so glad that she stayed with my mom the last three years of her life. Its because of that, I was able to grow even more close to her and spend good quality time with her. I miss you grandma and always will.

Summer Concerts.

2010-08-04T13:29:00.000-07:00

Last month, I had the giddy excitement to attend the Rihanna + Ke$ha concert. When I accepted the invitation from a friend to go, I soley accepted it on the likes of Ke$ha. I'm a so-so fan when it comes to Rihanna. I blame the radio for overkilling her songs. Can I say, " ella, ella, ella, eh?"

Buuuuuuuuuuuuuut, on the night of the concert, my feelings were the exact opposite. Ke$ha sucked. She sang songs that I hardly recognized. Dinosaurs? What? Oh, but Rihanna, she rocked it. I didn't realize how many hit songs she had and was happily dancing in the aisles with my friends to all of her ballads.

Before the concert, we noshed at one of my favorite happy hour restaurants in midtown, Lucca's. I couldn't pass up their cucumber mojito. It screamed summer, hanging with your girls, and refreshing all in one!

Then, we noshed on prawn pasta in lobster sauces, grilled artichokes and fresh soup and giggled the night away. Our server was so kind as he made sure that we got out of the restaurant in time to make it to the concert with reasonable time.

I love these girls. They are my besties at work and always have a great time when out. No drama. That's how I roll. That's how we roll.

Rihanna wore the most obscure outfits. Looks like she favored bodysuits, or what I like to call them, "onesies."

After the concert, all of us were on a Rihanna hight. Like, literally. We came out singing all of her songs and even listened on the way home her new song with Eminem.

It was a great night.

Coastal Camping

2010-08-02T12:46:00.000-07:00

I've never really been a fan of camping up until this past weekend. I'm a newly reconverted camping fan! In the past, camping to me was dreadful. Dirty all the freakin' time, dry hot weather, dreaded taking a shower in the less than clean showers, bugs, bees, bears, etc. But, I think I've found a solution to my camping dilemma and that is, find a campsite that is near nice places such as Pismo Beach.

Pismo Beach was my saving grace. We were able to hang out in cool, breezy weather, and then return to our campsite in the evening hours where it was finally in decent weather temperatures and lounge for the remainder of the night. It was the perfect combination!

This past weekend, we drove down to the Central Coast and camped out at one of the KOA campgrounds in Santa Margarita. I have to give much props to KOA as they were exceptionally good at making sure the bathrooms and campgrounds were clean. Heck, even their porta potty was clean. Well, that's what I heard from my fellow family members. I didn't have the heart or the courage to go into the porta potty. My rule, go in a porta potty unless its absolutely necessary.

This time around, the weather was perfect to set up our tents. Last year, it was so windy making it difficult to even hold down the tents to stake them. Below is our humble abode for 4 days/night. Inside, we had cots that took up majority of the room inside and made me a wee bit clausterphobic. I thought I was going to have a panic attack.

The next day, Friday, we all decided to head to Pismo Beach. I was very excited because I've never been to Pismo Beach. The weather, at first, was foggy and cold, but the sun began to come out mid afternoon making it perfect to walk around and explore the little beach town.

We encountered the infamous Splash Cafe that my lovely Facebook friends kept telling me to check out. The line was super long, but fortunately, it went by fast! We ordered a bowl of their award winning clam chowder, with seafood topping and a loaf of sourdough bread. (Thank you V for giving me this tip!). It was very, very, delicious and needless to say, worth every minute of the wait.

Noshed on a seafood platter combo which was next door to Splash cafe at a place called Brad's Restaurant. that consisted of clam strips, shrimp, halibut, and calimari and oh, some good ole' chips! It was oh-so delish!

Then on Saturday, we headed over to Grover Beach. This was my favorite part of the trip! We were able to drive onto the beach and have a little tailgating beach party all day long.

Dogs are allowed on the beach, so long as they are leashed. Fine by me. Maddie is a rebel when it comes to being off leash on the beach. The last time we off leashed her, she went ballistic. She started chasing a bird and kept going farther and farther into the ocean. We seriously thought we were going to lose her because she wouldn't respond to our voice commands.

I can't wait for next year to camp again! It truly was a enjoyable weekend! I heart summer days.....

It's July Already and Summer Curls.

2010-07-02T11:37:00.000-07:00

I swear, with each year, time just seems to go by faster and faster. Remember when we were in highschool and we just couldn't wait for the time to go by fast? I know that I just couldn't wait to get to the age of 16, then to 18, then to 21. Now, I'm hoping for the reverse.

A week ago, I decided to jump on it and get a Japanese Digital Perm. I made the appointment a month or two in advance at Star East Hair & Beauty Salon in SF. To sum up my emotions that day, I was really nervous because well, it's a freakin' perm. The last time I had a perm, err, a spiral perm, was back in 1990 and I absolutely hated it even though every single girl around me had one. I vowed since then to not ever get a freakin' perm ever again. See exhibit A below. I know, right? What the hell was I freakin' thinking????

I picked this particular salon solely on the well received reviews it had on Yelp, coupled with the fact that it seemed a bit more reasonable in price. The digital perms can go as high as $300+.

So armed with a good book, snacks and water, I came into the salon fully prepared to endure the 4 hour time frame it will take to get my "perm." Oh, but it's a digital perm. That's what I kept telling myself to keep sane.

I cam in at 10:30am and my hair was literally done within 4 hours, 2:30pm. Here are the initial results. I had to ofcourse, fix my bangs myself because he had all of my bangs going to one side that didn't really compliment my face structure. Oh, and we both agreed to not curl my bangs as well. Great idea, that was!

The next morning, after a big ole' water spray, some curling cream product and anti frizz spray, and some twirling with the fingers, it came out like this.

It's been a week so far and I'm loving it more and more. I have to be completely honest with you. It really took me awhile to get used to it since I had straight hair for more than 15 years. The curls are relaxing more and getting more relaxed which is making them appear bigger. Would I do it again? Perhaps. I only say this because it takes a butt load of time to have it done. But, it is very low maintenance. No blow drying required! Just put in product, twirl and let it air dry. Sure, at first, you feel like a wet dog after getting out of the shower, but once it dries up, you are good as new!

It's Officially Summer!

2010-06-09T05:00:00.000-07:00

Not sure what is up with these days. I've never really been one to get pedi's often. It's usually for a special occassion. But lately, these past couple of months, I've been getting them like, every 2-3 weeks and that is no bueno for my bank account.

What can I say though? I'm addicted. My recent color is OPI's, " Don't be Koi With me" and I am absolutely smitten by it.

At first, I thought it made my skin color look rather dark and for some odd reason, I kept thinking of the WHAM! video, " Wake Me Up, Before You Go-Go". The video had all sorts of neon colors and some even glowed in the dark. But that thought was abruptly stopped when my girlfriend had no clue what I was talking about. She's 24. I'm 34. Need I say more?!? Le Sigh. I feel old.

Anyways, going back to the color. It's my first time to ever go bright which means to me that it's officially summer according to my toes! Please excuse the extremely large pores on my legs. I need to shave!

Sirius Dog Shopping.

2010-06-08T10:38:00.000-07:00

At the SPCA Doggy Dash there were tons of doggy vendor booths. I try to get as many samples as I can and save my pennies, but at this one particular vendor, I just couldn't resist.

The vendor is called Sirius Republic. They have the cutest, well in my opinion, wide width buckle collars. They come in all sorts of pretty designs and they are handcrafted with cotton fabric and nylon webbing. I couldn't decide which one to purchase for Maddie. Ugh, decision, decisions!

In the end, I ended up purchasing the Purple Bloom collar that looks simply marvelous on her. It kinda makes her look like an Etsy dog, yes? Hehe.

You Say Tomato, I Say Tomatoe.

2010-06-08T09:57:00.000-07:00

This is my first year to grow tomatoes and basil on my own. I decided to plant them in pots since our yard is landscaped and I didn't want to mess up our drip system by digging a big ass hole in the ground. Heck, I haven't a slightest clue where our drip system runs through. Shows how much managing I did when we had our backyard landscaped, yes?

In the beginning of my tomato growing process, I was a bit scared because our weather has been acting funky. I planted them in April and since then, we experienced cold mornings causing some of my leaves to kinda look all funky. Like, they sorta look like experienced some "freezing", yet I'm not entirely sure as to what frozen leaves look like.

But, thankfully, our weather bounced back to good ole' sunny sunshine and my tomato plants and heck, even my basil plant that I thought was dying on me look great!

Right now, I have this ONE cherry tomato that is a rich red. I think it's time to pick it, but I don't want to because, well, it's just ONE FREAKIN' TOMATO!!!! Ugh. Why can't they all just harvest at the same time?!?

Here's my basil plant that I seriously thought I killed it as soon as I planted it. It was looking so blah and to think that in the description it said that it's a "tough" plant. After reading that and after seeing what my basil plant looked like, I didn't think I was cut out for this planting business. But, I decided to repot it with Miracle Grow and water it more, and viola, it bloomed. Now, to google if having flowers on a basil plant is toxic or not?

Here's my Beefsteak Tomato plant that a friend shared with me. So excited for these to start growing so that I don't have to go to the Farmer's Market. I'm sorry, but the FM's vine ripe tomatoes are bank!

Have any of you guys grown some vegetables this summer? Any tips you can give this newbie?

Weekend Festivities.

2010-06-07T09:37:00.000-07:00

I had a nice surprise to come home from work on Thursday morning. Husband declared that the sewage backed up at his work, and so, he didn't have to go in because they closed the entire building. Yippee, Skippy!!! I love it when the husband is off on weekdays especially on weekdays that I'm off! It got way better because when we got home that evening, the office called again to say that he has Friday off too as the cleanup is still being worked on!

You would think that we would take off somewhere. But, we pretty much stayed local and hung out. Ran errands, ate BBQ, and watched the Celtics game, (HAH!).

The weekend was a different story as we were on the go, go, go! We went to the SPCA Doggy Dash on Saturday morning. This was our 2nd time participating in the event as we had tons of fun last year. Lots of smiling dogs, happy people, beautiful day, and lots of walking, walking, walking.

Here's a pictures before taking off to the Doggy Dash. She has NO IDEA how much fun she's going to have in the next 30 minutes.

As we were walking towards the event area, Maddie was extremely excited. Like, really, excited! She kept crying as we were approaching the area because she saw so many dogs ahead of her. She just wanted to play!

When it came time to walk around the park, she finally settled down a bit, which we blamed on her being a wee bit of tired. There were all kinds of dogs in sizes. From the itty bitty's to the medium sized, to the extreme large dogs like the Great Dane's!

We were pretty much walking in sync with this oh-so-cute basset hound, but he paid no attention to Maddie. Poor Maddie. =(

There were dogs in strollers.

There were dogs dressed up in tu-tu's!

We strolled through the area of breed specific rescue booths. Just had to snap up this picture of the greyhounds. I can't help but wonder if they would kick my ass if I ran with them.

Our weekend was jam packed with the addition of celebrating a friend's 40th birthday and another friend's 40th/graduation from Neurosurgery residency at Stanford, we are totally spent! How was your weekend?

No BBQ Memorial Weekend

2010-05-31T12:18:00.000-07:00

No BBQ's this weekend for us. But it was definitely a weekend filled with lots of gatherings with friends and family.

First, we celebrated one of our good friend's 40th birthday. During the day, he drove up to Tahoe to do a 72 mile bike ride. Can I say awesome? It was safe to say that he was starving when he returned and what a better way to end a 72 mile ride with a rib eye steak with baked potatoes and veggies. I had every intention to have a hamburger as I was really craving a burger, but ended up ordering a rib eye too!

The next day, it was my turn to finally watch the Sex and the City, Part Deux movie with my lovely girlfriends. I was dying from seeing all the Facebook updates from friends saying that they were seeing the movie and loved it! I couldn't wait until it was my turn!

We had sushi, bellini's, and shared great laughs. Love me some girl time. I don't think I've laughed so much and so loud in a long time, despite the disappointing probing of the restaurant. Can you believe that they had the balls to call me 15 minutes before our reservations to see if we were still coming as they had another party of 7 people that needed a table. WTH? Really?

Oh! I can't forget to say that Wingwoman made a special surprise appearance! I couldn't believe it! I was so ecstatic that she came along. I haven't seen her since her raunchy bachelorette party.

On Sunday, we celebrated my little brother's 26th birthday by noshing on garlic steak sandwiches, fried ravioli's, and farmville conversations. Gotta love, Facebook to bring a family together, yes?

How was your Memorial Weekend?

The Rules are Up!

2010-05-26T11:26:00.000-07:00

I couldn't help but purchase this ginormous wooden sign when I saw it on Etsy by seller, BarnOwlPrimitives. I think it will look great in our entryway which is slowly but surely coming along.

All Natural

2010-05-26T09:10:00.000-07:00

Believe it or not, I had my very first visit to a Whole Foods during our trip to the coast. We have a couple of Whole Foods near us, but I never felt the need to go there especially since it's very expensive and I get my satisfaction from Trader Joe's.

I decided to pick up a couple of dinner items to eat while I watched the infamous LOST finale. The husband and I are still debating about the ending and its theories associated. We can't help ourselves. I love it! Any LOST fans out there? What are your thoughts?

Oh, as I digress. Getting back to Whole Foods. Ahh yes. So I wanted to purchase a couple of items for my dinner. I remember reading a review about Whole Foods and their wonderful tasting natural honey roasted peanut butter. It wasn't a high praising review, but for some reason, it clenched my curiosity and I just had to swoop up one!

I didn't get the opportunity to run the peanuts threw the intimidating machine, but I was able to snag an already pre-packed one.

Yesterday morning, the hubs decides to make himself a peanut butter and jelly toasted sandwich for his breakfast and I remembered that we bought the au natural peanut butter. I was ecstatic to try it, and man, oh, man, this stuff was gooooooooood!!!

What I love most about this peanut butter, or natural peanut butter in general is that it has no preservatives, but what I dislike about it is that it is pretty expensive!

Happy Anniversary!

2010-05-25T18:31:00.000-07:00

Two years today I married the other half of my heart.

In celebration of our 2 years, we ventured off to the California coast for some rest and relaxation. We stayed in the charming town of Los Gatos which is about 15 minutes away from the coast of Santa Cruz-Capitola area.

We were so smitten by the town. From the lively small town feeling in the downtown area to the oh-so charming yet modern homes surrounding the area made me want to say, " I'd like to live here one day." Yeah, I loved it that much.

We found a Japanese restaurant called Hachi Ju Hachi in Saratoga which is a couple of towns next to Los Gatos. After reading the many high reviews on Yelp, I knew it would be place the husband would love to try since he's such a Japanese enthusiast.

It truly was an authentic Japanese restaurant. No mayo based sushi rolls at this place. Our favorite dish was the yellowtail. It screamed freshness from the very first bite!

We also relaxed at the beach in Capitola, dined at a very dog friendly restaurant (psst, they even had a doggy menu!), and ended it with watching the 4 hour finale of LOST. Yes, we are the romantics.

Oh, can't forget what the hubby bought. Since, the second year is the "cotton" year, he bought me some flannel pj's from a cute company called,
" The Cat's Pajama's.

Surprised that I've never seen/heard of these pj's. They have the cutest prints! From cupcakes, hearts, to sushi!

Since I'm in love with our dog, Maddie, he bought me the snow dog pj prints. hahahah, gotta laugh!

Wants.

2010-05-08T07:36:00.000-07:00

I want these.

While shopping for my Pre Teen book, The Carrie Diaries, at our local Barnes and Noble, I stumbled upon these cute little owl bookends. I showed the husband and he kinda gave me a weird look as if I was bazonkers for liking such a thing. Le sigh. He'll never understand.

TGIF

2010-05-07T14:50:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday Everyone! I get to celebrate an "actual" Friday with all of you. Usually, my Fridays are on a Sunday, a Wednesday, a Thursday. Celebrating " Fridays" on an actual Friday is like every 2 weeks or so and it makes me feel kinda normal, like I have a Monday through Friday kind of job. Do you think I said the word Friday enough in this paragraph?

Today, I woke up around noon which is atypical of me. Darn night shift. I hardly get any sleep because of you. But, its okay. The sun is shining out and I wanted to take full advantage of it. Ofcourse, what do I do? I stay in and bake cookies. Aren't those saved for rainy days?

I've been craving the peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies from the recipe adapted from the infamous Magnolia Bakery in NYC. Ever since I made them a few months back, I've been dying to have another one. But, I resisted for some time as they literally are like crack. No lie. I brought them into work when I first made them and every single person was eating like 4-5 cookies each. Add that up and that's all whole meal already!

While my picture doesn't do the cookies justice, Smitten Kitchen's picture sure will.

I bought my mamasita a mother's day gift. I figure, since she always goes on walks, why not purchase her a little shuffle? I know that she's not one to be tech savvy, but hey, I want to introduce her to future. I wanted to get her the green or white one, but my local Target didn't have it in those colors. So, she's stuck with a plain silver one. I'm so hoping that she uses it. I think she'd really enjoy it. What did you get your mom for Mother's Day?

Well, I hope everyone has a great weekend! I can't wait for tonight as we are going to grub on some Thai food tonight!

2010-05-06T12:34:00.000-07:00

Ahh, finally something semi-worthy to blog about! Its been quiet these past few months amongst the Dubyah household. Nothing really special has been happening except just literally enjoying the sunshine at its finest. I don't know what it is with me these days, but I try to get out every chance I get whenever I see the forecast set for extremely sunny days, or even semi sunny days. Heck, I'll take anything so long as it's not dewey drops.

So here's what's been going. Please excuse my randomness.

I was surprised that the hubs purchased Maddie the Bacon Breakfast and Eggs treats that my dad lovingly gives her when she's at my parents house. She loooooves them! I guess when he saw that there was a $1 off coupon making the total come to a mere $1.29, he spontaneously without a single apprehension tossed it into our shopping cart. Wow. That was a first!

They are meant to replicate an actual breakfast. Too funny, yes?

Today, I cooked, no wait attempted to make a third Filipino dish called Chicken Afritada. When I saw that my girlfriend on Facebook was making it, I thought, why not? I'll give it a go. Don't you just love how Facebook can inadvertently cause you do so something spontaneously?

Looked at this recipe and didn't think it looked too complicated.

One and a half hours later, I produced this!

I can't wait to eat it for dinner when I go into work tonight. For those that are wanting to be in the "know", chicken afritada is baseically a chicken and/or pork dish that is tomato based with potatoes, peas, and carrots. Oh yeah, and us Filipino's for some odd reason are obsessed with putting hot dogs or vienna sausages in our foods. So, with tradition, I put some hot dogs in my chicken afritada. But, ah, only the best hot dogs! They were cut up Nathan's hot dogs!

Someone's Junk is Another Person's Treasure

2010-03-24T11:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon I made a trip to our local Goodwill in hopes of finding some good treasures. I love shopping at thrift stores. Just love it. Love it even more after reading blogs that give a breath of fresh new life to an old pieces of furniture.I just feel so inspired to do the same exact thing.

On this trip, I was in search of a fruit bowl. I was getting tired of seeing our fruit in its plastic bags sitting on the counter. Plus it was starting to get in the way. I blame it on the hubs for purchasing a 5lb bag of naval oranges.

So, with an item in mind, I went and came out with this.

I also snagged a couple of vases for $0.50! This one is sitting on our mantel for the time being. I can't wait to purchase some nice looking succulents to put them in. But, I'm sure that it can function as a bowl to put things in like paperclips/rubberbands on your desk or cotton swabs/cotton balls in your bathroom.

Do you enjoy shopping at thrift stores? What have you purchased that is your absolute favorite?

Getting' out of dodge!

2010-03-23T11:05:00.000-07:00

I just can't get enough of this yummy weather we've been getting here. Every time it's my day off, I try to get up early and soak up all the sun I can get! I feel as though Mr. Rain is going to make his appearance soon.

Yesterday was one of those days. Even though, I worked the night before, I was determined to not stay home and head on out to one of my favorite places to hang on a beautiful day--- 4th Street in Berkeley, CA. They have a slew of little shops and restaurants allowing you to just walk around and peruse. My most favorite stores there is the Crate and Barrel Outlet, Paper Source and ofcourse, Anthropologie!

Maddie got to go to one of her favorite stores, George! She got to eat up a Lamb treat for free, courtesy of the sales associate that gave her one. I was going to get her some because I noticed that she loved it. But, when I saw that they were $5/lb, I opted to not to. Sorry Maddie.

For the most part, the hubs and I just sat in front of Peet's, people watched and just talked about stuff going on at work and in our lives. It was lovely because we were truly enjoying the day.

Where is your favorite place to hang out on a beautiful day?

Insomnia, Sodium Lunches and White Elephants

2010-03-19T15:00:00.000-07:00

It's been nearly 3 years since I've been working 12 hour night shifts and yet, I still haven't established a good sleeping pattern. Last night was my "Monday" after being off for 7 days and just like all of my first nights of working, I end up waking up at either 10:00 am or 11:00 am. Weird though because when it's my days off, I can sleep in all day long. Ugh.

Today, I am taking in a high sodium packed lunch today! Oh yes. It's the good ole' Cup of Noodles pre-packaged soups and some fried up pot stickers that were leftover in the freezer. There's something about finishing the food in our freezer and/or refrigerator that gives me satisfaction. Do you get like that sometimes?

The top of my tupperware looks like this and I just love the mini quote that's on it. If you can't see it, it reads, " I Wish That It is a Good Day Today." Gotta love, it yes? That's what I pray what my nights at work will be. Lately, we've been experiencing sick calls, medical leaves, and family leave which is unfortunately leaving us short handed. It makes for an ugly night, hence the reasoning for my mornings coming home to a cold beer in hand.

I purchased this cute tupperware at the Japanese Dollar Store in South San Francisco called Daiso. It's not entirely a dollar store, but majority of their products are relatively cheap. I love this store for its quirky Japanese inventions, little cutesy bento boxes, classic tea cups that could easily be gifted for a White Elephant Christmas party. Trust me, you'll be the most admired person there as your gift has the most class. Hah! Yah'll know what I'm talking about right? I can count the amount of times wherein I've received some " WTF" gifts from White Elephant parties.

Anyways, going into work tonight for night 2/4. I'm nearly there!!! Hope everyone has a wonderful Friday tonight and safe weekend!

My current food addiction.

2010-03-18T12:18:00.000-07:00

I'm currently addicted to the uncooked tortillas at Costco. You get 40 uncooked tortillas for $6 and change. T.O.T.A.L.L.Y worth it! You can find them in the freezer section.

So easy to make too. You get a pan, heat it up, put the uncooked tortilla in the pan. When it starts to puff up a little, that means its time to turn it over.

It'll look like this.

The hubs and I decide to make fish taco's with these. We cheat . We buy fishsticks. But this time, we decided to look up the recipe for Rubio's infamous white sauce that they put in their fish taco's. There were a gazillion recipes found on good ole' trusty Google, and I settled upon this one.

With a squirt of fresh lime, some shredded cabbage and ofcourse, cilantro they mimicked Rubio's fish taco's. Well, in my head it did and it totally satisfied my craving.

Don't these look great?

Going Green!

2010-03-18T10:21:00.000-07:00

No green was worn yesterday on my part. Instead, I wore black and grey. Surprised that no one embarked on the opportunity at the local Target to pinch me. Unlike my little brother who wrote on this on his facebook update:

Got pinched by someone I don't know. That's just askin to get punched in the face. Hell nah!

But, I couldn't help but start my morning off on the right foot! I drank my cup of coffee in a really green mug. I felt pretty " in the spirit" while drinking from it, I gotta say.

In commencement of the holiday, the husband decides to purchase a pre-marinated Harris ranch corn beef brisket. We decided to put it in the slower cooker and let it do its thing for 6 hours.

I'm not really a fan of the corn beef brisket, aside from the canned stuff. I could never acquire the taste for it. So, as the corn beef cooked in our house, I was getting nauseated by the smell of it. Throughout the day, I thought about calling up the husband to get me some chow mein on his way home. But, I decided to suck it up, aka, save $$, and eat it.

Here's how it all looked on my plate. The verdict? I still don't like corned beef. I'm wondering if it has to do with the premarinated version. Maybe if we buy a corn beef that is plain and we season it ourselves, maybe it will taste better? Thank goodness for the mashed potatoes that I made. They turned out very creamy.

We almost went to our local froyo place to grab some Irish Mint yogurt, but thinking it was St. Patty's day, I knew there was going to be a hoard of drunken college students in the midtown area and no parking. So, I leave you with a picture of Maddie with her new green fleece jacket that my mom and dad bought her at our local 2nd Saturday Art Walk.

Spring Fever

2010-03-16T13:55:00.000-07:00

I'm finally receiving beautiful weather on my off days from work. It was so miserable having to work on days when the weather was gorgeous but then having ugly rainy weather on my off days. Made for a gloomy me.

Our backyard is getting me very excited for the Spring and upcoming Summer. I now understand and can bond even more with my mother when it comes to planting flowers.

Today, I purchased a couple of Spanish Lavender plants and planted them in my new IKEA ceramic pots. A steal of a bargain I tell yah! Only $5.99! Thank you MOM for informing me of this lovely deal. I think I may need to swing by the local IKEA and pick me up some more ceramic pots.

While planting, I noticed that our corner Cherry Blossom tree is starting to produce some cute flowers. Yay!!! It just these little things that make me smile and just want to enjoy the beautiful day.

This is my first time to garden and I'm quite nervous that I may really suck at it. But, at the same time, I'm excited to see what I can learn about the plants and see how they turn out during the Spring and Summer months.

Have you guys gotten into planting recently?

Second Chance

2010-03-09T10:10:00.000-08:00

I've decided to give Skinny Jeans a second chance. I don't know why. But, it's really the only way I can sport my boots. Really.

Over the weekend, I visited Old Navy to purchase a few items for a baby shower I was attending. Once I walked in, why was it that they were having a super duper sale on jeans and summer dresses? Two of my favorite things!

I ended up purchasing two skinny jeans. A pair of
" The Diva" skinny jeans in a dark rinse. And another pair that had me reminiscing of my junior high-highschool days because it had a zipper on the side of the pants.

I wore both pairs of the weekend and felt absolutely fat! LOL Still trying to get use to them. I mean, I sorta enjoyed wear them with my boots, but I yeah, not used to them.

Maddie + Sunbathing + the Vet

2010-03-09T09:16:00.000-08:00

I swear this dog never ceases to crack me up every single day. Her thing is when it's super sunny outside in the backyard, she likes to just sit in the sun and just bask in it. I quickly found this trait out when we got our backyard landscaped as I found her sitting in the sun on top of my flowers! F!

This morning, since the sun was out, she prodded me to let her outside because well, what else?

She either sits like this or lays down on the bark. Every now and then, she'll change position and just sit. Too freakin' funny, yes?

Yesterday, I had to bring her to the vet (again) because she developed an infection in here right eye. My suspicions are that she got infected when she went to the All Day Play at the Wag Hotel because a couple days later, I see mucous coming out of her right eye and then later on the day her eye gets red. Ugh, really??? Do I really have to shell out another $100+ to the vet??

I'm just griping because a few months ago we had to bring her to the vet because she had an ear infection. Then a few months before that we had to bring her to the vet because she was vomitting. Thankfully, everything came out normal, but my wallet hated me. Seriously thinking of looking into pet insurance. But, I can't help but think that once we do decide to invest in it, we won't be heading to the vet for years to come. Hah. Isn't that how it always works?

I'm Still Alive.

2010-03-03T12:26:00.000-08:00

Excuse me for the serious drop in blogging. My gosh, I can't believe I let it get this critical. Been more of the lurker these days.

Been doing absolutely nothing these past couple of months other than hanging out and working. Hung out with some college friends a few weeks ago. Since we all live all over the place, we figured meeting about halfway would be the best option for us. So, we chose to be like hens at one of my favorite hangouts, A-Cote.

From their decadent mussels, to their crispy pommes frites, and not to mention yummy cocktails, this place is awesome to enjoy each other's company.

Been baking quite a lot these days. I blame the rain. Oh, the rain, how I despise you. I know, I know. We need it. My backyard plants need it and I have to say that I've noticed a small change. Small blooms are beginning to come out and its making me quite happy. I can't wait for late Spring early Summer to arrive so that I can see how our backyard is really suppose to look like. But, I digress.

Back to baking. Just last night, I made some peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies to which the recipe was adapted from the infamous Magnolia Bakery in NYC.

It was posted by Smitten Kitchen which has posted some pretty good looking recipes. Gotta say, they were pretty darn good. A little sweet for my palette, but dude, thumbs up!

I've also been cooking our dinners at home. Sure, there are plenty of times when I just want to go and eat out, but I think of the money we spent on the groceries and how much money we'll be saving if we just stay in and cook. Le sigh. So, I cook and we eat and I'm satisfied, I guess. No new recipes though. Been rotating the ones that we've enjoyed over the past couple of months. I really want to start cooking more ethnic foods though. Like, more Filipino foods. Gotta hit up the mamasita to learn it though.

Maddie is still adorable as ever! Just the other day I took up the opportunity of the " First Time Guest" special at Wag Hotel and dropped her off at the all day play for free since I had two semi long meetings at work.Normally, it's $30 for all day play. At first she was scared when we entered the front doors and shaky too! Gosh, I swear this dog acts abused sometimes. Anyways, when I picked her up later in the day, they told me she warmed up eventually after about 5 minutes and began playing with the other dogs.

I love this place. I know I've only experienced it only one time, but I just got a great vibe from the people that work there and the place itself. It's so warm and inviting once you walk in and you don't hear a single bark. The employee showed me a little video she took of Maddie during the playtime just to show me how comfortable she was. That put a smile on my face.

Post-Post-Post Christmas Sale Shopping Rocks!

2010-02-05T13:30:00.000-08:00

It's been ages since I stepped foot into a Kmart. I don't even know where the nearest Kmart is in my city. I blame the Walmart culture. They are everywhere. But, I really wish there were more Kmart stores around me because they have far better products in their store. Always have a soft heart for Miss Martha Stewart. As always her products rock, but man, Miss Jacqueline Smith. Have you guys seen her bedding? Holy Crap. Just like the movie, " Sweet Home Alabama, " I'm going to say, " That Jacqueline Smith sure knows what she's doing."

Anyways, as I digress.... me and my mamasita went to her local Kmart because her BFF told her that they were having a 90% sale on their Christmas stuff. Initial reaction: there's just going to be JUNK!

Oooh, I was sorely wrong. I scored all this stuff for a whopping $3. Two rolls of Martha Stewart wrapping paper. Could not pass that shiz up for $0.39! WTF? Ridiculous, right? Scored some boxes for like $0.19! Even more ridiculous!

It gets worse. So, next door is a Big Lots. I'm going to be old school and call them Pick n' Save! Hah! There's my age out the door. Anyways, this past year, I baked a whole lotta' cookies partly due to inspiration from my girlfriends who were also baking during the holidays, but also because I was being thrifty with my $$ this year. I had tons of fun trying out different cookie recipes. Although, I thought they tasted really good at home, I was nervous to give them out for fear that the recipients wouldn't feel the same way. I lack the confidence as I'm a newbie to this whole cookie baking stuff.

When it came time to wrap the cookies, I had the difficult time digesting the cost of a tin can. Dear God, $4 for a tin can??? Really? So, instead I purchased little white boxes that wrapped them in pretty ribbon. Ahh, but this time around, I got smart! Found a whole bunch of Christmas tin cans for $0.20! You betcha I filled up my cart with all this clanging!

2010-02-04T10:29:00.000-08:00

So, last week's menu planning was yet another successful week! My personal favorite of the week were the Banh Mi's, aka, Vietnamese Sandwiches.

I think the most important aspect of this sandwich is the bread. The hubs was insistent on purchasing the baguette from the Vietnamese restaurants. When I asked him why can't we just purchase a baguette from the regular grocery store? His response. The bread at the Vietnamese restaurants are way better.

and, Oh, he indeed was right. It was much softer inside and was descently still good the next day! Oh, and the freshness of the bread? Sooo good! They baked it the day we bought it. The price? $1 per baguette! Can't beat that right?

In the midst of cooking, we finally managed to put up our solar lights out in our backyard. It's been what? About 6 months since we got them. My wonderful parents spoiled us again and purchased us these lights when they saw that they were on sale!

The solar lights come with rechargeable batters inside of them. You would have to put them in areas that have direct sunlight in order for them to recharge during the day and light up at night. Thank goodness for having sun over the weekend because I was a little bit worried that we wouldn't be able to charge them.

I did get rather obsessive though. I kept observing during the day from morning to mid afternoon where the sun was shining and where it moved during the day. Hopefully, I didn't disturb our drip system as the hubs pointed out. Wups! Didn't think about that. I guess we'll find out when its time to turn back on the drips!

Here they are scattered sporadically in our backyard. Unlike the hubs, I knew they were to be scattered around the area. He thought they were to be lined along the cement. I think he was thinking of lights that go in front of your house along the steps. He's such a city boy, I swear!

The lights did light up at night even though they had only 1 day of recharge. The instructions tell you that they need at least 2 days. Phew! Although, they aren't as bright as non-solar lights, they do light up just enough to give light in the backyard.

Food Planning is fun!

2010-01-24T21:06:00.000-08:00

The weekly menu planning that I did was a success all around! I do have to admit that I was suppose to cook last Friday, but with working my ass off {literally} at work, I needed a huge break and a cold draft beer. I picked up where I started and continued on with the last two meals of the week though! So, no food wasted. Phew!

My favorite thus far of last week's menu was the Wasabi & Panko Crusted Pork Chops with Gingered Soy Sauce. Although I didn't follow the recipe to the T, like I didn't use egg whites and I didn't have any Sherry or Sake on hand. It still came out pretty darn flavorful and I think I'm going to keep this recipe in rotation!

For the upcoming week, here's the plan.

Thursday: Vietnamese Sandwiches, aka Banh Mi Thit Heo Nuong

I've been craving these sandwiches like no other these days. I think I can seriously eat these every single day. They are that good. Let's hope they taste as good as the Vietnamese places where I purchase them.

Sunday: Thai Coconut Curry Shrimp

Monday: Chicken with Artichokes and Angel Hair Pasta

Tuesday: Spinach Cheese Manicotti

Wednesday: Flank Steak with Mashed Potatoes

Taking Control.

2010-01-16T00:00:00.000-08:00

The other day I blogged about how I want to start effectively plan out my meals at home. Well today is the day! I officially started the planning and I gotta say that I'm pretty darn proud of myself. Again, let's hope that I can stick with this plan. I'm counting on the fact that I can keep myself accountable by blogging my weekly meals here and then discussing them afterwards.

Since I work night shifts, I only planned the meals on nights when I'm off. Hubby is pretty much on his own on my work nights and I'm not too worried as he can make do on his own.

I also tried to plan out meals with ingredients we have at home already and need to use and plus I took the advice of HappeyWifey and stuck to ingredients that are sorta close together in order to avoid going way over budget. Capeesh?

Here's my plan for the week of January 18th-January 24th.

Monday: Thai Chicken Saute.

Picture taken from Cooking Light

Tuesday: Wasabi & Panko Crusted Pork with Gingered Soy Sauce

Picture taken from Cooking Light

Friday: Homemade Pizza

I saw this recipe while perusing the food blogs I read. It was a pizza recipe with Cremini Mushrooms, Wilted Spinach, Butternut Squash and Feta Cheese. The picture is really what sold me, otherwise, if I saw this on paper only, I think I'd pass on it because really...it does sound like a hot mess.

Picture taken from Sugar & Spice by Celeste

Saturday: Celebrating my Mom's Birthday.

Sunday: Turkey Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes and Veggies

Need I say more? The husband bought a sh*tload of potatoes yesterday and so what better way to use them by making up some whipped potatoes!

So there you have it folks! My meals planned out for the week! I'm super excited about this. I actually had alot of fun planning out the meals.

2010-01-15T00:00:00.000-08:00

Dinner last night was a success! We actually invited a few guests over because one of them was living in the Phillippines for about a year. There's a slight chance that he may return back to the homeland and thus, we won't be able to see him for God knows how long again.

The hubs and I made Japanese Curry and Pork Tonkatsu. All of our guests had never before had the pleasure of eating Japanese Curry so they were really looking forward to the treat. Unlike, Southern California, Japanese Curry is not really known up in Northern California. I think the closest Curry House is in Cupertino, Ca.

While making dinner, some of us enjoyed a glass or two of some really good white wine. I decided to open up a bottle that one of our good friends gifted us over the Holidays. It was a bottle of 2008 Blackstone Malvasia Bianca, Limited Release. If you like slightly sweet wines, then you may like this one, too!

Post dinner, we enjoyed some hot tea and coffee and ofcourse some Ginger Elizabeth chocolates. It's a little chocolate shop that opened up in midtown Sacramento a few years ago. Cute chocolate boutique. Any woman would do a double take whenever they pass this store.

I've been dying, quite literally, to get my butt over there to try and sample a few of their stuff. But, I could just never make it over there. Thankfully, one of our friends brought over a little brown box of chocolates for all of us to sample and enjoy our coffee/tea with. Oooh, I think I was teased with a bit of heaven. Indeed, yes.

I just wished that last night's dinner was on a weekend night so that we all could have stayed much longer and gabbed about anything and everything through the night. Cheers!

New Resolution: Cooking More Often.

2010-01-14T00:00:00.000-08:00

Wow, so far this has been 3 posts within a 4 day timespan. Not bad, Stacy... Not Bad. Let's hope that I can keep this up.

Last night, I tried out a new recipe. It was the Beef Stragonoff from the Cooking Light website. In the past, I usually make Beef Stragonoff the easy way which was brown up some steak and throw in a can of Cream of Mushroom, a little bit of water, and let it simmer for a half an hour or so. Any of you guys make it this way?

It was super easy to make and tasted pretty good considering that I didn't add the Dry Sherry and the Fresh Flat Leaf Parlsey (um, why did I just capitalize the first letter of each word? LOL) because I just couldn't find it in my local grocery store.

I did feel pretty good about eating it, too! Made it with whole grain egg noodles and low fat sour cream. It was creaaaaaaaamy all the way!

I'm pretty sure that this recipe would be good with grilled chicken, too!

This cooking thing has got me thinking. My friend, Bernbaby, subscribes to the Cooking Light magazine and her routine is to choose recipes for the week, go grocery shopping and make a different dish everyday. I really want to try or get somewhat near Bernbaby's routine. It's not only cost effective but more healthier, too!

Tonight's dinner is Pork Tonkatsu and Japanese Curry. By the way, if you are in the market for a good Japanese Curry, try out the brand, Kokumaru. It can be found at your local Asian market or for sure at your local Japanese market.

I'll also probably make a heaping bowl of turkey chili since the weather we've been having has been kinda chilly.

Have you guys started cooking more?

2010-01-13T11:18:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend, I participated in celebrating my sorority sister's, aka running buddy, baby shower. It was held at her parents house and hosted by another one of my sorority sister who is her BFF.

No details were spared as her BFF did an excellent job in decorating the place, providing the yummy food, and creating the games. Heck, Running Buddy even had a sash around her.

I gotta say that the diaper game where you melt chocolate candy bars in the diaper and guess what candy bar is in them was pretty hard. She pretty much got a few candy bars that looked the same. No Snickers, c'mon??? Guess what though? Appparently, I've been eating way too much candy because I knew what I was talking about! I won!

I won me some $5 Footlonooooooooooooong! Woo to the Hoo! Should come in handy when I'm broke as a joke and need me some lunch.

I gotta say that I loved all the various onsies hanging around the kitchen and family room. They were so cute!!! By the way, she's having a baby girl and honestly, girl clothing are way more cuter than boys. I had the hardest time choosing which outfits to buy her. I wanted to buy Baby A every single item I saw!!!

There was so much yummy little finger foods. My personal fave. The homemade potstickers which were running buddy's grandma's recipe. Her grandma gave her the secret recipe and not her mom. Hah. Gotta love that story and awww at the same time that she would give it to her only granddaughter. Running Buddy... do you take orders?

I had a great time spending time with everyone and showering Baby A with plenty of gifts. If you guys are interested, you can follow Running Buddy's pregnancy journey here.

2010-01-09T22:06:00.000-08:00

Hello There. Let me re-introduce myself. It’s been a minute too long since I’ve blogged. I blame myself and my mental laziness. I swear, one of my goals for 2010 is to blog more even if I have absolutely nothing to talk about. 

Let’s see. Ahh yes. Christmas. Well, Christmas was nice. No Holiday cards sent out this year, although we did receive a heaping amount of them this year. I really, really, really wanted to send out Holiday cards and a letter update of our 2009 year, but alas, we had no printer ink and so there went that idea. 

The hubs and I received a wad of cash from the parents. Needless to say, it’s already gone. Spent it on the house. Got a lovely ledge mantel for our fireplace. I’ve been itching for one all year long and even more in November and December as I wanted to hang our stockings. But, sadly, our stockings were instead hung over our couch and a bit on our front door handle as we didn't get to purchase the mantel until post Christmas. Ahh, maybe next year, yes? 

It’s the LACK wall shelf in black-brown from Ikea. It’s a super steal of a price for $29.99 and much much longer in length compared to Pottery Barn’s maximum of 4 feet.

We also purchased a ledger to hold various sizes of framed pictures eventually. Also another steal of a bargain at Ikea for $14.99. 

 It's comparable to the Holman Ledge at Pottery Barn but much, much more affordable. {Picture taken from Pottery Barn}

For our entryway, we also purchased a little molding filled with hooks to hang our jackets and for Maddie to hang her leash and harness. It's the LEKSVIK rack with hooks from Ikea. I just had to swoop it up when I saw that it was only $9.99.

While it ain't no Cast Iron Row of Hooks from Pottery Barn, 

they will do perfectly. I like it, the hubs likes it, and  my wallet loves it.  

I have to say that Ikea has definitely stepped it up these past couple of years. They are the FOREVER 21 version of a furniture store and I absolutely love it. 

Hope everyone is having a great start of a New Year! Here's to having a great 2010! I can't wait! Bring it on, baby! 

2009-12-21T00:18:00.000-08:00

It has been quite the busy weekend for me. My weekend began on Thursday. Only had to work 2 nights last week. Yes!!! I just have to mention again how I love working 12 hour shifts. They are the best!

Let’s start from the beginning shall we?

Friday I turned a whopping 34. Big Fat F. I can’t believe I’m 34 and inching closer and closer into my late 30’s. Life is moving way too fast for me. My mom was right when I was a young 18 year old. She said, “ Stacy, just you wait. Once you turn 21, it will all go way too fast for you. “ I wanted to grow up so fast so badly. I hate to admit it, but she was so right on the money. Every year seems to go by faster and faster.

I spent the day with my good friend, No Fear. We brunched on some French food and ended it with some good ole’ Mexican Hot Chocolate. I’m so blessed to have No Fear in my life. We spoke for hours about running, work, relationships, our fears, our doubts. It’s so good to have a friend where you can pour out your heart and soul to.

The hubs and I dined at a local restaurant called Boulevard Bistro. It’s located in a part of Sacramento that I would never have thought would hold such a place. No offense, Elk Grove, but when I think of fine dining, it’s really not the first place that comes to mind.

We enjoyed the restaurant very much. It was a good “bang” for your buck. I especially enjoyed the cozy warm feeling of the restaurant. It’s a house that was built in 1908. Inside, it still feels and looks like a regular home; just without all the typical furniture of a home. We sat in front of a huge fireplace that had a gorgeous mantel. Poor hubs was taunted every 20 minutes or so about the gorgeous mantel. I've been wanting a mantel for our fireplace and have been saying to him every single day with our Christmas stockings in hand that, " I wish we had a mantel to hang these!"

At times, I did forget that I was in the city of Elk Grove, but when I looked out the window and saw the lighted "open" sign across the street, I was taken back to reality. Dam.

On Saturday, it was my little brother’s college graduation from Sacramento State. He graduated with a BS in Biological Sciences and I’m so happy and proud of him. Attaining a degree is no easy feat. It took him about 6 years, just one year more than me (phew!). But, he did it and I’m an extremely proud big sister!

His girlfriend and friends made some pretty cool signs and blew up his graduation picture. I thought it was pretty funny and cute at the same time!

On Sunday, we were supposed to attend our annual Christmas gathering with our friends. But, sadly, we couldn’t make it. So bummed about it, but hence there is always next year! I can’t believe that we’ve been keeping up this annual Christmas gathering for quite some time now. I think it’s been over 10 year now and we still manage to gather even with all of life’s changes.

I pretty much spent the day baking all day on Sunday. I don’t think I ever baked this much in my entire life! It was fun though. I made a batch of Mexican Wedding cookies that I’ve been dying to try. I even contemplated making these as our wedding favors. What stopped me is the thought of baking a gazillion of them a week before the wedding. I didn’t want to deal with the stress. I also made Giada’s Florentine Sandwich cookies. Instead of using semi-sweet chocolate, I used Nutella. Can’t go wrong with that right? Finally, I had to make some good old fashioned chocolate chip cookies. They looked pretty basic when paired next to the other two cookies, but I’ve been wanting to make them for some time and drink a heaping glass of cold milk.

I’ll be working the next three nights, but I do get to have Christmas day and the day after off! I can’t believe Christmas is literally just around the corner. I have a few more Christmas gifts to purchase and probably will do that all tomorrow. I’m crazy, I know. But hopefully, it won’t be as crowded. Here’s to wishful thinking! Pray for me, please!

The Reminders.

2009-12-11T15:27:00.000-08:00

Last night at work, I had the hardest time getting through the first portion of my rounds. I don't think anyone can get over the passing of their close loved ones no matter how much time has passed. At least, that's what I think. The pain with time eases, but the emotions of missing them seems to just increase.

The passing of my grandma happened 2 years ago this past August and there's not a day where I don't think of her. Whether it be for a few seconds, minutes, or hours. The thought of her always passes through my mind.

It doesn't help that I work in a hospital. A hospital in which majority of the patient census is elder senior citizens. I enjoy working with these patients as I love hearing their stories and watching them light up as they reminisce about their younger days. But, there are times when just for a moment, I look at their wrinkles fingers and hands or even their eyes and see my grandmother.

I. Miss. Her. So. Much. Last night just made me miss her so much more. It's the things that I see family and friends do when its time to say their goodbye's that makes me miss her even more.

One example was when I witnessed a mother that is just a few years younger than my own mother to which death was nearing and her children were calling their relatives and allowing those relatives to say their goodbye's to her. Hearing the caller's crys and words expressed to their mother made me well up with tears.

I couldn't help but think of when my own mother was doing the same thing for her mother. She too, held the phone to her mother's ears to allow some of our relatives who were far, far, away to say their goodbye's.

Grandma, if its true what most people say which is that you are looking after us all the time, I just want to say that I truly missed you even more last night. It was so hard to get through work at times without breaking down. I wanted to give that family a hug and tell that I know how they felt and what they were going through. Regretfully, I didn't. I wish I had the strength and courage to have said what I felt.

So Glad to be Home.

2009-12-09T11:39:00.000-08:00

It's been a whirl of a weekend. I'm so happy to be back in the comforts of my own home and bed for that matter.

Let's start how my weekend went shall we?

The hubs and I went to Las Vegas so that I could partake in my 2nd Half Marathon of the year. I don't know what I was thinking to schedule two half marathons one month apart. Who does that? Oh that's right. Me. Ofcourse.

You can read about my race here.

When we returned, we made a quick stop home because over the weekend, we received a phone call that our house alarm inadvertently sounded off. It's pretty frustrating to be hundreds of miles away and receive a phone call from the alarm people and tell us that they aren't quite sure why the alarm went off. Why the hell are we paying you then? Morons.

The hubs graciously asked if they can have the police swing by to make sure everything is okay and fortunately, everything was okay. The house is secure! But, we just wanted to see for ourselves before we headed off to my parents house to pick up Maddie.

Thankfully, our front door was locked and nothing was taken away. Phew!

We were so excited to see Maddie. I always miss her whenever I leave out of town. She's starting to get along better with my parents little dog, Jordan. Err, I mean, Jordan is starting to "tolerate" Maddie more. I don't blame him. She's like a gazillion times bigger than him.

I haven't even begun decorating our house for the holidays. So far, I have a snowman rug outside and a Christmas runner on our table. Just purchased a fresh wreath at Trader Joe's for $11.99 and wondered if I should have splurged a few dollars and got the eucalyptus one instead.

Hopefully, we can get our tree this weekend. My parents are going to give us their 9ft fake tree that they hardly use as we were telling them that we want to invest in a fake tree. Hey, I'll take it. It's beats fighting the crowd post Christmas and hello, it's FREE!!!!

How are the Holiday decorations coming along in your household? Are you like me and have like a handful of items up or are you already way ahead of me and have a slew of stuff hanging all over your house?

A Second Chance of Life.

2009-11-24T16:09:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, I work as a Registered Respiratory Therapist. Since the summer, we have been hit with the H1N1 and I have to admit that at times, I would get scared of this H1N1 epidemic because of how fast it can affect your body and sometimes cause the patient to deteriorate quickly and/or expire.

In September, we had a patient come into our ER. I remember working this night and my friend/coworker, " No Fear" was working the ER. I think I had the floors that night. Anyways, she was just in disbelief how a patient that was experiencing the usual flu-cold symptoms comes in with extreme weakness, shortness of breath and lungs that appear so shot on the xray that we were already wondering if he was even going to make it the next few days.

This patient was in our hospital for 30 days. We aggressively treated him respiratory wise by placing him on all kinds of machines in order to assist him with his illness. Some of these machines we don't often use at our hospital, so it was quite the adrenaline rush at times to have to monitor these machines on a patient.

Well, fortunately, the patient survived and wanted to personally thank the staff in the ICU that cared for him. What better way to do it than by bringing in with him a news crew! Two of my coworkers are in here. One of them being our Clinical Coordinator who had absolutely no clue that she was being filmed. Odd because there's like a huge camera in your face. Haha.

Anyways, I'd just thought I'd post this touching story as I am just so happy that this patient was able to pull through and spend the holidays with his family in his own home and get a second chance to live!

Please click here to view this special occasion.

Turkey Day is fast approaching.

2009-11-23T12:29:00.000-08:00

Last year, since we just purchased our first home and got married that year, we figured, why not host a Thanksgiving mealat our house. I didn't realize how much work goes into hosting a Thanksgiving feast. Like, I REALLY didn't realize. So much cooking and cleaning and good Lord, the post cleaning and the impaction of your refrigerator. Good God! How does one stay sane?

During the week of, we did a lot of cutting and cleaning. It didn't help much either that I had to work majority of that week,too! The night before, the hubs and I prepped the turkey with the whole brining method and hoping for the best that it turns out ok. It was our first time preparing and cooking a turkey and so you can say we were a bit nervous of what the outcome would be since, afterall, it is the main star of the meal!

This year, Thanksgiving is "thankfully" at my parents house. It's usually is and has been for many, many years at their house. Phew! Took the pressure off of us. Plus, I'm glad it's back at their house as their house is a midway point for everyone. Poor family last year had to endure a 3 hour drive up to Sacramento at a snail pace. I handed them a beer once they came through the door as they looked like they needed one.

I can't wait to see my family as it's always quite the fun event. We drink, play games, watch tv, sing karaoke, talk, gossip, and just pretty much lounge and enjoy each others company.

Where's Thanksgiving for you this year? Will you be hosting it at your house? Are you making any entrees, appetizers, desserts for Thanksgiving?

The Weekend.

2009-11-22T20:02:00.000-08:00

This past weekend was a semi- eventful weekend.

It was raining on Friday but it didn't stop me from going out shopping. I remember seeing an advertisement in the Sunday paper a week ago for Wo rld Market. They were selling mugs that replicated the to-go mugs for $7.99. I've always wanted one of those mugs and nearly bought the one that sells at Paper Source for $20.

So, off I went to WM in search of those mugs. They had a solid a red and green ones and a odd looking plaid one. If only the plaid one was in much better colors, like umm, Burberry plaid colors? Right? That would make a pretty delicious looking cup. I should write to WM and let them know this.

I snagged one for myself and two more for Christmas presents. Wanting them to be used year round, I got all green mugs even though I loved the red mug. I'm a sucker for the red cups at Starbucks. But, I knew getting the green mug would be the perfect call.

The mugs are porceline and have a silicone top. It's also dishwasher and microwaveable safe. Love that!!!!

On Saturday, I ran my very first 10K race. If you are at all interested, you can read about it here. Slept pretty much majority of the day once I got home from the race which made Saturday a big fat dunce. Oh wells, there's always Sunday right?

Well, Sunday I woke up to make a heaping pot of Colombian coffee and enjoyed it in one of my newest mugs, a San Francisco mug. I found out that Starbucks puts out each year a series of collection mugs for cities. You can only purchase them in those designated cities. So far, I've collected Sacramento, San Francisco, and most recently because the hubs visited Chicago for a speech, I got Chicago! They also have state mugs, too! Ofcourse, I have the California one already.

Ran a lot of errands on Sunday. After running the 10K on Saturday, I've realized that I am in super dire need of outdoor winter running clothes. So, we headed to the Nike outlets and I guess it was meant to be because they were having a pretty good sale! Additional 30% off all the clearance items as well as some other items around the store which so happen to be the items that I really liked. Score!

I got two pairs of micro fit/dri fit pants, two long sleeve dri fit shirts and a headband to keep my little ears warm for $2.49! I've never worn a ear warmer before and I'm not sure how to wear them, so I tried it out in front of my bathroom mirror. I think I need to fiddle with this warmer, yes?

Afterwards, we headed to another WM location because I wanted to see if they had another pattern for those mugs in which they didn't have at the first WM location that I went to. Boo, they sold out on all of the mugs. Couldn't believe it. So, I ended up just mosing around and found these lick- your- lips hot chocolate flavors! They are $1.99 each and I think, that is, if they taste as good as they sound, I am going to include them with the mugs I bought.

Weekend Roundup.

2009-11-17T10:02:00.001-08:00

Super busy weekend this past weekend. I was able to switch shifts with a coworker to get Saturday off so that I could host and watch Manny Pacquiao kick Cotto's bootay!!!! It sure was a great fight and glad that it lasted 12 whole rounds. It's really true that when Pacquiao fights, the Philippines stops. Every single Filipino is watching the fight, literally. Not to mention, constantly updating their Facebook while watching the fight. Hilarious comments!

Hosting a family gathering is no joke. While I enjoy having the family over and noshing on good, the cleanup is always the aftermath of it all. Dam, there was so many dishes and pots and pans to clean. Ugh. I'm still trying to clean up the mess we made.

Parents brought over a couple of succulent plants for me. I decided to display them in the front of the house. So pretty! I love succulent plants. The best part, you don't have to water them as often. Hopefully, I kill them even with the lack of watering that they need.

Target boots came in last night. While I like the way they look, I am not liking the shortness of them. They fit just above my ankle. Wish they were just a little bit higher. Should have purchased the taller ones. But, I'm going to give them a whirl out on the streets or play with them with various outfits and decide if I want to keep them or not. They are comfy, though!

Maybe I should just get the UGGS. Ugh, dammit!!!!

Cooking and Days Off.

2009-11-12T12:56:00.000-08:00

When I am on my 7 days off from work, it's the time me and the hubs cooks and sometimes try different recipes for the first time. I think after living together for a year, I've developed a system when he cooks. I try to clean up as much as I can when he cooks. I'm basically his assistant per say. I remember in the beginning of us living together, I was wide eyed with the amount of mess he makes in one sitting while cooking. So, now, I just bite my lip (at least I try to at times!) and just clean up as he cooks. I sometimes, pray that he'll just adapt to this way of cooking and cleaning through the years.

Anyways, this week we tried two new recipe's. There was a sale on the sirloin beef at the local market and the hubs brings home 4 pounds worth of the meat. Ugh.

We decide to try out Sandra Lee's Crispy Orange Beef with Broccoli. I've never made a Sandra Lee recipe before, although I've watched her show countless times on the Food Network. Whenever I watch her show, I always think to myself, " why couldn't I think of that?" She never fails to come up with clever way to come up with recipes and this Crispy Orange Beef with Broccoli is one that doesn't disappoint! Its definitely a "fake out" of Chinese food and easily satisfies your craving for Chinese food in my opinion. We loved, err I loved it so much that we made it two nights in a row!

No picture was taken of our meal, but trust me, it was really good.

Last night, we tried a Thai Peanut Turkey Burger. After reading about this delicious recipe on KimberlyMichelle's blog, I made sure to bookmark the recipe and try it. The picture isn't mines, but is taken from the website of A Good Appetite.

It sure was good. The hub was trying to figure out what the flavors reminded him of. After a few bites, he realized that it reminded him of a gyoza dumpling sans the yummy wrapper. Just the inside of the gyoza. I suspect it has to do with the fresh ginger I grated in it. Maybe, I put too much?

Do you and your husband cook often? Who does the majority of the cooking in your household? Do you like to experiment with different recipes?

Too Cute for Words.

2009-11-11T07:28:00.000-08:00

I'm a honest to God, cross my heart, true sucker when it comes to little details. So, when I saw this on How About Orange, I smiled warmly. How can you not?

It's an easily attainable detail to do. She uses a plastic lid that she got from her local deli and cut out the words using an exacto-knife. Hmmmm, I still have a lid from the potato salad I bought from our grocery store. What shall I write?

A Steal of a Bargain.

2009-11-10T10:46:00.000-08:00

I've been digging the knit boots by UGG for a few years now. But, I just can't seem to muster myself to prop down the $139 for them. I already have two pairs of UGGS that I barely use. I think I'm traumatized from them a bit because the last time I wore them, I was watching a movie and suddenly in the middle of the movie, I became extremely hot. Like hot enough to take off my boots. Thank goodness that your feet doesn't sweat in UGGS, but still. I felt weird taking my boots off in a movie theater. Don't worry. I didn't lay my naked feet on the floor. I put them on top of my boots.

Anyways, on a whim, I decided to check out Target's boots. Lately, they've been having some cute shoes. Guess what I found! Their version of the knit boots. I couldn't believe it. It's called Muk Luks Horizontal Tree and they sell for $44.99. A huge steal, yes?

They also have them in a lower cut which is what I purchased. They sell for $18.99. Even though, they are called "booty slippers," you can still wear them outside as they have a hard surface on the bottom of the shoe.

The only down part is that they don't come other colors. The lower cut comes in just one other color and that is creme. I wished they came in black or grey. But oh wells. I can't complain given the price. Hopefully, when they arrive, I'll instantly like them as I did when I first saw them online. A full post boot report will be posted shortly. I promise.

Backyard is done!

2009-11-09T08:41:00.000-08:00

Our backyard is done. Yaaaaay!!!! So happy to be looking outside to trees and plants, instead of dirt and weeds. The even better part, Maddie can go out and do her biznatch-- privately! For a year, we've been taking her outside to the front lawn and I would get embarrassed when people would walk by and see her do this. It's bad enough that our lawn showed it, too! We would have random yellow patches on the lawn.

The stain lady did a really good job. She's a one woman worker and I can't imagine how she does lots that are way bigger than ours alone. Much kudo's to her! Thank you, stain lady. You rock!

This is a picture that is in front of our door. I caught Maddie doing "sprints" back and forth and through the bark causing some of the bark to get loose onto the cement. Oh yeah, also caught her putting her nose in the bark. Luckily, I caught her in time before she got to the tarp to do some serious damage. So, needless, to say, whenever we catch her on the bark, we tell her to get off. Sorry, girl! It's way too early to be messin' up the backyard.

Now, all we need to get now is some patio furniture. Having to wait on that since patio furniture is pretty expensive. It's like shopping for indoor furniture all over again. If you have some places where you can suggest for some reasonably priced patio furniture, send them my way!

Nearly Done!

2009-11-03T16:34:00.000-08:00

Today, the landscapers kicked butt! They planted all of the plants and trees and placed the bark in between the greenery. It's looking really good and I'm just loving how its turning out.

Tomorrow, the stain lady will be coming to stain the concrete a brown color. I'm really more excited about this part if anything. I can't wait to see how it turns out!

I took my very first video of our backyard. Eeek, I hate hearing my voice. Maddie makes an appearance, too!

In the Works.

2009-11-02T11:07:00.000-08:00

Our postage stamp backyard is slowly coming along. The landscapers started working on it about two weeks ago. Starting with putting in all the drainage. We were and still are a bit worried since our backyard had a bit of a slope. We got mixed reviews from our estimators saying that we should put a small retaining wall because of the slope to no retaining wall is necessary; it's all in the draining placements. Ultimately, we decided to not place a retaining wall and go with placing a proper draining called "decko draining."

The area we are located in is partly known to flood. So far, we haven't experienced any flooding the few times it has rained. Let's hope it stays that way!

Last week, they just slabbed on the salt cod concrete. So far, it looks really good! I can't wait for the acrylic lady to come and stain it with the chocolate brown/light brown colors we chose together. We chose to go with the salt cod concrete because it was more reasonable. What I would give to have either stamped or pavers, but it was just way out of our budget. I guess you can say that the salt cod concrete is a ghetto version of stamped? They place salt all over the concrete for a few days . After a few days, they wash off the salt and BAM, you see all kinds of dibbits in the cement.

Here, we plan on putting lawn. All for Maddie. Parents kept insisting that we get the fake grass. The one that looks and feels like grass. It doesn't look like the Brady Bunch backyard grass or the mini golf turf anymore.

But, I just kept thinking about when she poos and how gross it will be to wash that stuff off. Like, what if it still smells and such? Eww. Plus, since we weren't asking for alot of grass, alot of landscapers won't give you the fake grass or recommend against it because it cost more. So, that basically solved our dilemma.

I can't wait for it all to be finished. I'm hoping that once its all finished, we can throw a little bbq to celebrate and break it in.

The hubs has been doing quite the research on gas grills. Fortunately, we have a gas hookup for a grill, so we don't have to deal with propane stuff.

We found out that all Webers hardly ever go on sale. They are like Apple Mac's. The closest to a good deal we found on Webers was no tax, free delivery and no additional fee to put it together at California Backyards. That's how they compete with the other competitors who sell Webers. It's a good deal and we nearly got one there. So glad that we found out this information as we would have been going through all these stores comparing prices of Webers. As much as we would love to splurge on a Weber, I think we are going to go with Weber's other brand called, Ducane. Its made by Weber and has all the Weber like qualities, has great reviews, but not the price.

Sandwich of the Week!

2009-10-29T14:54:00.000-07:00

The hubs and I are pretty into eating gourmet sandwiches. When we started using our panini presser, we used it for days. We would think of various ways to make a mean tasting grilled cheese sandwich. Experimented with pears, various cheeses, breads. You name it. I think we narrowed our choices of bread to ciabatta and sourdough exclusively.

A few week ago, we were wondering what to have for dinner that evening. I had a plan of just making lasagna, but honestly, we weren't really feeling lasagna that night. When we saw Giada's, pork and fontina cheese sandwiches that afternoon, I think we both knew what we wanted for dinner.
Not your best picture. Darn iPhone doesn't have a flash. But, dammit, this sandwich was absolutely-finger-lickin-smack-your-lips- delicious!

The lemon and basil aoili added a refreshing and kick to the sandwich. I think that was pretty the main star of the sandwich besides the soft texture of the ciabatta bread. Oh, and the creaminess of the fontina cheese. Perfect blend, I tell yah!

I highly suggest you try this sandwich out the next time you are wondering what it is to eat for dinner or even lunch! It's super easy and cheap, too!

I got banged!

2009-10-29T12:47:00.000-07:00

I finally bit the bullet and got bangs! I've been eyeing this bang trend for quite some time now and ultimately decided to dive into it with no reservations. A bit nervous? Hell Yes! A bit excited? More than you can ever imagine. I love changes. There's something about it that makes my adrenaline pump out like crazy and inspire me to try new things even more or to help me battle my security blanket insecurities.

During the "cutting" I had to keep my eyes closed as my hairstylist shears were close to my eyes. During this time, I was thinking, Did I make the wrong decision? I don't think I have the right size forehead for bangs. F. F. F. F. F

Finally, I opened my eyes and exclaimed, quite loudly, " OH MY GOD, I LOOK HELLA ASIAN!"

Poor hairstylist had to stop and laugh and honestly didn't know if that was a good or bad statement. I laughingly told her that yes, it's a good statement. I dig the new look. I look like a whole new person. A whole different ethnic person, mind you! ha ha. But, it's all good and I'm loving the new change.

Decorating the Walls.

2009-10-21T22:01:00.001-07:00

I'm really picky when it comes to purchasing pictures for our walls. I have to have that feeling of " this is the one." I know, weird, right? I saw a picture that I got all giddy for at Target.com and had that feeling. But, I knew that I needed to first check it out in person.

I learned my lesson last week when I saw the sunburst mirror pictured in the Young House Love mood board for one of their clients. It's item number 7. Cute, yes? On sale for $39.99, too!

I headed over to Pier 1 Imports to check out the mirror and was sorely disappointed. I thought it was a wood mirror and it turned out to be a iron metal mirror. I also thought it would be much much bigger in person. Rather, it was a small mirror. Boo. I had my heart set on it too! I knew it was too good to be true.

So, you can see how I was cautious when it came to checking out the picture that I got all giddy for at Target.

Well, today, I finally got a chance to visit my local Target and low n' behold they had the picture!!!! Meant to be? Maybe. There was only one left. The size wasn't too bad at all. It was a pretty descent size, too! I heart it! I still had the giddy feelings!

So, I took it home with me and now it's sitting on a wall between our laundry room and our kitchen pantry. What I fell in love with was the message. " Share a Random Moment."

I'm now eyeing the set of 4 convex mirrors at Target. The price isn't too shabby either. $29.99.

Rambles.

2009-10-20T01:21:00.000-07:00

Feels like October is just flying by. I can't believe it's already mid month. It probably has alot to do with so many events going on this month. Lots of birthdays, a wedding, a marathon, landscapers, etc. The list is endless!

So far, I celebrated the hubby's birthday down in so cal. We had a dinner with close friends planned at Michael Mina's XIV that was a disappointment from the get go. If you are looking for a Vegas like social environment with "okay" tasting food and don't care about customer service than this is the place for you. But, if you prefer a dinner that is elegant, quiet and has GREAT food with excellent customer service, then pass on this establishment. Trust me.

Going to Disneyland that weekend did make up for the disastrous birthday dinner though. Love to have friends that get in places for free! Thank you Ediboo for using your work benefits. I couldn't pass up on the Mickey bling. When I saw people walking around with headbands, I said, " I could sport those!" Plus, Ediboo gets 30% off the merchandise, so I took full advantage!

Disneyland was all decked out for Halloween. Haunted house was already decorated with the Nightmare Before Christmas theme, too! I've seen it before, but it's always nice to go through it again, despite the 60 minute wait time. Yes, 60 minute wait time and that was at alot of the popular rides. Space Mountain was 90 minutes.

Shopping for a costume as I'm attending a costume party for one of my coworkers/friend's birthday bash. I'm thinking of doing the whole slutty girl scout girl. If only I bought some girl scout cookies though so that I could use the cookies as a prop to make myself look more legit. Hah. Are any of you getting dressed up for Halloween?

Miss Domino Mag?

2009-09-30T22:09:00.000-07:00

Miss Domino magazine? Check out LonnyMag.com.

My college friend, Michelle Roque is the design director for this new and upcoming online design magazine. They just released their first online issue today and I am super duper excited for her and the magazine. They have received alot of support from vendors such as West Elm, Williams Sonoma, Design Sponge, Shelter Pop, etc. So, hopefully, they'll be able to produce more issues. Word is that more issues may come out since the editors are going to Paris for the next issue. Let's keep our fingers crossed for this online magazine's success!

Michelle was one of my kick it buddies back in college. I'd always go to her house after class to just hang, eat, and whatnot. I remember, I was taking a pottery class in my last semester of college. I really thought I'd enjoy the class. Shit, that class was hard as hell. The movie, Ghost, made it looks so easy, yes? Anyways, the stuff I put out was so fugly. They were heavy, thick rimmed and just plain shitty! Till this day, I'm surprised I got a B in the class. At the end of the semester, we had to take the stuff we made home. I thought it would be nice to gift some of the stuff I made to Michelle and her roommate. Now, I was planning on gifting them the best of the best, which was probably like 2 or 3 items, if that.

The looks on their faces when I dropped off my pottery was priceless. I wish I could hear the shit talking after I left their apartment. Boy, oh boy. What is sweet is that they still have the stuff I gave them because, well, I made it and gave it to them. So sweet, huh? I think it was. They are too, too kind.

She was one of my first friends to take the fatty risk and move to NYC to attend Parson's college. Parsons as in Tim Gunn. Gotta give it to her for making that change. It takes alot of courage to decide to up and move to NYC and on your own for that matter.

She also does freelance design work. --just sayin'. :D I was lucky enough to have her design my table/menu signs to match my invitation design. Loved her for that. She even was able to do some very last minute changes to a couple of them on the day of my wedding. OMG. I think that and my hairdresser team coming late was my two stressful moments.

Anyways, check out the magazine and I hope you like it. Don't forget to bookmark it!!!

Who Knew??

2009-09-30T17:25:00.000-07:00

In the beginning of our planning, we were looking at paving and/or stamped concrete. There was just too many things involved with each one that it was becoming all too consuming. Plus, these two options are pretty expensive.

It's a good thing that I spoke to our landscaper about salt finish concrete as he brought up the option of staining the concrete in two colors. Since the "stain" lady is his wife, he was able to get it at a reasonable price per sq. feet.

I found out on a whim that salt finish concrete was fairly reasonable and add staining, its not too shabby. It pretty much lowered our total a good $4K. Crazy, huh?

Met with the "stain" lady today. Never knew that this option existed for concrete. Then again, I didn't know much in the beginning stages and I'm continuing to learn each day. She provided a simple one page sheet that had colors in square boxes. Fortunately, she provided pictures of previous jobs to give me a better picture. Love me some pictures.

Staining is freakin' awesome. It gives the appearance of expensive flooring at a fraction of the cost. You can stain the concrete in a variety of colors. From white, green, red, yellow. The colors are endless.

I chose the stain color, bark brown, that is very much like the picture shown to the left. We will be having borders along our concrete and I chose a dark chocolate brown to outline it (picture on the right). I'm crossing my fingers that it will turn out great. No wait, awesome.

It's Been a Long Time.

2009-09-21T13:17:00.001-07:00

Just noticed that my last post was on September 3rd. Hey, it's still September. So it's not a terrible drop in blogging, no?

I don't know what is with me and blogging lately. I just haven't had enough energy to hit the " new post" button and write something. Perhaps it's because nothing big has happened to me these days. Or, does something big have to happen for me to blog?

Last I left you guys with was eating at a fancy schmancy Filipino restaurant, called Intramuros. Fancy, indeed , it was! So posh and modern. Never seen such a Filipino restaurant like it before. I later found out that it was a mortuary. Crazy, right? Was taken aback especially since most Filipino's are superstitious and opening up a restaurant where the dead chilled out for a bit sounds insane! I mean, who does that???

Wish I could say the the food was absolutely to die for. We had a variety of dishes ranging from shanghai lumpia's in which one was made out of ham and cheese. (That caught me off guard, and I thought it was slightly ghetto. At least use good cheese like gruyere or brie or something. ) to pork sisig, bicol express and such. Quite frankly, we were a hungry bunch and ordered a whole lotta food.

We also had the Intramuros paella that was made with longonisa (Filipino sausage), salted duck egg, clams, adobo, squid, tomatoes in saffron and bangus. Sounded delicious on paper, but when we got it, it tasted mediocre. Sure wasn't worth the $25!

The dish that I enjoyed the most was the crispy binagoongan over grilled eggplant. Translation: diced crispy pork lightly glazed w/ shrimp paste over grilled eggplant, topped w/ diced mangoes & tomatoes ($13). If I could and didn't have to worry about clogged arteries, I could eat this dish nearly every day of my life. It was that good!

In other news, the hubs and I are finally getting our postage stamp of a backyard landscaped. Woohooo!!! We got tons of estimates and in the beginning it was a bit intimidating because we had absolutely no freakin' clue about landscaping. All's we knew was that we wanted concrete, lawn, and plants and trees. But, if you ask us to be specific, you'll get a blank stare and a curt smile from us because we are thinking, " WTF?"

We finally settled on salt finish concrete that will be stained with a color. So far, it's looking like it may be a brown color. We are having a little side lawn for Maddie because for some reason, she will only do her biznatch on grass knoll. Also, we will be having a few ornamental trees, plants, and shrubs and bark.

They will be starting on the week of October 18th. Hopefully, they'll be done by Halloween so that we can throw a little bbq shindig with the familia. Currently, we are shopping for a natural gas grill to inaugurate the event.

A Challenge for Me.

2009-09-03T11:46:00.000-07:00

I think I've reached a time in my life where I need some challenges thrown my way. Funny. 10 years ago, I had a hurdle of challenges and unknowns in my life. I just graduated from college and had no clue where I was going to venture off. It was my bad for being a slacker majority of my college years. Why is that I always seem to find myself doing superbly well at the tail end of my school years? Didn't I learn my lesson the first time, ahem highschool?

My first job out of college was at E*Trade as a Customer Service Associate. I stayed with the company for 2 years. I was absolutely miserable at that job. It was a complete opposite angle for me. Finance, really? I hadn't taken a single business class in college and I was in the financial world? What the heck was I thinking? Ahh yes, I was motivated by being on my own, financially, and to experience the world of "the real world."

Finally, I said, I'm quitting. Peace Out.

Moved back in with the parentals. Took a temporary job with the county. Went back to school. But, the question was, for what? Master's? Another bachelor's? What? What?

Its obvious that I ended up getting a degree in Respiratory Care and ultimately became a Registered Respiratory Therapist. After completing the last exam of my boards just recently. I lagged big time on taking it. But hey, I passed!

Now, I'm finding myself just bored. I know I need something to challenge myself and my mind. It's starting to eat at me. So, now, I'm reconsidering getting a Masters in Public Health and getting my Asthma Educator Credential, or just taking up a course at the local community college. The latter seems just the easier thing to do, considering the costs involved. But? I don't know. I just have this " but? wondering".

Do you often find yourself bored and in need of some sort of challenge?

Happy Friday!

2009-08-28T08:42:00.000-07:00

There's nothing better than realizing that you don't have to work this coming Monday. I have a set schedule at work and the days prior to me having my 7 day days off, I work Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. Well, I forgot that I had to rearrange some days in my set schedule and so in the month of September, I work Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Yes, it cuts my 7 days off by one day, but who cares? I don't work Mondays in the month of September. Isn't that better?

This weekend, I'm excited to try out a fancy schmancy Filipino restaurant, called Intramuro's. It's in the heart of the Filipino community which is South San Francisco.

My family tries to have a cousin get together at least once a year and we were finally able to set a date after months of exchanging emails.

I'm very interested to see how their Bibingka souffle tastes like. See, I told you this restaurant is fancy! Normally, this dessert, which is a Filipino cake is made on a sheet pan and is cut up into squares or diamonds if you are like my grandma. Sometimes, you'll see it at Filipino stores baked in banana leaves for aesthetic purposes.

We are also attending one of our friend's daughter's red egg party. He's one of G's good friends and fraternity brother. Yay for free Chinese food that is good! Yeah, I said it.

Other than that, will be relaxing and enjoying the weekend. What are your plans? Anything fun? Or are you just going to relax and take it easy?

California State Fair

2009-08-26T10:06:00.000-07:00

The hubs and I try to attend the California State fair each year. Its been a tradition since we started dating 11 years ago. I think, the entire time we've been together, we only missed one year. Not too bad, yes?

I think over time, we've unconsciously developed a nack for eating the same things every year. One is hands down, having a buttery ear of corn and a jumbo corn dog. However, I, have started to get rebellious and a bit more daring.

Last year, I ate a fried snicker bar and that was just bleh.

This year, I had an inkling to try the fried smore. I love smores, so I really thought it was going to be absolutely delicious! In my mind, I was picturing two graham crackers, melted chocolate and oozing marshmellow goodness falling out as soon as I cracked that beautiy open.

Nope.
The gooeyness of the chocolate and marshmellow was there, yes, but the graham crackers and deliciousness wasn't. There were just mere crumbs of graham crackers and the rest was fried batter, which made for an absolute mess and disgusting taste.

I have to tell you that prior to purchasing the fried smore, I did endulge in some berry forest gelato. I don't know why I got it. I wasn't even feeling it, but when I saw the BFF and her baby daddy have one in their hand, I just had to get one.

These zuchhini curl were just nasty. Too. Much. Grease. Was not worth $8. Heck, a zuchhini doesn't even cost that much. WTH?

Had my traditional jumbo corn dog. But, my friend was feeling frisky and got a SUPER corn dog. It was 10 inches long and he finished it way before I was even halfway done with mine's.

Ever since tasting these bad boys last year, I knew this had to be on our list for years to come. I just love their cinnamon rolls. Wished that I had a cup of joe to go with it.

We had a great time at the fair. Amazingly, I didn't waddle out of the fair. I can't wait for it to come by next year!

Life and Motivation.

2009-08-20T11:48:00.000-07:00

I'm going to certainly try my hardest to write what I have been feeling for a few years now. The frustrations I felt when talking with some people. The wonder of what it really takes for someone to fight their emotions of fear, failing, making changes, setting personal goals rather than have pipe dreams.

It's so easy for one to dream and think about the " what if's" in life. You can talk about what you'd like to do in life or what you wished you've done in life but didn't. But, how can one even talk about the " what if's" in life when one doesn't even try to go in unchartered territory? I totally understand the feeling safe attitude and being in a comfort zone. However, when does one say, enough is enough? When does one obtain the motivation and courage to take steps in order to reach their personal goals?

Why doesn't one, sometimes, want to crave that feeling of being challenge? Does it stem from the way they were raised?

Our mental emotions has so much power over us. It's amazing how different it affects various people. How it causes that person to create excuses and have them actually believe those excuses to be very true and thus convince themselves that, really, they just can't do this or that right now. How it can create an overwhelming motivation for that person that all they see is attaining that goal that they set.

It's just amazing and this subject shall be continued.....

A True Chic Flick.

2009-08-18T05:42:00.000-07:00

Was excited for this weekend. Had lots of activities planned and one of them was to see the movie, A Time Traveler's Wife.

Caught the first show, which I found out is the early bird matinee. The ticket was only $5.50! Saw it with my EG girls, bernbaby and ceearn.

A few years ago, I read the book and looooved it. I do have to admit that it was definitely a slow start for me. A few others agree that it was the same feeling for them, too!

It took me awhile to fully understand what the book was all about because of the transitions. But once I got into it, there was no turning back. I couldn't put the book down. I was intrigued with Claire and Henry's love story.

Watching the movie was a bit like seeing the story for the first time. I tend to be a dumper of a mind. In other words, I read it, comprehend it at the time, and then a month or so later, dump the information.

So, when people ask me if the movie followed the book well, I really couldn't answer them immediately. I had to read bits and parts of the book, including the ending, to give them a satisfactory answer post movie.

The answer is yes, the book pretty much followed the book well, but when Claire was a full grown adult. In the book, it focuses on Claire and Henry's relationship in the meadow when she was young. How they came to get to know one another.

Regardless, I enjoyed watching it. I also had a bit of delay getting into the movie just like the book, but eventually was hooked into the plot.

Bring tissue girls, because this movie will most definitely make you cry.

Muir Beach

2009-08-17T20:47:00.000-07:00

I'm still here! Present.

Weekends have been jam packed with family + friend activities, I can't seem to come up for air to breathe. Work is when I come up to breathe and really, who wants to breathe at work? Bleh.

This past weekend, I thought it was time to use one my wedding shower gifts, a lovely brown wickety wick picnic basket and head to the beach along the coast, Muir Beach. Packed the cooper, Maddie, and ofcourse the hubs and headed onto Hwy 1.

We got off to late start which made us run into ridiculous traffic. I started to think for awhile there that we really will not make it to the beach in time. But, we eventually made it there and was able to sit in the sun for a couple of hours and let Maddie play in the ocean for the first time.

As we were walking to the beach, Maddie's tail was clearly waaaay under her body. She was scared. Didn't know what or where we were going. Anything would startle her. But, as soon as she saw the dogs, the people, the beach, up her tail went!

She was running from the waves coming in at first, but she eventually started running into the water and for some odd reason, would try to grab it?

We had to keep her on a leash as she gets way too excited. She runs everywhere which makes us look like a fool as we are doing circles in the sand because she's running in circles.

There were lots of dogs, unleashed and leashed. I envied the owners with dogs that were able to walk on the beach with their dogs unleashed and within voice command. I hope Maddie can be like that someday.

A few dogs that had the same owner came up to say "what's up, hottie," to Maddie. She so badly wanted to run and play with them, but we kept her on a tight leash. Sorry Maddie. I hope you understand why we had to do this. One day, you'll be able to go unleashed. One day....

I'd like to return to Muir Beach again. It's definitely a great beach to bring your dog to. The drive to there is not too shabby either. Actually, it's rather swell. Loved looking and dreaming about the big houses that surround the area. The swirly roads that are surrounded by beautiful nature, and oh, watching the cyclists pedal uphill on the little road that they had to share with us motorists. Hah. That was a site to see!

Maddie vs. Cookie

2009-07-26T14:57:00.000-07:00

Maddie had her first playdate with our friend's dog, Cookie.

Sidenote: What a name for a dog, huh? I mean, most dogs know the word "cookie" by treat and so if and ever you have to call Cookie in a place where there are tons of dogs, you are going to get alot of head side tilts with ears up. HAH.

Okay, enough digressing.

So, we wanted to have a playdate since a bunch of us are going camping in about a couple of weeks. Cookie and Maddie will be the dogs accompanying us and we are so ecstatic about it. I dont' even like camping but because Maddie is coming along, I can't wait. Weird, no?

This wasn't their first meeting. They actually met at a dog park and got along swell! But, ofcourse, there were other dogs amongst them and so it wasn't really a good gauge as to tell whether or not they really got along.

When Cookie first came over, high energy was between the two of them. We had to settle Cookie down a bit. She was abused by her previous owner and is going through alot of social rehab skills compliments by my friends who are doing a fine job if I must say so myself.

After a bit of calming down, a small walk in between to release the energy, all was fine in our house. Here's a video of them playing. Excuse the talking.

Click Here.

Our What?

2009-07-23T11:38:00.000-07:00

Anything that is non related to clothes, shoes, hair, makeup, you have me at a lost. You'll get a furrowed brow look coupled with a deer in headlight look.

Our doorbell rings this morning and it's the Shea man. He's the guy that ensures everything is running okay in our community. I guess he said our house and the house behind us doesn't have a "stub" and would like to install one in our backyard.

Sure, I say! But.....what is a stub?

In my head, I'm thinking, " what the fock is this guy talking about?" Something about a nub?????

I knew right before he was about to explain that he was thinking, " stupid girl." Jeesh.

He explained it had to with water and if we wanted to have landscaping in our backyard, blah blah blah. Basically, I have no idea what the hell he just explained to me and hope that the hubs can look at it and say, " oh that, ok! here's what it is honey....."

So, may I present to you, our stub.

Oh, Maddie.

2009-07-21T13:25:00.000-07:00

Oh, Maddie. How I love thee. You are really lucky that you are one cute dog. That's pretty much what is going for you. All jokes aside, we really don't have it that bad. At least, we don't think so....yet. It's been a kind 9 months for us. Really. But, I think we jinxed ourselves by speaking to soon a few months ago and saying, " wow, she's a really good dog. she hasn't done that or that."

Bite me.

Seems like she's having a bit of some separation anxiety. I don't blame her. We are, after all, great companions. Heh.

First it started off with our shoes. Surprised us both since we've left our shoes out before for the longest time and she never once touched them. We were beginning to think we had THEE perfect dog. Yes, we sure were!

Chewed them to death. Poor hubby had no flip flops for a few weeks which wasn't good given the heatwave we've been experiencing. She even chewed my favorite pair of flip flops, too!

So, we naturally made sure that when we would leave, make sure there were no shoes at all on the floor. Just her good ole' chew toys.

What does she go for next?

Let's look closer shall we?

Ouch is the word. Everytime we pass by this area, we bow down in sadness. Sadness because our house is less than a year old and it already has some abuse to it.

To resolve this issue, we have purchased a bottle of Bitter Apple Spray. I've read mixed reviews about this stuff. Some say it helps and some say it didn't do a darn thing. I smelled the stuff and woooooooweee, this stuff goes straight to your head. You can smell the alcohol big time. I sure wouldn't eat the wall anymore if this stuff was on it. Hell no. Let's hope that it works for Maddie.

We also invested in some lawn spot spray for her urine. Dam dog won't pee on anything else BUT grass. What the heck? Guess what? Our front lawn is the only area that has grass and guess what? Our front lawn looks like shit! So embarrassing since we belong to an HOA. I'm just waiting for our sweet little ole letter to sanction us.

While we were at the petstore, we also purchased a poo poo bag holder and refillable bags. They were on sale, so why not? The zebra holder was pretty much the only one that was descent looking out of the bunch. Not much of a selection. Chose it because it matched well with her leash. Shuttup. I know.

I have to admit that I like the convenience of having this attached to her leash. Not having to worry about remembering to bring some plastic bags with us and not to mention, holding them in our hands or pockets.

I just don't like that it's not really eco-friendly. More plastic bags????

Renegade Craft Fair

2009-07-20T17:09:00.000-07:00

The weekend couldn't have came any faster. I had a rough week at work. I could tell as I was one crabby girl. I was snappy. Tired. Acting like such a beezy who's been PMS'ing for years and I felt so bad for feeling that way.

Moreso, for the hubby. Gawd, he's such a patient, kind, and supportive spouse. Never once, did he lose his patience to my impatience. I know if the tables were turned, I'd probably react in a not-so-kind way. Ugh.

On Saturday, we got some much needed heat relief and spent the day in the city. It was a scorching 106 in Sacramento. Walking in 70 degree weather was such a welcoming relief to us.

We headed to the city to check out the Renegade Craft Fair. I was anticipating this fair for months. I'm an avid Etsy fanatic and so seeing booths that displayed products that are normally featured in Etsy made my heart pitter patter.

I gave myself a budget of $60. Spent that money really quick as most items were $20 and up. I think there was one item that I saw that was $8 and that was a cute vinyl wallet. I nearly purchased it, but came to reality and didn't get it. I didn't need another wallet.

What I did purchase was a screenprint that I think would look so cute in my downstairs bano. $20.

And, I couldn't resist not taking home this adorable handmade handbag. Holly Hua is the name of the artist and she didn't make it easy for me to choose which handbag to snag. $40.

Other things that appealed to me were these button earrings. Cute, no? They were $18 each. I nearly bought a pair, but then I decided to pass on them because I could probably get something like it at oh, I don't know, *cough* Forever 21 for half the price.

Oh, and these coin purses were screaming at me. Looking at these, really made me wish I payed more attention in my junior high home economics class.

I really wanted a beige handbag, but by the time I found, " the one," I already spent my $60. Boo. It didn't help that the hubby was right behind me reminding me that I did, too! F.

I thought these t-shirts were quirky, yet funny. Sadly, the hubs' style in t-shirts are not these. His style are hawaiian tshirts from the Hawaiian Isla nd Creations shop, aka HIC.

or, anything Cal.

I wanted him to buy the shirt that said, " I got my taco from the taco truck in Los Angeles." Heh. Stupid, I know, but I it made me smile.

I really wanted these Anthropoligie'ish necklace holder. Adorable, yes? Looks like it could be something I could possibly recreate. Must get the BFF involved as she is a DIY'er professional.

Lastly, I loved, loved, loved these fabric necklaces.

I can't wait to attend this fair next year. Maybe I'll save up for it so that I can buy more stuff. Haha.

It's definitely a fair you guys should check out if it ever comes to your city or a city near you. It's so much fun and the vendors are so friendly. They are always chattin' it up!

Why, Hello There!

2009-07-08T09:17:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the drop in blogging. I suspect it has to do with paying more attention to my running blog over at eblogger. I just can't handle managing two blogs at the same time. It's insane!!

But, I finally found the time to sit down and pay attention to both. Woohoo. Coffee is my #1 drug this morning, that's why.

Here's what I've been up to.

Got my hair did by a new hair stylist. I've been on the search to find a stylist in the Sacramento area. I think I've pretty much tried a handful in the trendy midtown area, thus far and I think I've finally found her.

The salon is called AJF salon and the stylist I went with is Carrie. She came highly recommend by two of my coworkers who have the most gorgeous haircuts. A plus is that if it's your first time visiting the salon, you get a 25% discount. Sawwweeet, right?

We got to spend some time with some good friends we haven't seen in weeks. Got to see wingwoman's lovely "ring" in person. Sooo happy for her and ofcourse the Pharmacist and I can't wait to spend your day with you in Italy next year.

It's going to be yet another fun destination wedding just like the T's on the Big Island a few years ago.

The 4th of July was great. Spent it with the fam-bam at the parental's house, courtesy of moi. My family can be undecisive at times and just couldn't figure out what to do. Me being the social butterfly suggested having a bbq at my parents house since their house location is midway for everyone. Soooo, bbq it was!

My contribution were these lovely jalopeno filled with cream cheese and wrapped in bacon thanks to the Pioneer Woman Cooks and a lovely cilantro corn salad that I haven't made in ions! I used to make this salad back in my college days when we would hold bbq's up the galore during the summer months.

Ever since my sorority sister, The Chef, introduced it to me, I always kept it as one of my go-to recipes for bbq's. It's really a great salad to bring if any of you guys need something a bit different from the average cole slaw salad.

An Overdue Weekend Roundup.

2009-07-01T12:05:00.001-07:00

Had me some girl time this past weekend. Long overdue. Was in dire need of some estrogen and people outside of work. I do enjoy my coworkers, but I feel as though I spend too much time with them (hello, 12 hours!). Need a break from the chaos.

We finally were able to set upon a date that amazingly didn't take too long to coordinate. Phew! Work, Family, and other social events have filled up our calendars throughout the summer months. Well, not mines, but everyone else's. I have no life. Heh.

Wanted to re-create the little tea shindig we had at a tea place and since a couple of the girls hadn't seen my new digs, it was held at my house. Fact: It was a blazing 100+ degree's outside. Call us insane for drinking hot tea. Problem solved by cranking up the AC.

I have to say that our little tea shindig went really well. A few of us are or starting to get into loose tea leaves, thanks to Bernbaby. We had an array of tea's to choose from. My favorite being a Black Tea with Lychee! Can I say yummm??? We also had Apricot, Bourbon with Vanilla, and Strawberry-Lemonade.

Our shindig also gave us the chance to meet each other's newest addition's. So stinkin' cute, no?

That night, the hubs and I watched The Hangover. We enjoyed it very much. So much, that I think my abdominal muscles were sore the next day from laughing so much and hard. Seriously, I was stretching the next two days. Ofcourse, we were excited to see Dr. Ken as always. Was a bit taken aback by his ahem, initial scene, but nevertheless, it was funny.

Sunday, we made a little trip to REI. Felt so "naturistic" and "outdoosey" the moment we pulled into the parking lot. Felt like I should have worn some teava's or keen's. Heh. Anyways, needed to stock up on some running gear and a little backpack for our little Maddie. We are taking a camping trip with some friends next month and I wanted to get her something for our hikes and such.

The pack comes in red or blue and being the die hard Cal fan he is, the hubs did not want to get our little girl Stanford red. Dam. Whatevs. Blue it was.

Man, when we put that pack on, she had this crazed look on her face. No lie! It's like she was saying, wtf? You want me to carry my shiz and YOUR shiz???? Seriously, look at her eyes. Crazy!!!!

I'm Beet.

2009-06-18T10:51:00.000-07:00

The hubs and I have recently made a tradition of going to the Farmer's Market every Sunday and purchasing our vegetables, fruits, and breads. So far, we have been able to stick with this tradition for the past couple of Sundays and I love it.

I feel so Alice Waters when I am using the fresh ingredients bought at the Farmeris Market. Recently, I made the most delicious Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, and Avocado sandwich on whole wheat bread. All of the items were bought at the Farmer's Market sans the bacon. Although, I can purchase some bacon there, but it's a bit pricey. It's like $5.99. No thanks. I can get it on sale for $1.99.

It's very exciting for me (at least) to get up early, make my cup of coffee to bring with me, and see what kind of vegetable I can bring home that I've never tried cooking with before. Something that I would only eat at restaurant, but wouldn't have the courage to buy fresh and make something of it.

Last Sunday, we brought home fresh beets. They are quite a site to see in person. They have ginormous green leaves attached to them. It's unfortunate, that we have to chop them up and not use it. At least, I think we can't use them. Can we?

I didn't quite know how to cook these. I honestly thought we could just peel them and viola, we have beets! Not. It's a good thing I looked it up online because that's exactly what I would have done.

Turns out, you have to boil them for about an hour, just until you can stick a fork into them. Once you can, you take them and their skin easily comes off of them. Easy, but messy.

I plan on making a huge salad with these. I can't wait!

Now, that we go to the Farmers Market every Sunday, it got me re-thinking about subscribing to the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) that I blogged about. I find it more exciting to see what produce I can purchase in person. Plus, I'm still supporting the local farmers and not to mention, I can get homemade bread and cheeses from other vendors.

Ain't No Thang But a Chicken Wing.

2009-06-17T14:37:00.000-07:00

Huge News. BIG. Ginormous. OMG News.

Sorry, I can't help it. I'm just a person that hypes up stuff like this. I get a little bit too excited.

Background story.
We are huge Thomas Keller fans. We were blessed to eat at his French Laundry restaurants, not once, but twice. Back when the prices were a measly $100 and something? I think, it was. But still, it's relatively cheap compared to the over $200 a person it is now.

Stoked that he opened a casual dining restaurant called, Ad Hoc. The hubs and I have dined there several times so far. We even brought my dad there for his birthday. Unfortunately, my familia doesn't have a greater appreciation for food, especially fresh ingredients. They thought it was just okay to which I scoffed at. Whatevs. To each his own.

Getting to the good part. I swear.

Ad Hoc is highly known for their fried chicken dinners. They normally serve it every other Monday. Unfortunately, the one Monday that we dined there, it wasn't their Fried Chicken night. Slightly disappointed, yes, but we still have hopes of making it out there someday.

But, I may be able to try it sooner than I thought.

Williams Sonoma has partnered up with Thomas Keller and sells his fried chicken kit! Craaaaaaazy, I know. It retails for $14.95 which is way bigger steal of a price compared to his $49 3 course pre-fixe menu. But.... check it out.

there is brining involved, apparently. It takes about 8-12 hours. Perhaps, it's best that we just go to Ad Hoc instead.

Give me 2 seconds of bragging.....

2009-06-16T14:52:00.000-07:00

Just received word that our wedding venue, Malibou Lake Mountain Club is going to be featured on TNT's new reality show, Wedding Day. We don't know exactly when the episode is suppose to air, but as soon as I know, believe me, I'll be putting that on blast for yah'll to see.

About the show: Every couple dreams of having the perfect wedding. For many, it’s the most important and emotional day of their lives. But for some, insurmountable obstacles create barriers to making their dream day a reality. WEDDING DAY is here to prove that a girl doesn’t have to be rich to have a wedding fit for a princess. In this uplifting series, deserving couples from all over the United States will get a helping hand to ensure the most important day of their lives is also the most magical. Each week, celebrity event planner and food expert Alan Dunn (For Better or Worse) and celebrity wedding planner Diann Valentine (author of Weddings Valentine Style) host as family, friends and community come together to create a dream wedding. Along the way, viewers will learn each couple’s compelling story, from their first date to the big day.

We Got Nothin' But Love For Yah, Honey.

2009-06-16T02:35:00.000-07:00

For the past 6 days, the hubs and I have been sleeping downstairs in our living room. Why?

Here's Why.

The post op instructions are to have no strenuous activity for 7-10 days. We have two flights of stairs in our house and we don't want to risk it and have something go wrong with Maddie. So, we are enduring back aches for our little puppy dog so that she will recover well. If that's not love, I don't know what is.

Gawd, I miss my bed though. I can't wait until this is all over. Official spooning time with the bed takes place on June 20th.

On another note, for those of you that run, I've started a running blog, titled, A Modern Day Runner. I'm wanting to document my journey with running as well as bond with other runners. Plus, my Nike Half Marathon is creeping up close {4 months away} and I am starting to panic. I need to start hitting the pavement for longer than 6 mile runs now and get on a strict training schedule. Eeeek. The thought of that scares me, yet excites me at the same time because it's something new.

Bur, Bur, Bur. Bur is the Word.

2009-06-15T20:47:00.001-07:00

Totally blog worthy. I think.

I got in the mail a super, duper, adorable, make you want to scream OUT LOUD iPhone case. Okay, so I'm probably overhyping this thing up, but I can't help it. It's just too cute.

She's even got back. Oh yeah. Sexy thing, isn't she?

The Details: Purchased this online here.
Retails for $8.99. A heckuva lot cheaper than those rubbermaid thing-a-ma-bobs at the Apple store. Yes?

Peeped that they other cuties, but resisted the temptation to rescue them all.

Is There Such a Thing as a Dog Snob?

2009-06-15T13:12:00.000-07:00

I can count the number of dog brand dry food on one had within a span of 7 months Maddie has gone through. I know. I know. I know what you all are already doing and saying after reading that sentence. Shame on me for changing up my puppy's diet so many times. Yeah, I know. I've read the literature and heard it from other dog owners. But, when your dog just isn't eating, you gots to do what you gots to do.

We started with Puppy Chow because her mother and siblings started off with that. I wasn't a happy camper feeding her this junk as the nutrient content was insane, so I got to split it with a bag of Science Diet her vet gave us for free on her first visit. She loooooved Science Diet, while I didn't. It was too much money for our wallet.

Then the husband's friend who is a vet, highly recommend Royal Canine which really didn't do much to our wallets either. That shiz could buy me a pair of shoes at the Nine West outlet! No lie! Yeah, she loved that too. Go figure.

So, we went the middle man route and got her a bag of Iams. Yeah, no. She grudgingly ate this stuff. Sometimes, she wouldn't eat all day until we reminded her to eat. So, we added some Kibbles n' Bits stuff that I felt guilty about because really, you mightest well throw in a cheeseburger into her meal because that's pretty much what it is. Ofcourse, she gobbled it all up. So, with the suggestion of my coworkers, I added chicken broth at times, some brown rice, even some chicken just to get her to eat her dam Iams food.

Scurry over to today. We just got sick and tired of it and bought her Science Diet and we are back to having a happy dog. She eats it on the dime. Whenever. Wherever. Jeez, I think we have a dog food snob on our hands.

By the way, Maddie was spayed on Thursday and I was a nervous wreck at work the night before and all day while waiting for her to be done. I felt so guilty. She's recovering well, thank goodness. I have to admit, her first day was really hard. She would cry silently to herself while lying down and all I could was just lay with her and pet her to calm her down. Poor baby.

Mark Your Calendars!

2009-06-12T17:07:00.000-07:00

Bust out the biggest sharpie to circle this weekend, turn up your alarm for this date. The Renegade Craft Fair is coming to San Francisco on July 18-19th. I've read so many cool things
about this fair and was so envious of the people that got to attend and peruse the many different products. Now, it's my turn to drool.

For those that absolutely have no clue what this fair is, here is the " abouts."

The Renegade Craft Fair is a unique DIY event held annually in Brooklyn, Chicago, Los Angeles & San Francisco. RCF has gained a reputation over the last six years as being the biggest, best and the most well-known of all the DIY craft fairs out there. Each individual fair draws hundreds of applicants and tens of thousands of shoppers from all over the country and abroad! At RCF you’ll find all sorts of cool handmade stuff - including plush items, jewelry, posters + prints, craft kits, clothing, stationery + more.

The Renegade Craft Fair is one of the first events of its kind, getting its start in Chicago’s Wicker Park in 2003 and spreading like wildfire ever since! The first fair was 1 day and featured just 75 booths. The second fair was 2 days and showcased 125 crafters. In its third year, we went on the road and took over Brooklyn’s McCarren Park with 150 vendors - and eventually moving into historic McCarren Park Pool with 200 booths! In its fifth year, we traveled to the west coast and set-up shop in San Francisco. This year, we’re going on a little tour and heading south to Los Angeles too!

Today in 2009, each unique event features hundreds of the most talented craftsters nationally as well as from around the globe! Brooklyn’s event takes place at McCarren Park - this year along the paths of the track + field area. Chicago’s September event stretches down Division St. from Damen - Hermitage. San Francisco’s show takes place at scenic Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion, with sweeping views of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz. The 1st ever Los Angeles fair is slated to take place at the California Market Center, with 360 views of the city from the Penthouse. And our annual Holiday Sale is held in the Pulaski Park Fieldhouse in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood.

The Renegade Craft Fair is organized by Sue Daly, whose a crafter herself, and designs jewelry under the name Timber! Her husband Mat Daly makes all of the posters for the events, always being sure to include the beloved owl mascot! The inspiration for RCF came when Sue wanted to take her jewelry-making hobby to the next level, and try selling her stuff at local art fairs. After looking into it a little, it quickly became apparent that there were no shows representing the DIY craft community, which already had a huge presence online. So, with a childhood friend the Renegade Craft Fair was started and provided an exciting, fresh venue for artists and shoppers alike.

See You There!

Facebook Relatives. Do You Have Any?

2009-06-08T12:31:00.000-07:00

Seems like everybody and their mother is on Facebook these days. Like literally. Facebook is so much different from Myspace. It's census is opened up and has reached a variety people of ages, it seems, because I'm finding more and more "aunties" on my Facebook.

Still, at age 33 years old, I still find myself not wanting to add them for fear of having them see my life and reporting it to my parentals. Guess what? Well, I mightest well add all of my aunties now because my own father is on Facebook.

I guess it's kinda cool that his profile picture is of me and him walking down the aisle. Awww, right? But, it's just awkward to know that he's on Facebook and sees my days in and outs throughout my life. While, I have nothing to hide, except for the fact that I'm sometimes posting that I'm either drunk and/or cussing and dropping the F bombs. F, Speaking of which. F. Meh.

I took the initial step and asked him to be my " friend." Ironically, I'm on super stealth mode on FB. I know....how can I have a public blog and be off the radar on FB? You can't even click on my name and partially see my profile.

Yet Another Weekend Roundup.

2009-06-07T19:33:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to not just do the Weekend Roundup, but with my work schedule these days, it's kinda hard to blog during the week. I'm hibernating when I'm working hoping to just get through them.

So, here I am blogging yet another weekend roundup. We finally had a semi relaxing weekend as we were able to just lounge in our pj's all day on Sunday.

Friday night, the hubs and I had a double date night with another couple. We watched Up in 3D. I have to admit that I was a little bit nervous because recently within the past few months, every time I watched a movie, I would get all hot and start to get nauseated. The last time it really got bad was when we watched Marley and Me. I had to leave the theatre for some fresh air. The smell of " Clinique Happy" was getting the best of me a little bit too much, unfortunately.

Thankfully, nothing crazy like that happened this time around. Phew! Because, I really wanted to see and enjoy this movie.

Saturday, we headed over to my hometown and partaked in the celebration of my niece's highschool graduation. Strange feeling it is to see someone born and watch her grow up into a beautiful young woman. I hear myself quote what I always heard from my aunts/uncles growing up and that is, " Gosh, I remember when you were so small....blah blah blah.... I feel old... blah blah, blah... Do you guys find yourself saying the same things???

Sunday morning, I spontaneously decided to check out the Farmer's Market nearby. I kept hearing from a couple of friends that it was a great Farmer's Market. Looking at the reviews on Yelp sealed the deal and off we went looking all toe'd up. But, I didn't care. I figured, everyone else was going to look toe'd up since it was early in the morning.

We bought an array of stuff. We even bought farm fresh eggs for the first time! That night, the hubs made some stir fry with the bok choy we purchased and it was yummmmay! We are definitely going to try to make this a Sunday tradition.

How was your weekend?

For the Love of Makeup.

2009-06-02T11:07:00.000-07:00

I've always wondered what it felt and looked like to get your eyes permanently tattooed. My mamasita has been talking about wanting to do it, but she's so afraid that I don't think she ever will despite her BFF getting her eyebrows done and her hairstylist.

My friend/sorority sister, Autumn Wedding, recently had her eyes and eyebrows permanently tattooed and she documented her experience on her blog. I couldn't believe she took the plunge. Like she said in her blog, when you think of permanent makeup, you think of a fellow Aunt.

So far, I think she looks good. What I admire about it, is that you don't have to worry about any smearing after so many hours. I hate the way I look after a 12 hour night shift @ work.

I don't think I could do it though. I'm too chicken. Heck, when I got my tattoo in college, the employee had to give me a glucose pill because I was getting lightheaded. Pretty, sad, huh? So, I can't imagine getting my eyes tattooed and what pill they would have to give me.

In case you are wondering, I have a quarter sized, colored sunflower of a tattoo on the right side of my lower back, aka tramp stamp. Back in college, I was obsessed with sunflowers. So, it only seemed natural to get one. I don't regret getting a sunflower. I like sunflowers, but not as much as I did back then.

Do you plan on getting permanent makeup?

Will It Ever End?

2009-06-01T19:48:00.001-07:00

We had yet another busy weekend. Chock full of activities, even Maddie was pooped out and she's a 7 month old puppy!

We kicked off by partaking in celebrating my little brother's 25th birthday celebration. Little did he know that this was 1 of 3 of his birthday events. Heh. I still can't believe he's a whopping twenty five. Where did all the time go?

I remember how I was so scared for him on his first day of starting a new highschool. He knew all but 3 people and those were good family friends. But, I guess, I underestimated him and he was able to make numerous amount of friends.

We lounged at Sofia which is a smooth Italian looking restaurant. I liked the feel it gave once you entered. You immediately wanted to sip on a cool drink for some odd reason. Weird what some restaurants may do to your senses.

His girlfriend, Miss_Ube, threw a surprise birthday dinner turned into masquerede theme party for him. While we didn't attend the masquerade party because we are old farties, we did dine with them.

Next day, we attended the SPCA Doggy Dash of Sacramento at William Land Park. I as well as Maddie were smiling from ear to ear as soon as we arrived. There were 3,000 dogs in attendance, both large and small and no fights, surprisngly. Lots of cool dog vendors.

At first, we were like, " slooooow down, Maddie, " as she kept pulling us on her harness. But, eventually, she calmed down and just enjoyed the day with the other dogs. She got to wear her first shirt. A bit snug, but she still looked like a pretty dog.

At night, we kicked it at the Sacramento Rivercats game, a minor Triple AAA baseball team for the Oakland A's, with some our friends whom we call the Dubyah Association. We all share the same last names, hence the association coupled with the fact that many Chinese have an association, so heck why not form our little own, right?

Unfortunately, I was belittled to sit behind a lovely pimply, long nail-greasy haired dude that had the words, " White Pride" tatooed on his forearms. F. Meh. It was pure entertainment watching him and his familia. Oh yeah.

Sunday, we yet again celebrated my little brother's birthday but among the family and his and my friends. I love how we can all mesh like that.

Got the most awesome looking cake at Copenhagen Bakery in Burlingame, CA. It was awesome, because it had his freakin' image of him when he was 4 years old in a cowboy gettup. I'll have to post a picture of it soon, as I don't have an image on me. Grrr.

How was your weekend?

Together at Last.

2009-05-28T10:56:00.000-07:00

When we purchased our 4 seater Klippan couch at Ikea, I was disappointed with the covers they offered. So basic. They offered black, blue, and two types of whites which makes me scratch my head because both whites look the same. {?}

So, I turned to the trusty ole' internet and ran into what looks like one of the only vendors that sells a variety, if not, cute Klippan colors and patterns. BEMZ is the name of the company. Sucks that it's based out of the UK because shipping is a bitch to pay. Tacks on another $100 just to ship the dang fabric.... can you believes????

Yes, there is Ebay, but it's very limited to certain colors like, barf pink. No offense to the pink colored couch owners. I'm sure it looks lovely in your casa.

Anyways, BEMZ sent me an email informing me of a lovely unity. BEMZ + Marimekko. Oh mah gaaawwwd. This is news. I heart Marimekko patterns. I want to spoon with them everytime I see such a pattern because they are just so bright, cheery, and makes you plain smile.

They start at a retail price of $289. Yowzers, I know! Kinda up there. But, hey, it's Marimekko, right? My favorite is the Prallini-Light Grey.

BEMZ does not only specialize in Klippan couch covers. It has covers for all Ikea couches. So, if you are looking to spruce up your Ikea couch with a bit of flair, you may want to check out BEMZ.

Heel, Maddie.

2009-05-27T10:51:00.000-07:00

This weekend is a big weekend for Maddie. It'll be her first official doggie walk with other dogs and people. I'm a tad bit nervous as she tends to get "highly stimulated" when around other dogs and wants to play with them. Hence, the hubby saying, " You are walking her!" Ugh. Gee thanks, bub.

We've prepared for her walk by purchasing her a harness to keep her in control and have been walking her as much as we can to just get her used to the outside world and more importantly, her freakin' leash! It's been quite the adventure, I must say and alot of saying, " Maddie, NO!"

We are participating in the SPCA doggie dash at William Land Park in Sacramento, CA. I'm really looking forward to this walk primarily because I just looooove this park. I usually go jogging here with the Wendells.

The area is surrounded by beautiful and charming homes and the park itself is just cozy.

She'll be getting spayed on June 11th, by the way and I'm soooo nervous. I never really thought I'd be such a wreck when it comes to such a routine procedure. But, she's getting older ( she's 7 months, now!) and I know that she needs to get this done. Ugh. I'm going to need some love on this day as much as she needs love.

My 2nd Love: Purses

2009-05-26T15:39:00.000-07:00

I don't know what it is with me and BIG purses. I'm talking, big, roomie, ginormous, the size of my head kind of big. Heck, I'm the perfect person to come with if you ever want to sneak in some snacks into a movie. I gotcha, girl, it's all good.

A coworker/friend who is my purse partner in crime introduced me to this awesome-lovely website. I have yet to order from them, but I'll probably be ordering from them soon. They have one heck of collection going on and I just had to share it with you gals.

The website is called ShopSuey. All if not most of the purses retail for under $60! Sweet, sweet deal.