Happy Deepavali~

Mr Lim's good friend from Stanford invited us to his place for Deepavali!! Being a huge fan of nice spicy Indian food, I was more than happy to go!

And boy, I wasn't disappointed at all!! Look at all the Yummy yummy food prepared by the mistress of the house! (Too bad for Mr Lim though.. No spicy food for him)
Hee, to add on to the festive feeling, we dressed up in traditional outfits! I was loaned a tunic while Mr Lim got away easy as he was wearing a nice/formal top so all he needed was a 'scarf''. I really liked the purple/green combo though.

And of course, I cheated on the little monster when I fell in love with this little cutie - The Havanese, Vito!
Yummy food, great company and a cute little dog. That's life~

The sexiest butt in the world...

Love love love it~

The growing project on the wall..

From that to this...

And it's still growing!

My FIRST sewing project..

I signed up for a sewing class at The Sewing Studio and after two classes, I completed my very first project!

It started off with me heading to Mood Designer Fabrics (FINALLY! Especially after being such a huge Project Runway fan for the past 9 seasons!)and choosing the fabric - a cotton canvas. I'm absolutely in love with the prints and would love to make pillow cases out of it. (Too advanced for now, but we shall see..)
Laid it out for a shot and guess who just has to be in the photo?

Work in progress...

Anyway, after 4 hours of work/class (most of it went into learning how to use the sewing machine), it was finally done!

Ta-dah~
While I'm in love with the bag right now, a close scrutiny would reveal all the imperfections of my stitches. (It's practically impossible to sew straight!) But since it was after all my very first attempt, I'm still pretty proud of myself!

Moving on to my second project (a secret for now) and as I lay the fabric out for a shot, the little monster did the same thing and laid on it! Hee, guess he's hinting for me to make him something. Maybe a dog bed, but let's just take things one step at a time for now!

Etsy Potential Shopping Spree..

I am SO SO addicted to Etsy right now. (Insanely hooked) After spending countless hours on it, I've shortlisted a handful of items that I'm just ready to purchase this instant. But yes, I'm actually holding back. For now that is.

1. Dog Tail Leash Holder

I've already pictured this going near the main door by the glass panel in our senja flat. And yes, this is just for Sam's leashes...

2. Dog Chalkboard

I want the JRT wired version though. This is sooo going into our workspace (aka guest room) in Senja!

3. Dog Tag Protectors

Sam's tags are always clinging against each other and that drives the nuts out of me. (Not to mention that the tags get really scratched and rusty after constant exposure and rough and tumble) While I kinda like the idea of the tag cover, I'm not absolutely fond of the design. Thus the KIV..

4. Modern Pet Bed

Picture this atas dog bed for Sam in a little corner in our senja flat. Awww~ And the best part of all, I'm actually thinking of getting a grey couch for us to begin with, thus this is just an awesome fit! (yeah yeah, it's ridiculously expensive too. BUT, I really want it! LOL)

5. Modern Dog bowl

I love the modern and slick look of this dog bowl, and yeah yeah, I think it's going match my design ideas for our senja apartment. So this is definitely my on my to-buy list.

Excited! I'm holding back for now. BUT I'm pretty sure that by the time we head back in 2013, I would have all the items. =P

My biggest headache..

Everyone around me knows that I love the little monster to bits. (Possibly more than anyone/anything else in my life) BUT, his shedding is just driving me nuts! To attempt to minimize the stray hair, I do brush him about 2 to 3 times a week.

Here's a preview of just how much 'loose' fur he has..

I vacuum the house every single freaking day and still there's just endless amount of stray fur around (even after the brushing!). Sigh, I'm pretty sure we are going to invest in a heavy duty vacuum cleaner when we are back... Meanwhile, -_-...

The portraits of the little monster are here!!

Though they are a little smaller than what I thought, they were still AWESOME and the drawings completely blew me away!! I'm so happy! Hee, I shall save up some bucks to get the artist to do more of Sam's portraits before we make our way back to Singapore.

And I'm not the only happy/satisfied one..

My days..

People always asked me how I pass my days doing nothing.. but the truth is, there are always tons of things to do - that is if the little monster is at home. I bring him out 4-5times a day and we recently got into a "Let's walk till we die" routine where we would go for 2-3 hours walks (which often end up with one of us being carried home, and no surprises, it's not me). Other than that, whenever I'm bored at home after doing housework (if ever) or anything else, I would either bring him out to kill time or disturb and play with him. Even holding him in my arms makes time fly by.

But, without him, it's just B-O-R-I-N-G.

I decided to leave the little boy at daycare to allow me a day of errand running, which I lazied out from (I blame it on the rain). Thus, I ended up staying home. Without the need to bring the little boy to relieve himself or to exercise him, I just literally rotted at home.

And damn, time is crawling~

So I guess life's a bitch. I complain when he takes up too much of my time, and I complain when I have too much time in my hands. Nice~

In the mail...almost here..

I'm expecting something in the mail this week..and I CANNOT WAIT!

Isn't it just out of the world cute! After searching for the longest of time, I finally found the artist I would like to commission Sam's portrait. I found this artist, Paintmybuddy, on Etsy (the MOST addictive website ever) and just fell in love with her work.

After tons of consideration, I picked 4 photos of the little monster - Sam's smile, Sam's sleepy face, Sam's begging face and Sam's side profile, and sent it to her.
Within a week, she got the paintings done and they just blew me away. It was AWESOME. Hee, to make things even cuter, I ordered the canvas in 3" x 3" size. So, they are going to be tiny cute.

I'm still trying to decide where to place the canvas. But of course, I've to get my hands on it first! Waiting for the mail!! So exciting!

PS: The artist felt that Sam was too cute (well, we all know. =P) and asked if she could use the portraits as samples for her etsy shop. Check this out.

NYC Comic Convention 2011!

We were at NYC Comic Convention 2011 and had tons of fun!!
We bought the one day pass (which was USD50 a pax) and went with a whole group of friends. Well, Mr Lim was once again given the task of the photographer and I guess he didn't do too badly this time. (Still got ugly shots but I'll let it pass..)

As usual, it was a place for me to have a shopping spree! I started off with buying a Tokidoki skateboard which cost as much as my ticket! Hee, Zim and I agreed that the skateboard would add a cute/quirky touch to our home decor (in Senja). Lucky us, the artist, Simone Legno was there to personalize the skateboard! And, he's kinda cute! Hopefully, his autograph would increase the re-sale value of the skateboard, but for now, it's ours to keep!

Close up of the skateboard and the personalized drawing. And yap, it's a branch of tokidokis eating sushi! Cute, isn't it?
I went on to buy another quirky drawing of Christina Strain (signed too!). Happy~
It's a really funny drawing of a lion (holding cup of hot chocolate with mashmallows), raccoon and shark (with ear masks) riding a unicorn!
Of course, how could I ever forget my Zombie love.. I bought a "I Love Zombies" shopping bag (for a whooping USD12) and I grabbed two "The Walking Dead" posters

Mr Lim didn't leave empty handed either. He bought a couple of boardgames and a series of 3 batman posters (that will go up our walls in Senja too!).

There were tons of cosplayers as well (most commonly were games, marvel, star wars and star trek characters). My favourite was a service dog that was dressed up as Captain American. What a darling!

Anyway, the best part of the day was being able to take photos with our favourite characters!

Mr Lim and "Kick-Ass".

And of course, me and my favourite - ZOMBIES!
Till next year!

My few steals from UK..

As mentioned earlier, I really didn't spend much buying things in the UK. I seriously think Zim spent more after investing in his Hugo Boss suit (even when all my purchases add up). Anyway, I managed to buy some items in London for Zim to bring back with him.

No surprises.. more Crumpler!!
I was so upset that I could not find anything that I liked at the factory outlet that I decided to just purchase a burberry scarf despite it being ridiculously expensive (sigh, it was about SGD200. -_-). I guess I was just pissed that Zim bought tons of stuff and I refused to return empty handed. grrrrr. Yap, an impulse buy. Pui~
A doggy umbrella and a doggy key chain that were probably worth less than what I paid for, but still, it works for a dog lover sucker like me. But again, Radley was quite a popular brand in London.
That was pretty much what Zim brought back for me. Pathetic huh?

For the dog lover sucker part of me, I bought some handmade items from a quirky store. (These I really love and do think it was probably the best buy of the trip.)
Oh oh, and of course, to add on to my shotglass collection!


For the food junkie part of me, I found some really yummy bites from Marks & Spencer that zim's sister used to get for me when she travelled for work. Love love love it!
To bribe the little monster and to distract him from attacking my snacks, I bought him some treats from Marks & Spencer and a little highland cow from Scotland. (Okay, I wanted the highland cow for me, so this is just an excuse.)
Well, I was so disappointed in my steals that I went on a shopping spree at Heathrow Airport. I swear I could have spent more had I not spend one stupid hour standing in line for VAT refund for a mere 5 pounds. (Like WTF right?) I found a tea towel, a foldable shopping bag and a pouch from Harolds! And yap, all of dog prints. ^_^
Hee... and shhh.. I also bought a longchamp duffel bag which I shall not post a picture of, lest Qian scolds me even more. =P But that was a lifesaver as I was able to fit everything, including my camera bag, into it to carry on the plane.

Guess that explains why I still have so much cash left behind. I barely did any shopping!!!!!!! T_T

Better luck in Rome. This I will ensure.

UK..

Okay, I conclude, Backpacking really ain't my style. Carrying a shitload on my back and constantly moving from hostels to hostels really just don't cut it for me. I'm still having a massive backache from the weight and the really uncomfortable beddings (I think age did contribute as well). Oh, did I mention that there was no TV! Thank god I had my faithful old kindle and iPod to keep me sane during the early nights. Oh well, I guess that's it. My future trips, either go luxury (okay, not extravagant, just reasonable.) or not go at all. Period.

That being said, it was a pretty good trip. My travel buddies were really nice and accommodating and UK is beautiful beyond words. I fell deep in love with Bath (and almost refused to come back had it not that Zim threatened to throw Sam away if I don't return) and was equally blown away by Edinburgh (which I would almost certainly return to).

It's funny to say this, but since I'm doing nothing most of the time in NYC, going on vacation is actually more exhausting than ever. All I could think of on the trip was to return to NYC, back to the comforts of my bed and couch and to indulge in my ever favourite pastime of watching trashy reality TV and just surfing the web. (Yeah, yeah, I'm pathetic.) Going on this holiday, while scenic and breathtaking, took away the simple joys of my life - TV, internet (this I could probably live without if I had TV, oh, and CABLE) and bringing Sam for walks. There was even one point of time that I was contemplating cutting the vacation short to come home (okay, yes, I'm that spoilt.) but thankfully stopped short of doing that.

On another positive note, this was probably the one trip that I spent the least as I was constantly worried about fitting everything into the backpack. Thus, after ALOT of self-editing, I came back with pretty much what I went with. Yes, I was wayyyy under budget and have a hell lot of pounds left. Damn. Hopefully, it's not going to fall too low. *Fingers crossed*

Yet, the biggest smile and joy I have had for the past two weeks was when I finally arrived back to NYC and held the little monster in my arms again. That was, without a doubt, the best moment.

You know that...

your husband secretly hates you when you asked him to be a photographer for a wedding and all he took were really unflattering photos of you. -_-

In case you are wondering, there are worse shots that I am not showing... N-E-V-E-R.

sigh. what can I say...

Back to my little monster!!

I was suffering from severe Sam-withdrawal syndrome while I was away. And it really did not help that Jack Russell Terrier is a really popular breed in UK. (Think I saw almost 10-15 JRTs within 2 weeks. But, yap, Sam is still da CUTEST, without a doubt!) Now that I'm back, with the little monster in my arms once again, I cannot resist but take tons of photos of him, yeah, AGAIN.

Caught Sam's transition in falling asleep. LOVE love love it..





What a lovely sight. =D