Christmas Pressies!

Ahh.. Boxing Day.. how I wish that it was a public holiday here in Kuching, but to no avail.. then again, there's no big sale so what for take a day off work right?  

Hasn't the time passed fast?  Christmas has come and gone, and soon we'll be heading into the New Year.. but enough about that.. don't wanna jump the gun.. 

So I would like to talk about all the Christmas pressies I got.. haha.. no I'm not bragging.. just sharing!  It was weird this year because each of our siblings gave each other something.. usually I don't get pressies from the brother and second sister.. but this year.. it was gift exchange all over.. I must say, it's an expensive season though.  I spent so much a MAC that I got free gift bags AND a free makeover!  I bought each of my sisters and sister-in-law a MAC gift set that comes with like really cute bags.. 

So what did I get for Christmas?

I got this gorgeous pair of Melissa shoes from Jo.. who bought it when she was in Kuala Lumpur last week.. now I'd never heard of Melissa shoes before.. but I'm in love with it!  They're so adorable.. and they all smell like bubble gum!  Weird eh.. wonder if it covers up foot odour? hahaha

Aren't they gorgeous?  I just found out that AlanHarperIsMyIdol saw the exact same pair of shoes in Melbourne (in pink!) and thought that they were gorgeous as well!  I can't wait to wear it out.. although I don't really know at this moment with what outfit.. hahahaha

Ron and Elvina gave me a Benefit makeup learner's kit (comes with a pore minimiser :P ) and some foundation and stuff.. great present.  Although I'm not sure why they thought I would need a learner's kit.. hahaha.. are they trying to say something? :) But she did mention something about smoky eyes.. 

Christine and John gave me a Bowerhaus bracelet which I love.. I chose the pink stone ones :)  It's the one in the middle..

 I love Bowerhaus products.. it's actually a brand created by Elizabeth Lee, who is Shentel's sister, who is Bobby's wife, who is John's youngest brother.. we like to keep things in the family.. so we're stern supporters of her product, and she's doing quite well for herself!

Olivia gave me a pair of Ipanema slippers which were totally gorgeous.. it was the Gisele range.. can't wait to wear it as well.  I also got the cutest set of pink tea set from Valerie.. I wonder where she got it from.. it's totally adorable!

Lastly, what exactly did PrincessBling give me?  Well she (and hubby) gave me the greatest gift of all.. a cash cheque! hahahaha.. of course.. 4/5 of the amount was what she actually owed me.. so she pretty much paid off her debt :)

I love Christmas.. I love seeing the joy on people's faces, I love giving presents (although PrincessBling has screamed at me about savings!) and I love the fact that friends and family come together to enjoy this special festivity, regardless of belief!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all!  God bless!
 

Christmas!!!!

Christmas is coming in a week and Oh my.. I can't wait for it!  I think Christmas is my favourite time of the year.. followed by Chinese New Year!  What do I love about Christmas?  I love it how the family comes together and celebrate, nothing like religion separating us (even though Johnny's family is Buddhist.. and we're Christians) .. and boy do we celebrate :)  Each year, we throw a Christmas party for close friends.. and each year it involves..

TURKEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Turkey turkey turkey turkey....
I LOVE TURKEY!!!  I'm more fascinated with cooking the turkey rather than eating it.  I love cooking Turkey, because it takes time to prepare and prep, and out pops this beautiful looking roast turkey that tastes absolutely wonderful, and it always pleases me to know that people enjoy my cooking once a year.  Last year's turkey came out wonderfully moist.. this year I'm going to brine my turkey so it'll be even more moist!  My secret recipe?  Lots of vegetables in the roasting pan to make the turkey super sweet.. however this year, I'm going to lay it on a roasting rack to properly collect the juices from the turkey to make the dressing.. I'll be roasting the veges in a separate pan next to the turkey so the turkey will still smell the fumes of the veges! haha.. hope that works!

I wanted to try out a new recipe, which is roasted brussel sprouts and potatoes with bacon fat.. unfortunately, us being a small town with the wrong climate to cook brussel sprouts.. we can't get them here.. I tried the recipe in USA and it was delicious!  I found some brussel sprouts on my recent trip to Singapore, but they didn't look so hot.. and it would probably have rotted by the time Christmas came around.. 

Another item which we always have at Christmas party is...

Ham!!!  PrincessBling will be drooling over this picture.. she's a porky person.. loves her Sio Tu (roast pork) and she absolutely loves that Gammon Ham that we buy each year from Singapore.  Pop it into the oven for a couple of hours and it comes out hot and crispy on the outside and superbly moist and salty on the inside.  I don't care too much for cooking ham because it takes nothing.. just aluminum foil and a hot oven.

Alas.. there's always the alcohol that comes with every celebration.  We have beer, we have champagne, we have wine, we have sake.. whiskey.. anything your heart desires we have.. and the greatest thing about a celebration, is that no one stops you from drinking!  Hahaha.. but yes, I didn't forget my 2013 goal.. so I'm going to drink all I can before! HAHAHAHA just kidding.. I'm going to watch myself and don't over-indulge in turkey, ham and alcohol.

Christmas is also a scary time for binging.. my worst enemy.  I always ended up eating way too much and feeling so full and bloated for the rest of the day.. which then leads to bad thoughts in my head, and I usually get a little light headed from the alcohol binge as well.. but this year.. I HAVE A GOAL.. which is to lose 10kgs by April 2013.. and that means no binging.. I'm going to watch myself carefully.. and probably go to the gym prior and after to work out all that calorie intake!

Last but not least, is watching the joy of the children's faces when they open up their presents.. although past experiences have shown that they really don't care what they get, as long as its numerous (ie more presents the better!).. sigh.. kids will be kids after all.  Our Christmas tree is filling with presents and I can't wait to distribute them out.  But then again, there'll be some people without presents, because quite frankly.. what do you buy a person who already has everything?

Oh Christmas.. why don't you come sooner?  I am counting down the days til you get here.. and I'll be preparing my stomach for you.. which means hour long sessions at the gym on days that I can go.. which hopefully will be daily... hopefully...

 

2013 GOALS!!!!!

Since 2012 is coming to an end (yay Christmas and New Year Parties!!), I decided to write down my goals for 2013.. that I can think of anyway.. and let's see if I stick to it!

My first goal of course, which has been the same for every year.. is to participate more in exercising and keeping fit.. (and of course, weight loss would be the added bonus!).. I've been rather slack in that area in 2012.. but way better than I was in 2011 where I did NOT touch any gym equipments at all... exercise was EVIL.. but this year, I've started going to the gym at home and working out.. reaching my goal of fitting into my Tatler dress in one month etc.. BUT now.. for 2013, I've made the ultimate goal.. to lose 10kgs by April 2013.. (just before my big trip to Paris!).. now how on earth am I going to do that?  Well, firstly.. I've decided to sign up at Phoenix Gym.

Yes.. I decided that I'm not dedicated at home to do it on my own, and I need pushing.. and I'm practically at Phoenix Gym every day (I now operate a juice bar there.. more about that later!).. so what better use of my time than to work out and be fit and healthy!  But ultimately, I want to lose 10 - 20kgs by the end of 2013.. 

Second goal of the year, would be cutting down on alcohol consumption.  Yes people, no more binge drinking (AFTER New Years :P).. I don't think my liver can take anymore abuse, and it's coming to the point where I'm craving for alcohol daily!  My psychologist has gone as far as to recommend Detox and Rehab.. to which I told her 'there's no way I'm giving up alcohol for life!'.. so it's my duty then, to prove that I don't need rehab.. to cut down on alcohol consumption.. that means possibly drinking only once a week.. not counting dinner functions etc.. or the occasional bottle of wine during dinner..  I figured, if I spent more time at the gym.. there's less opportunity for me to drink.. and less drinks means less carbohydrates, which will fuel my weight loss!  It's a win-win situation!

Third goal for 2013 would be to run a half marathon.. yup..  a full 21km.. and hopefully the training I get in the gym will gear me up for that.  There's the Standard Chartered Marathon in Singapore in December 2013, and I hope to be able to compete in the 21km category by then.  In the meantime, I will continue signing up for 10km marathons, just to prepare myself and to partake in something that I really do enjoy.. just thinking.. if I walked 21km (maybe running about 4km.. it will take me 4 hours to finish it!)

Fourth goal... to indulge in travels.. with planned trips to Paris and Egypt, I'm sure I'm going to fulfill this goal next year! :)  Might drop into Milan while in France as well.. just because it's shopping central for branded goods!

Fifth goal.. to find true love maybe?  Let's face it.. I'm not getting any younger.. perhaps it is time to let go of the past, of what's thats been haunting me for over 2 decades.. to face my fears and just let go.. 

So these are my main goals for 2013.. notice that much of it has to do with health :P  but yeah.. if you don't have health, what have you got?  HOORAY for 2013!!!

Post Marathon Indulgence

When you feel so accomplished completing a 10km marathon, there is no other way to reward yourself, than to indulge a little bit in pre-season shopping.. especially when you're in Singapore... 

I spent the rest of 2nd December 2012 indulging in beer and Prosecco with a dear friend in Singapore, gossiping about everything that's been happening with life and then catching up with another group of friends for Korean BBQ dinner.  It was great fun.

The next day, I hung out with bro and wifey in Orchard road.. where I limped along in the rain (I can't believe he expected me to run in the rain.. hello.. you're lucky I can even walk!) and we went for Ramen dinner.. pretty good considering the fact that I don't really like ramen.. but I was famished.. so I downed the whole bowl.. nice having a hot bowl of soup in such miserable weather.

So anyway, we went limping along the shops, and we stopped at Coast where I found this gorgeous skirt...

Sorry for the really pixelated picture.. but it's a tulle skirt that's really full and soft, slowing degrading in color.. and bonus.. it was 30% off and had my size!  Only disappointing thing is that the top for it was sold out..but after trolling through their website, I'm glad I didn't buy the 'bustier' (as the saleslady called it) that came with it.  I'm so wearing it for New Years.. where we'll be celebrating in 'formal fashion' at Sarawak Club.. 

The other thing I bought was for PrincessBling (don't worry.. she's sooooo paying me back for it) was an Anya Hindmarch clutch that she was after.. and it was gorgeous!  It's gold and really sparkly/blingy.. which is just so PrincessBling that I had to get it for her.

Ain't that like super gorgeous?  This picture does no justice to the 'sparklyness' of the bag though.. and being a tourist, I get to claim back GST, so bonus!  Oh, and I get a 10% discount on it just for being a tourist!  How great is Singapore people?  (to shop.. not to stay!)

I'm glad to say those were my only 2 purchases while spending 5 days in Singapore.  Yes, I have to save money now as we're planning a trip to Paris in April 2013.  How exciting is that?  We're going to crash on our friend's "pre-wedding honeymoon maybe?"  wink wink.. 

I'm proud to say.. there were many things that I itched to buy.. but I didn't.. score one for the shopaholic anonymous club!  (if there ever was one...)

Standard Chartered Marathon

I can't believe that it's already December 2012... has anyone else realized that this year just pretty much flew by?  It seems like I had all the time in the world before 2nd December 2012... and the date just seems to pop up and bite you in the ass..

Yes, I'm talking about the Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore 2012 that I signed up for.  I was excited to be running a marathon again, but yeah.. didn't get in as much practice as I could have.. I did train 2x in the week coming up to the marathon.. in between visits to America and Singapore and in between heavy drinking sessions unfortunately.. 

I signed up for 10km again (okay, I'm not THAT ambitious to be trying 21km just yet!) and was a little worried about how I would do in the heat, as it's a morning race, not a night run like the previous marathon I signed up for.  My bib number was 67808 which I took as a good sign (what a great number!)  We were scheduled to flag off at 7.15am, but there being 20,000 runners in the 10km race, I didn't step pass the start line until 7.20am!  I started jogging.. jogging.. jogging.. being in my own world (which I love!) and I was very please with myself to realise that after 1km, I wasn't huffing and puffing like my last attempt.  However, do you realise that when you start thinking about the fact that you have ran 1km.. you suddenly do get tired?  Note to self: train the mind to be elsewhere instead of focusing on running... 

The good thing about Singapore is that it is supposedly 1 hour behind Malaysia time, but they pushed their clocks forward when they joined Malaysia.. so technically, 7am Singapore is like 6am Kuching.. so the weather was much cooler than I expected.. in fact, after building up some sweat, it kinda got chilly.. 

I timed myself.. keeping in mind that I had 12 minutes to run 1km in order to finish at 2 hours.. but oh no.. that wasn't my goal... my goal was to get a better time than my last run of 1 hour and 45 minutes!  I mean, you join this to get better.. not worst!  My first km.. I'm proud to say, was completed in 5 minutes.. 7 minutes for the second km and so on.. but never going more than 10 minutes for a km.  I was wearing my new New Balance running shoes.. which weren't that great for long distance because while it was really light, the soles were too thin, therefore not giving enough padding and my foot started hurting about 3/4 of the way into the race.. when I tried running again at the last km.. OW.. I had to limp along.. but that final 150m.. I just ran for it.. I put the pain behind and ran like there was no tomorrow!  Hey.. if I had that opportunity to finish infront of a few more people, wouldn't I take it?  So anyway.....

 1 HOUR AND 40 MINUTES!!!

That's right people... I had accomplished my mission of beating my last run.. and I did by a whole 5 minutes! I felt amazing!  I felt accomplished.. I felt.. on top of the world!  I had completed my 2nd 10km marathon.. all before 2 hours.. and I wasn't even feeling half dead!  Although my legs would tell you a different story 3 hours later.

I was so excited to collect my medal that I almost missed the distribution point!  I wish I had pictures to show you guys, but I ran alone so there was no one to ask for pictures (my brother came with me but he was a whole 10 minutes faster than me!).. so note people.. when I ask you to register.. you REGISTER! hahaha.. that's to all my friends who said that they would come running with me and missed the registration cut off time!

There's pictures online right now, unfortunately, it's copyrighted so I can't "steal" it and post it on this blog.. but here's a link to it here  where you can check me out in action :).. unfortunately, couldn't get glam up for it.. hahaha.. so no makeup here!  All naturel man.. 

Soo.. what would be my next marathon?  The Sundown Marathon in 2013 is on 1st June, which happens to coincide with Gawai.. would I rather drink than run?  Hell yeah.. and there is a marathon in Gold Coast coming up.. but I ain't flying all the way there just to run.. not to mention it's hella expensive in Australia right now.. Maybe the next Standard Chartered marathon in Kuala Lumpur sometime in August 2013.. but for now, I'll just relinquish the great memories of this marathon.. and hope that I can find another marathon in the first half of 2013..