Happy birthday to me

Had been eying this eyeliner palette since forever... so I had no reason to refuse myself this little present when I saw it for half price while in Sephora picking up my birthday freebies :)

all is glam, all is bright

sparkly!!

gingerbread cookies success :)

 

yumminess definitely attributable to the extra grand marnier we put into the dough :)

and guess what?  these were great with beau's beer!!

BOGO goodies from panera bread

 

Panera Bread just opened in Heartland and they were offering some splendid promos - including today's buy one pastry get one free deal, so of course we had to capitalize on that and try out a few :)

Coblestone (my fave with dried fruits and nuts), Pecan Twist,  Bear Claw and Red Velvet Crinkle (almost tied for top spot - yum!)

lamb kebab, dan-dan noodles and soup of lamb with dough

Since we got the rare chance to eat out by ourselves (ourselves meaning just the two of us) we went to - of all places - the food court at pacific mall for yummy lamb kebab, dan-dan noodles and yangrou paomo (northern chinese soup made with lamb and crumbled pieces of flatbread) <3>

The calming effect of our Tuesday meets was completely wiped out by finger-pointing know-it-all coworker who bosses people around and frequently changes her mind...
Can't wait til this hell week is over

what?!?!

how is it fair that he would get to stay in office after what he's done?? and how does he think he will win in the by-election, if one happens??

what respect did he expect after breaking his people's trust? (not to mention the using-cellphone-while-driving-and-gave-finger-when-confronted incident, the calling-911-because-he-can't-deal-with-media incident - what a way to spend taxpayer's money!, and the various other controversies he's put himself into)


Honestly, he already acts like a spoiled brat - with this ruling allowing him to stay in office pending appeal, he's gonna think that he can get away with anything and everything - and the next time he won't be satisfied with just a couple grands for his football fund...

smarten up Torontonians!!

best patties ever

Jamaican veggie patties from Tinnel's on Signet Drive has the perfect combo of flaky pastry and saucy filling - it's so yummy that I don't miss the meat!

rosy glasses

Fatal attraction

Fatal is the name of the pretty shimmery purple color in this Revlon Nail Art Break Up duo

 

Not crazy about the other color called attraction (a red crackle overcoat) so I left it out... what do you think??

Breakfast at Blue Ocean Cafe

Our new favorite breakfast spot is the Blue Ocean Cafe at Kennedy and Hwy 7, a busy HK-style restaurant that's fast, cheap and yummy - plus how can you not smile at the sight of these cutie sausage disguising as mini octopuses?

Super Lemon!!

How nostalgic...

a face-twistingly sour candy that we used to keep awake while studying back in the days...

 

night breed

I know I have more than enough nail polishes to paint a different color on each nail for 3 days (only!) but I couldn't resist the bling in the bottle - considering merely 2 items came out with me from the warehouse sale I can't really feel guilty about it, right?

 

 no flash

 

with flash

goodies from shiseido warehouse sale 2012

Didn't manage to make it to the Shiseido warehouse sale yesterday as I had hoped due to various circumstances but to make up for it B made sure I woke up early and even dropped me off this morning - despite getting there before 8:30, the line up had already grew past its third turn.  Luckily, I got in just after 9 before the crowd got to the makeup counter. As more and more people pushed and elbowed their way in, it became harder to keep level-headed and seeing most items of sale were not new to the warehouse sale, I came away with merely 100 bucks of damage - and half of that were Nars sets I've picked up as gifts, and half of the remainder were shampoos and more shampoos (12 bucks for enough to last a year - what a steal!).

Only two things were for myself: a nail polish named Night Breed (a black polish with silver glimmer), and a concealer in the shade of Custard. (I really wanted the duo concealer compact but Ginger seems waaay too dark and Vanilla/Honey were too light)

 



 

Purple Teal & Silver

 

Inspired by my dear friend's wedding theme colors - 

I painted my nails with different shades of purple, teal & silver

(well, mostly purples, because I only have one polish that resembles the greenish-bluish-teal that she had in mind) 

 

If I can recall the shades correctly:

Nicole by OPI - the Grape Debate (grape purple)
Nicole by OPI - Respect the World (greenish teal)
Revlon - Rock (royal purple/cooler tone than grape)
Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme - Celeb City (shiny silver)
Revlon - Gum Drop (pastel lilac)

Probably just a tad too funky to wear as bridal nails.

kenzo ramen

 

Shiseido Perfect Rouge

pretty pink/mauve color for fall

mini nuggets?

Maybe McDonald's felt pressured by KFC's popular popcorn chicken to expand its menu:
 

The box is cleverly designed to hold the dipping sauce in place - except it kept tipping over:

Verdict: not that great - in terms of value and in terms of taste.
I think it's the breading to meat ratio - or maybe it's the breading itself... but Chicken McBites just didn't deliver on the crunch.

chirashi

Ichiban at 16th and Leslie

ratatouille and lasagna

i think nothing can be simpler than dinner that you can just throw into the oven and forget - well except the chopping and cutting part.

Ratatouille: slice zucchini, sweet peppers, red onion and tomatoes and arrange in casserole dish.  Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with minced garlic, salt, ground black pepper and herbs (I used basil and parsley, since that's what I have on hand).  Stick the whole thing into the oven, preheated to 375F.  It'll be ready in an hour.

A loaf of crusty bread would be great to soak up all the juices.

Lasagna: always use oven-ready pasta.  Layer casserole dish with pasta sauce, then lasagna noodle - forget about the gaps between the noodles because they will expand as they cook - then cottage cheese/egg/grated Parmesan mixture then shredded mozzarella then  ground beef cooked with onion.  Repeat the layers, finishing with noodles.  Top with more pasta sauce and shredded cheese,  Bake at 375F for an hour, with a foil over the dish for the first 40 minutes to prevent the cheese from charring.

Easy-piecey.  And very yummy.

chicken noodle soup - chinese style

1. Cook chicken

Rinse whole chicken under running water then rub with some table salt and sand ginger (aka galanga) powder.

Add 2 slices of ginger and a stalk of green onions cut into 3-inch lengths to a pot big enough for the chicken.  Add half a cup of cooking wine then add water, leaving room for the chicken.

When the water boils, submerge the whole chicken.  Once the pot returns to a boil, cover and turn off the stove.  Leave it undisturbed for 40 minutes.

Chop chicken up after it cools.  Meat should be just cooked through - if bone bleeds bright red while chopping, return chicken to pot and gently simmer for a minute.



2. Make ginger-green onion paste

Combine finely grated ginger and equal parts finely chopped green onion, a little sugar and even less salt.  Add just enough cooked oil (plain vegetable oil heated in a pan) plus a drop or two sesame oil to make into paste consistency.
 


3. Cook noodles

Take stock (water the chicken cooked in) and boil chopped napa cabbage and noodles.  When the cabbage and noodles are done, top with chopped chicken and chopped green onion.  Serve with ginger-green onion paste.

a simple dinner: smoked salmon and poached egg on greens

bier markt + whirly ball/laser tag

we went to a surprised birthday party at bier markt at sherway and hit up the e-zone for whirly ball and laser tag - a first time for all 3!!  (I've only been to the bier markt on esplanade before and no, I thought I was too old for laser tag when I found out about them so never had the chance to play)

have to say it's been the most fun I've had at a birthday celebration in a long time!

Bad parenting?

Can you believe that my teenage brother whom I am babysitting dared to ask me to call in sick for him for frostbite that he got while waiting for the bus that he had to take because he missed his school bus after staying up til late to play online games?  I thought about yielding this request and calling in to tell the truth, but leaving him alone at home just meant more time for him to play online games.  So I dropped him off at school despite having warned him - not once, not twice, but more than ten times - that he can't count on me as his backup plan if he misses his school bus because it would sound ridiculous if I told the school secretary that he is missing school because he couldn't catch his school bus... should I have stood firm and not drive him to school? What if he stayed home and did nothing other than online games?

sukiyaki attempt#2

this time with all the real fixings - fresh shiitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, konnyaku noodles, nappa cabbage, and tofu

i'm a survivor!!

I DID IT!!  Since it was my first climb I was just hoping to finish - but I made it to the top under 27 minutes!!

I had to trick myself to think that I wasn't allowed to stop until i reached the 50th floor - then 60th - then since i was half-way done, not to stop until i reached the top - and it worked!!  of course knowing that B was waiting at the top was a huge motivation - if it wasn't for that i would have taken my time rather than pushing through the 144+ flights of stairs without a single break!

Despite the aching thighs and the stench of sweat and BO (and other smelly things I'd rather not think about), the climb itself wasn't the hardest part- rather it was the last few flights of stairs after clocking in.  We made it to the finish line - what do you mean more stairs??

my new 10-bucks gaming mouse

 I am going to name her... sunny

goodies from shopping trip day 2

 

Olé, Olé, Olé

My dad and bro got to play on the field where the pro teams play so we tagged along to cheer for them - 'cause after all, what fun is it to be center stage when there's no audience?

 

moose's pick

airy buttery cookie with irresistibly gooey dark chocolate center

what's keeping me sane tonight

happy thanksgiving

Shopping Trip Day 1: Target, frozen custard, walmart