Lesson for today. . .

well, for me at least. Do not ever bother with make-up when you're going to the gym, because at the end of it, you're a freakin' meltin' hot mess anyway.

Just so you know, I am not a gym person, I do my thing outdoor, at the park, by the beach. But today, I actually gave in and stepped into the gym. Was pretty intimidated at first, but after a while.. oh well, I don't really care about other people anyway. I must say it's pretty nice working out with the view of the swimming pool and planes taking off and landing in front of you. Even though I really can only see the planes due to my shortage of tallness. Ha-Ha. I was pretty much the same height as the treadmill control buttons! Talk about intimidating!

I am still not a gym person as of now, but I think I can learn to love it. Let's move on to prettier topic, shall we?

A little while ago, the gorgeous Jeni Boisvert sent me some Shimmerz to play with! How sweet is that? Thank you Jeni.



I am not good with whites, I noticed. But I love that look, so Hambly to the rescue :) Orange overlay + white cardstock = pure deliciousness. Then, because the base is white, I went to town and added about a trillion other colors. Yes, I am an exaggerator :)



DYMO goodness + crackle paint + embroidery thread.



Close up of the gorgeous butterflies, I used Heidi Swapp mask and Shimmerz in Mango Madness! How cute is that name??!! Then outlined with Stickles in Star Dust. I really wish you can see this in real life because those Shimmerz, the end product is really this awesome, glossy perfection!



Making Memories brads + more embroidery thread + green felt ric-rac + Jenni Bowlin sticker. and Oh! Hambly Rub ons! Love that pop of hot pink, matches my DYMO refill :D

I don't know about you, but all the colors here. . . is making me giddy with excitement! LOL. And I really, really hope our LSS will bring Shimmerz into Singapore really, really soon. Boy, I need a COMPLETE collection and then some if you ask me! (just don't let Mr Husband know about this, okay? Okay.)

When you have more dream than sense in your head

it could be a beautiful thing, don't you think? In your head, everything is possible. In there, you're everything and everything is you.

Right now, I'm dreaming about a trip to the beach. Preferably the one in my layout below, but I'm not fussy, any beach in Phuket/Koh Samui/Bora Bora/Bali will do. *Mr. Husband, are you reading this? LOL*



Love the look of the silver hanging heliconias against white cardstock. It has got that airy feel without looking too bare, me thinks.

Red misted butterfly = Scenic Route chipboard. Just so you know, I misted it like one year ago. LOL. Was meant to go on another layout back then, but decided against it at the last minute.



Prima, gorgeous swirls. Cut apart and re-assembled 'my freestyle' way, suits the butterfly better IMO.



Black Glitz Netz, painted with Broken china crackle paint. Love it when some pieces fall off the netz, giving it the "I'm weathered but absolutely fabulous" look. *grins*



Shipping tags, misted, stamped, inked = the works.

That stays a dream, though. The girls are busy preparing for their coming Final Exams, which means mommy is nowhere near a beach as well. Heh. We, yes, all three of us have been studying. Not that mommy is of much help with the Maths especially. LOL. Me and numbers, we hate dislike each other. Thank God for answer sheets!!

Last night, both girls slept in my bed. That means I hardly get any sleep myself. All that squirming and tugging and pushing, too much for me. LOL. I need a nap now!

I'll be blog hopping later today, so I'll see you soon, yes?

xoxo :)

Freestyle randomness

* Thank you so very much for your kind words and encouragements for my last post. You guys are the BEST! THE BEST!

* I registered for Run For Hope. Yay me, even if I'm gonna crawl or walk at the most! Only problem, I realized I entered "Male" at the gender column. Urmm...

* Nidhi was at a birthday party earlier today, and guess what is the conversation about tonight in my house? Yes, magician, pinata, chocolate cake and other party games. *smiles*

* I was at the salon to get my eyebrows shaped and Neha wanted to do the same. I said No. (and in my heart, I said, Please give me at least 12 years notice before you start shaping your eyebrows) LOL.

* Some little girls discovered how cool is my DYMO at precisely 1915hrs today. Time to hide the refill tapes. Heh!

* I have a layout, on my table. It has been there for the past 7 days. Unfinished.

* We need to make a trip to the zoo. The girls are missing their 'friends' there :)

* Off late, ideas for creative things, almost always come when I'm driving on the expressway. And they went *poof* as soon as I entered the slip road and hit a red light. Nice.

* 1 month, 2 weeks and 5 days to my sister's wedding. Feels weird saying that. First wedding in the family, that is not mine.

* I have been stalking etsy like there is no tomorrow. Bad for my paypal, good for my soul.

* Sometimes, when people who don't know me all that well, people outside the family, outside my home, starts lecturing me about my way of life and thinking, I just let it slide and go. Why? Because they're just not worth. *smiles*

* I love you.



Mr Husband :)

Masked and misted the background coz I thought the lace cardstock was too 'loud' for my layout.



Punched the star from a piece of cork. Velvet brad - MM :) Hambly rub on. Heidi Swapp blings.



Hambly overlay, rub on and HS blings again. Autumn Leaves star stamp. I have no idea who made that chipboard label holder, Heidi Grace? it was just in a pile in a basket on my table, you get the idea? :)



MM clip to hide his runner's bib. I had to clip it there, because he left it on my table and it has been there ever since. That's the only way to get rid of it, since throwing is out of the question. LOL.

* The kids are getting some tv time today and I have the voice of Spongebob in my head. Thank you kids :)

* You're still here? I love you. See you soon!

~xoxo~

So the cat is out of the bag :)

Roughly one year ago, I was presented with an awesome opportunity. Couldn't believe it at that time, but grateful all the same. Thank you Liz, Beth and CK :) Now I can't wait to get the book in my chubby hands!

There will be a 52 challenges group, blinkies and a possible party at Liz's blog! Stalk her, okay? LOL.

Now, I don't do cats, in real life, really. I am squeamish and will avoid living, furry creatures. Cats, hamsters, dogs, rabbits and the likes (terrified of dogs, super terrified, was chased by one small black, fierce dog when I was 10!). Mind you, I find them cute when they're at least 15 feet away - 45 feet if it's a dog, though.

That paragraph up there, is just for the record, you know? LOL. Just in case some little girls managed to trick their daddy into buying them some furry animals as pets. Just sayin'. . I am not goin' anywhere near it!

Right, now let's share something :) I just adore the 'krafty' color of JilliBean papers. So oh so yummy! And I really wanna use the beautiful set of "Butterflies of The World" playing cards I got sometime ago :)



There has never been a day when I have not been proud of you, though some days I'm louder about other stuff so it's easy to miss that.

I got those words from StoryPeople.com . I subscribe to them and very so often, the stories touched something deep inside. Something I can totally relate to. And when i got this story a while ago, I thought of Neha. Neha, my beautiful pride. She is my eldest and it's easy to forget that she is only 9 sometimes.

I think I'm a great mom (you already know that, don't you?*grins*), but a loud one too. Loud about other things like homeworks, cleaning up your room, stop bugging your sister, eat what is served. . you know, things like that! LOL. I need to be loud in telling them I am so very proud to be the one they call mommy :)

The layout pic, you can actually see Neha scooting in the background. I didn't crop that out on purpose! *grins*



Shipping tag, Scarlet Lime stamp, clear embossing powder, Tim Holtz fired brick distress ink, MM clip, velvet paper (can't remember who made that, sorry... been in my stash for at least 2 years). Beautiful - Autumn Leaves stamp, vinyl thickers. Thread.



Prima flower, distress and normal stickles. Hambly teal brocade love.



Jenni Bowlin ticket, Heide Swapp blings, MM Brad, that velvet paper again, backing paper of the BINGO card from Jenni Bowlin. I cut them out and used a few across the page. Too cute to ignore the packaging, besides the tiny size is perfect for this page.



Prima swirls, Label Tulip stamp, Jenni Bowlin and velvet paper (again, I know, LOL). The white and green felt flower is actually a MM Paperclip, I took it apart and only used the flower part, tossed the actual clip into my drawer. I'm sure I will find a use for it later.

I'll see you soon!
xoxo :)

Short and hopefully sweet. . .

I am swamped.
But very happy.
Busy.
But content.
Running around, looking for more hours in the day.
But calm (that is possible, ask me - heh)

Today, I babysat thirty, seven year olds for 4 hours.
(yes friends, 30, seven year olds ;))
Such sweethearts.
Gonna do it again in a heartbeat.

Tomorrow, Mr Husband is gonna be home from Perth.
She is coming to stay for the weekend.

Saturday, I'm having some lovely people over.
Can't wait.
CAN'T WAIT!

In the meantime, I'm leaving you with these tags. They were for Laine's Make n Take session, way back in July. I just haven't shared them here.







I will fly the world for you.
Yes I will. Just lemme get my wings from the back of the wardrobe ;)

xoxo :)

Not very short, I know :)

Hi. . . I'm awesome

How about you? Don't you love the confidence some kids have?

Nidhi once said, after getting some candy/stickers (mommy's old brain can't remember, sorry) from a salesgirl we encountered on one of our shopping trip, or was it one of Neha's friend? Seriously, it's something like that/around there. She said " oh I know why she gave me the stickers/candy. . .because I'm very cute!" Hah! Don't you just love that?

Of course Neha, my lovely sweet Neha (and daddy and me too, secretly) will snort and start teasing her. And no tease is complete until one of them have tears rolling down the cheeks. LOL.

And oh, I must share this! In a couple of hours, Neha will be promoted from Tweenie to Brownie (such cute names!) *please insert huge proud mommy grins here*. I was a Girl Guide when I was her age, back in my homeland :) Yay Neha! WTG Girl!



Greetings from Paradise
Mine is wherever you are

It's amazing how three people become my whole world. Of course, we're a little crazy but that's how we roll. :)



White on white. Love. Running out of Dymo tape. Not good. Hambly buttery rub-on. Sweet.



Stampers Anonymous. Note to self *must stamp more*. Paper roses from the wedding stuffs shop. Superb. Organza ribbon I found while digging in the drawer. FYI, I spent an hour tying that damn bow! LOL.

All in all, I achieved the look I want for this layout, me thinks!

Thank you for your visits, your kind words, your encouragements. I must say, I appreciate them all very much. Thank you :)

*hugs*

Then I said goodbye. . .

Yes I did :) I decided not to accept the offer to extend the Design Team contract with Hambly. No drama at all, I just need to be somewhat dateline-free for a while. It was a hard one, that decision. If you were on my facebook you probably would have noticed some status updates sung in this tune. Thank you for the kind words, you know who you are :)

I've enjoyed my term with Hambly tremendously and I am still in love with each and everyone of the girl there. The talent and sweetness they have over there is amazing and I am very grateful to be amongst them for the past one year. I know my love affair with Hambly is not about to end so easily, so yes, you'll still be seeing Hambly goodness here on the blog.

Be4 i 4get ~ a layout :)



Do you remember those photos? I just wanna remember how happy she was there on his shoulders. *speaking of which, she is now on my lap, hugging me with all four limbs. it's incredibly warm (86°F as we speak) to be sitting this way while blogging, but LOL.. I'll take what I can get.* She is still at the super cuddly stage, so guess I'm lucky.



Did this while my puter was down a while ago, thus the handwritten journaling. *shivers* i am still learning to love my handwriting :)



My favorite part.. the clear bubbles. They're actually cheap (SGD1.50 per pack) stickers for mobile phone. I used about half a pack for this layout.



And the title, Brown Hambly Vintage Banners rub on, on white. Then I misted it with some of my favorite colors :)

*sigh* I love this layout very very much. Must be those photos. I can almost hear them laugh. :)

I'll be blog hopping after my evening shower, so I'll see you soon!!

*hugs*

And I tell myself. . . it's okay

Have you been to Point. Blank. Period? Have you seen the first prompt? Are you having ideas for a fun, scrappy afternoon/evening, swimming in your head already? *grins*

I would have posted this sooner, like as soon as the prompt is up over there, but I was out shopping for Eid with the fams. 4 odd hours to get one outfit for each of us. 1 hour per person, quite a feat I say. LOL.

Here's my take for PBP this month. Sorry for the bad photo. I will try and replace with a better one if we get decent weather which collaborates with my unlazy days. :D

New, yummy Hambly. That lime green just rocks my world.



It's okay to feel tired.
It's okat to fail baking 'the' chocolate cake for the 47th time.
It's okay to be different.
It's okay to be the one needing to be taken care of.
It's okay to be nervous.
It's okay to get someone to babysit just so you could read the novel in peace.
It's okay to cry when it all gets too much to handle.
It's okay to let the laundry sit in that mountain for one more night.
It's okay not to eat the kids' leftovers.
It's okay to go for a nice meal even when the kids are not around.
It's okay to be socially awkward.
It's okay to put yourself first.
It's okay to fight for that window seat.
It's okay to dance instead of ironing the uniforms.
It's okay to watch that one episode of CSI NY over and over again,
just to hear him call "Ella!Ella!"
It's okay to buy a 'bye-bye back fat' bra.
It's okay to be just a mom, and not a super one at that.



The flowers are not acid free. Got them at the wedding stuffs shop (I have a very good reason to be wandering there, my sister is getting married, remember? *grins). I got myself a few colors. Yummo. And yeah, I don't worry too much about acid free and stuffs. As long as it's pretty and makes me happy.. it's goin' on my page when the time is right.



This I showed you before.

Tags were sprayed with Passion Red and Daffodil Glimmer Mists. Then stamped with Stampin' Up polka dot background, embossed with ZING by American Crafts in Wave. Some random bits of lacey ribbon made its way there as well.

* That pretty girl on there, obviously not me. I cut that up from the tag of my 'bye-bye back fat' bra. Although as far as I can see, she has no fat whatsoever, they should have me on that tag considering the amount of back fat I have to say bye-bye to.

* I think Gary Sinise as Mac Taylor in CSI NY is hot. I don't know about him in real life or other movies/tv production, and I don't really care. LOL.

* The crying when it gets too much to handle part, happens on average of once a month? Yeah, about that.

* You already know I fight for the window seat. LOL.

* My laundry, uhmm... still in that mountain. :D

Don't forget to visit the DT Gallery here and be prepared to be blown away. Seriously, the divas are on fire!

xoxo. . .

It's about time don't you think?

I have not forgotten the ol' blog, mind you. Life has taken over, it has a knack of doing that to you, eh? :)

The computer issues are still unsolved *sigh*, its getting old, really. I am so sick and tired of having to send the puter back to them, and be without one for another two weeks or so, then getting it back only to spend seven hundred hours re-filling my bookmarks, installing all my programs and printers (which is totally not easy given that I am so technically challenged), then have it acting up again and go thru the whole process from the start. Like being on a spooky merry-go-round that won't stop, you know? (well, maybe you don't.. LOL)

Btw, you remember this? The 'something in the oven' is nearly ready for us to enjoy and savour. Why don't you head on over and leave a comment for a RAK from our fabulous Sasha H! You have roughly three more days to enter, late notice from me. . *sorry* please feel free to blame my puter* Hah!

Today, I'm only leaving you with a sneak of things to come. *grins*



Yup, that's it. Three more days until the big reveal. I am freakin' excited! I must work on adding the links of the divas to my sidebar soon! The blog's sidebar, not my side flabs, okay? Okay.

I'll see you in a few days. . .

xoxo

So badly. . .

I wanna be there, i wanna be on that plane, just landing in Phuket, about to spend maybe a week lazing around that gorgeous island.



So badly, eh? Sadly, that is so not gonna happen. Ha-ha-ha!! That photo was from our trip there last June. Yes, I am still a wonderful mother even though I fought with my kids for that window seat. LOL.

One old layout to share today. . . as seen in Creating Keepsakes April 09.


© Creating Keepsakes 2009

The layout is so Nidhi. Those photos, are some of my all time favorite of her. I might have scrapped them more than once, but who's counting. I'm not, for sure.

I haven't got around to snapping photo of the magazine page, just yet. I know, I know, it's August already and the magazine has been out a few months. What can I say? I'm a freestyle kinda girl. Freestyle here means I squeeze my toothpaste randomly all around, I love a week old, frozen Krispy Kremes glazed donuts, I lose my car key and mobile phone at least five times daily, spending an hour looking for my red external HD, only to find it in the top drawer in a black casing, which is why I couldn't find it in the first place, you know.. things like that.


© Creating Keepsakes 2009

And oh! I got my computer back. Of course it came back without all my 578 bookmarks, Photoshop CS4, Picasa and everything nice. So in a true Sasha style, I'm gonna have to painfully install them one by one, gonna have to slowly backtrack~ing links so I can find all my must read favorite blogs and sites. So please, bear with me? Please? :)

I really must go now, I have uniforms to iron, while my two girls are dancing to Hannah Montana in my living room. (I'm a wonderful mother, remember? LOL)

xoxo, see you soon!

Something is in the oven

ETA * Thank you ever so much for all your get well wishes in my last post, you're just the sweetest! We're all okay now, the kids are in school again :) Thank you!*

Well, obviously.. I don't cook. I prefer not to kill my family and friends with my cooking LOL. That being said, I dabble in a little bit of baking. Very little, in fact. Like once in a blue moon. Or once in a pink moon, whichever is later. *grins* Whatever comes out of my kitchen, you can consider it limited edition! LOL.

This is in the oven for now . . .



An awesome new challenge site. One I am proud to be part of. One with passion. One with divas. One with honesty and a hell lot of attitude, scrapping-wise. One with so much love too if I may add :)

Watch this space for more updates!

One layout for today :)



Do I need to say more? He is the love of my life. So glad we're together. The support he gives in whatever I do is just amazing. A-MA-ZING! I have a friend, she will say "you're so lucky Sham is so supportive in what you do! he believes in you, and willing to work with you! that in itself is priceless!" She says this over and over again, everytime we meet, which is like every week, or every other week. And everytime, if course I smile and say "Thank you! I'm so lucky, I know!"

I'm indeed so lucky :) I know.



Embossed butterfly. Please refer to my blog header and you'll know that I adore butterflies. Butterfly stamp from Fontwerks. I'm still trying to get my hands on the Flitter set designed by the oh-so-fabulous Karen Russell. I know it's an old set, LOL, but I still haven't got it, okay? Okay. I will not camp at the door of my lss just to get it though :)



Hambly On Edge Rub on, on vellum.



The butterfly again, sorry, I know this is too much, but it was so beautiful!



Smaller butterflies punched with CarlaCraft paper punch I borrowed from a friend. That is another item on my to-get list.

I just love how this whole layout look as a whole. That Hambly teal woodgrain paper is just perfection. Such a simple layout, like us. Well, he's a simple guy with simple needs, me, not so much. Ha-ha-ha-ha!!

And oh.. originally, I wanted to use 2 photos, seeing as my Selphy can print up to two wallet sized photos on a sheet of 4x6, but the first print was kinda splotchy with something. Not wanting to waste .. i used them all anyway, giving you the satisfaction of seeing my multiple chin, four times. LOL.

I'll see you soon, okay? :) Love you. .

~xoxo~

Blogging from the bed

oh yeah you better believe it. We had one bug free week, and now we're under the weather, yet again. This time, the bug bit both girls and me. *shivers* A lot of whining going on here, and not only coming from the younger ones. *grins*

God must love me though, because Sham aka Mr Husband is around. I don't know what I would've done without him. Love that guy!

One layout to share today, mind you, this was done a few weeks ago! :)



I love everything here. That girl, those colors, the circles, the dragonflies. . .



Urmmm, please pretend you can't see my ugly handwriting, okay? Okay.



So much fun doing up this part. I just got the EK Success dragonfly punch and had to use it! :) Nothing fancy though, just used some scraps of patterned paper I had lying around, flip it to the white side and glimmer misted the punched pieces.



Falling in love with brads, all over again. Glimmer-misted (again, LOL) kraft and silver Little Circles Hambly Paper.



You might have noticed, I almost never totally adhere my embelishments to the base. I love having some bits sticking out. Why? I have no idea. Just the rebel in me, I guess? :)

What else? ah! My puter went off with the repair guys! Estimated date of return - 2 weeks from now. What a bummer, right? *sigh* I know I owe some of you emails and answers. I will get to it soon, I promise. I will be slower, but I'll get back to you. So very sorry about that . . .

The meds are kickin' in, think I'd better get the lappie off me and try to get some sleep in between my-coughing-the-lungs-out sessions. Gross, I know. LOL. Sorry..

xoxo

Lotsa cuddles this week. . .

Nidhi has been home since Tuesday and will be home from school for the rest of the week. A teeny bit of fever, some sniffles and needing lots and lots of cuddles. And naps. She almost always wants me to lie down with her for naps when she's not feeling too great. So you see, that is why mommy's productivity = zero. And it's okay, I love naps! Morning naps, afternoon naps, tea/coffee break naps - you name it. LOL.

And oh, we're having Nigella (she adores Nigella, btw!) on repeat on the dvr. And Spongebob Squarepants. And iCarly. Nice :) She now wants me to make some Chocohotopots. Yummm...

Let's just let me share a layout with you first :) A simple one. Who says you have to re-invent the creative process everytime? It's perfectly okay to do simple in my book.



:) She will say things like.. "ah! I know! Let's go swimming then we can have pizza on the way back home, how about that?" or " Bring me to the park daddy, that way I'll be able to play while you jog around the area! How about that?" LOL..







Nothing to explain about this layout, really. It's pretty much straightforward, let me know if you have any question though :)

I'm going out to fetch Neha from school. She has been an amazing big sister, bringing home homeworks for Nidhi, sending it back the next day. She is also helping me around the house, more than before. She is just awesome, that girl. I'll leave you with two photos of her, both with some kind of animal. LOL. She *hearts* them. Me? Animals? Umm, not so much :) *grins*





xoxo :)

For the love of DMC321

First, I must thank all of you for the kind, comforting words you left me. I treasure each and everyone of them. You have no idea how much you helped me deal with this whole thing. Dear friends, deep from the bottom of my heart, thank you so very much for being there, for your hugs and kisses, for being you. I *heart* you.

Now let me share some craft-ish tags I made before I left for Langkawi last month.

Last month, we were told to scraplift each other. How fun, right?!! When I was assigned to lift the gorgeous Dina Wakley, my mind went blank for a good 30 minutes. LOL. She is like THE goddess, THE artist! *shivers* :D

After that, a lot of ideas came running into my head and it hurts! LOL. She is that good. Whenever you're stumped, just please do yourself a favor.. visit Miss D, she will bring your mojo back in no time at all! I promise :)

I decided to play this time and not create a layout (even though I'm lifting layouts).

Dina's layout 1



Dina's layout 2



My tag 1



My tag 2



I used to stitch a lot. I've been a cross-stitcher since I was 12. At the age of 27+ I decided to jump into scrapbooking, head first. but I dragged my DMC321 along for the ride. LOL. DMC321 = red. Yummy red. You can see how much I love this red, eh? :)

I was looking for fun, I got fun! I had a blast playing with Hambly goodness, Glimmer Mists and Embossing Powders. To me, these tags proved that with a little rub-ons, some stickers and ink, (maybe not just that, I obviously used some scrap pieces of overlays, pearls and CS as well, and oh.. my DMC321) you can produce something, something you ought to love to bits. I know I did, as these are meant for my girls.. and urmm.. they're still in my possession right up to this minute. I will definitely hand them over, just not now. *grins*

For more eye-candies, please visit the scraplifts gallery by Hambly Girls! :)

I have two little girls camping in my living room right now, so I better start making my way to bed, manouvering my way amidst that huge tent and those cuddly toys and pillows ~ so not easy, i tell you that much. I'll be lucky to get into bed before 2am. LOL :)

Love you much, friends! xoxo :)

When it's so damn hard to let go. . .

Sorry for the dust around here, people. I had one heck of a month, actually I think that is really an understatement. Let's see. . two vaccays, a trip up to visit my-then-very-ill grandma, an ambulance ride, 6 hours at the Flu Screening Center and another 18 biting my nails at home waiting for the H1N1 virus lab result, then the text came in. It was from my dad, letting me know that 'Mother' left us.

How do you reply to such text messages? A plethora of "what ifs" and 'I should've" went through my mind. But I know, there is nothing I can do to bring her back. My heart broke into a million little pieces.

Yes, she was over 90yrs old. Yes, I didn't live with her. Yes, I won't be the one having to take care of her day in and out had she survive the failing kidney, infections and what nots. But she was the last grandparent I had, I used to go back to her during the weekends when I was in school. Thus, it's so damn hard to let go.

I want to remember, and I'm glad my father and uncle wanted the same thing and I had the chance to shoot the funeral. I didn't manage super awesome shots, and I didn't get many photos. But what I do get, matters.

I'm sharing one here, the rest are for our family.



I will be back, we will all be okay, I promise. My heart will heal, I know that. I just want to share this part of my life with all of you. Hard as it is, I'm letting her go.

Just give me some time. . .

Mother, I will miss you, always.

is melting. . .

Yeah, Sasha is melting over here. The weather is urghhh... 9.30pm, we're still at 89F. So, no.. I don't think it's unreasonable to be wanting this at any given time of the day!



This, my friends, is my bowl of coconut ice-cream with mango cubes! My flavor of the month as recognized by my wonderful, Mr Husband :D Looks plain, right? LOL.. it's anything but so. I enjoyed other flavors as well, their coffee with crushed oreos -->> yummy as well! Next visit, I'm gonna try banana with chocolate syrup and rainbow sprinkles! *grins*


Ookay! Enough ice-cream talk, yes? :)

One layout to share. My Little Shoebox generously sent Hambly girls some stuffs to play with! Thank you MLS!! Cuteness exploded out when I opened the box. LOL. Not very sure I do cute well though. You think? *giggles*



Used the frame of the Gretchen die cut paper, and Antique White on Kraft woodgrain paper.



Buttons buttons buttons! Used Adirondack Dimensional Pearls in Butterscotch to draw the outline the windows and chimney. Stitched the roof. And how do you stick thickers to felt? I had to use glossy accents.





I stickled some part of the woodgrain paper. Thought of using many colors here, but decided against it as I do not wanna give you a headache, or myself for that matter. The buttons are already colorful enough, no? :)



Keeping it real :) Day in and out, a whole lot of crankiness takes place in my house. Sometime it's Neha, sometime it's Nidhi. . most of the time it's just plain ol' Mommy! LOL!! *grins*

We're leaving for Langkawi in a few short hours! 33 to be exact! As usual, I'm far from being packed and ready. I have the addresses of some of the must-go restaurants though :)

In between tantrums and crazy weather, I know we're gonna have a great time. Sand, sea, chocolate, seafood. . .what's not to enjoy? :) My first time there after 18 years I think? First for the rest of the fam! *grins*

What else? Oh.. I haven't finished packing. Better get back to it! Love you all!

Just one dress form will make me very happy

Seriously, what's with this wanting a dress form? Its driving me crazy. Not like I have a space for it, but I have been spending too much time looking at photos of dress forms, especially vintage, wire and altered ones.

They captivate me, the photos at least. I don't know if I will still be as captivated once it's in my house. More likely, knowing me, I will feel as if its watching me (especially those fabric/full form ones), then I'd end up freakin' out and feeling spooked. Hahaha!

However, i think this one is perfect! Click the link and you'll know why. Perfection, isn't it? But yeah, No, I'll not be getting it anytime soon. What would I do with it? And there will soon be some elevator construction work going on outside our door, the amount of dust (which will taint my dress form) will be unbearable, the noise will kill me, yeah, long story, I'll blog about it once they started and I can actually have some photos taken of the mess. LOL. *sigh* a girl can certainly dream. . . (of the dress form, not of the dust). :D

One layout... another friend :)



This is Louisa May. We used to have playdates for the girls (just so we could sit there all day, chit-chatting and giggling). We also used to have breakfast together after sending our girls to their respective schools. They are now in San Diego.. so far away from me. So far away from our playdates and breakfast meets and I'm missing them. Big Time.

The layout is simple - because we are simple. (the photo seems crooked? sorry...!!) I can tell her what is on my mind, without her over-analyzing things over and over again! That's the best part! *grins* Miss you Lou..!! *hugs*



Teal Frame Wallpaper overlay, on Scenic Route background paper. Pink Wings overlay with some equally pink rhinestones.



Added a little flourish from Mini Vintage antique white rub onsMetallic Silver Ink on kraft Little Circles paper. Those lacey looking ruffles peeking from underneath the cardstock, urmm.. is a strip of die-cut ribbon (i suppose? I don't know, really). I bought some from the shop that sells pretty things associated with weddings, near my parents'. I seldom go there, because everytime I go, I would definitely be buying things I don't need. But seeing that one of my sister is getting married next year (it's never too early to start shopping), I might have to *read - must* plan a visit soon, you know, I have obligations as THE big sister, to help with the organizing and decorating. *cough*cough*cough* LOL.

What else is happening? Ah! 4 weeks off school for the girls. 4 weeks of craziness in the house. LOL. Send me some good luck vibes, will you? *grins* We're goin' cycling soon. . .I guess I'll see you soon with my sore bum and aching legs.

Living in Old Navy tights and graphic Tshirts

I'm a simple girl, really. If I could, I would really change from one tights to another, from a tshirt to another. The thought of having to 'dress up' sends shivers down my spine. LOL. *not really, but you get the idea*

But dressing up my blogs... oh yeah baby! Anytime! (anytime I'm not too busy with the kids, school, meeting up with friends for cupcakes and coffee, dating my husband while the girls are in school, visiting my parents.. yeah, basically, anytime at all - *grins*)

So you see, that is why it's oh-so-great to have friends in high places, like the Super Creative Stoodle Team :) They designed the new blog header for me. They saved me from pulling my hair out, the very few strands I have left. LOL. I *heart* stoodle!

Do you notice the new blog header? Yes? No? What do you mean, no? LOL. Refresh if your screen is still showing the old header, pretty please. Because I am absolutely head over heels in love with my new blog header. Pretty cool hey? Looks like us, right? LOL. The Stoodlerist aka Mimi did a great job designing the banner for me. Thank you girls... you are the best!

You guys want one? Go ahead, I know you want to *winks* I sent them our photos for reference. That is why my husband is sporting his YNWA - Liverpool jersey. The man is a loyal fan, let me tell you :) Has been one for 32 years *ahem, even I'm not THAT old* LOL :D

Pheww... are you still here? I sure hope so, because I have a layout to share. A precious one at that.



This is my friend Deedah, the one I altered the postcard for :)



Pouring my heart out on paper, because I would feel weird saying all these to her face. Haha!



I applied Hambly Antique White Rub ons to the ghost heart. Layered some Teal Blue Brocade overlay on a piece of yellow cardstock. Also framed the Black Brocade Paper with some scraps from a copper colored Hambly paper. Those are actually the leftovers, the negatives, when you used the Scallop Edge Punch - see, never underestimates the power of scraps! :)

I'm going back to my turkey salad with feta cheese and chips! See you soon!!xo :)

Craving for brownies. . .

*before you ask, no, I'm not pregnant :)* I wanted to order brownies at lunch just now, but changed my mind because urmm... I already had calamari and spiced chicken sticks. Yeah, you guessed it, I'm sorta regretting that decision now because I'm craving for some brownies and ice-cream, big time craving. *sigh*

Lesson learnt - next time, just order. That is just better than sitting here at home, wanting brownies and not wanting to go out to buy and not wanting to bake. Oookay!! Enough with my food craving.. !! LOL!

A layout to share. . .



I must thank Peggy for inspiring me to snap those silly photos!




American Crafts Vinyl thickers, originally yellow and red, painted with Tim Holtz Distress Crackle Paint in Broken China.





Stickled Pink Butterflies layered atop White Onesies.



My sort-of-vent. *chuckles*



I used the stamp Sophia sent me a lil while ago. Thank you Soph!! *hugs*

Two more days and we will be done with the mid year exams. Can someone dance with me? I'm in desperate need of some nap and creative time. *grins* Enough about me.. what have you been up to lately? Spill, girlfriends! :)

crazy love from me to you. .
XoXo

I don't have time to breathe. . .

I feel so busy! LOL! But I managed to steal some minutes to run the numbers through Random.Org :)



*counted twice, again, because numbers and me, we're not on good terms*...

1-2-3-4-5
1-2-3-4-5

Congrats Chok Keun!! I will pass your email address to Doris and she will get in touch okay!! Yayyyy!! I certainly hope you will enjoy the class!

Thank you Doris for giving the spot to one of my readers!

Thanks everyone for participating in the draw :) Come back soon... I'll miss you!

Excuse me, are you a hoarder?

**comments now closed**



*cough*cough* That's me, asking myself. LOL. And because I know many of us are just like me, I would really like to send one of you off to Product Pizzazz 102, a class by my gorgeous friend, Doris Sander. (believe me, this is hard to do because in all the truth, I want to attend those classes myself. . . well, maybe I'll hop on over to register after this post LOL)

May 12th - June 2nd

Design principles, technique lessons, and challenges will have you using it now!

Doris Sander is a master of combining product on scrapbook pages and she's developed a series of lessons that show you how to apply design principles and crafting techniques to a variety of products. You'll find new and pleasing ways to use up your stash--and if you're looking for excuses to shop, she'll give you a few of those, too.

Product Pizzazz 102 covers

chipboard
thread, floss, fiber
labels & tags
specialty paper
stickers
acrylics & overlays
small things
tiny things

Class includes:

8 lessons in downloadable pdf format posted on Tuesdays and Fridays over 4 weeks.

Each lesson covers the following:
- product usage
- design principle
- craft technique
- use it now challenge--with weekly chances to win goodies

A private class forum for interacting with other participants and Doris.

A private class gallery for sharing your work and seeing what others have done.

What do you have to do to be entered in the drawing? Easy peasy lemon squeezy. . *I got that from my 8yr old - grins*

Just leave me a comment here, with your name, email address and the answer to the question below. *its an easy one.. don't worry*

Besides scrapbooking and photography, what other craft are you involved in? No worries if you have none, you can still enter the drawing.. just leave your name and email address.

Who is eligible?
Absolutely everyone. This is an online class, you can take while you're sipping cappuccino/latte/camomile tea/green tea/milk shake - whatever your poison is, in your jammies and fuzzy slippers and that lemon scented exfoliating mask. *grins*

The time is now 9.50am, Saturday 9th May in Singapore. I will close the comment on Monday, 11th May at 9.50pm Singapore time. Until then, do comment away. . .

I'm off to have garlic bread and hazelnut coffee, while my kids have spaghetti on toast and mashed potatoes with cheese.



Happy Mommy's day to all mama's out there!! Thank you for making this world a better place to live in :)

I'll see you soon!

After dinner, before the homework-teeth brushing-bedtime triple jump :)

yeah, it's that time now. That lull period before I start yelling reminding them to check if their homeworks are done, pack their bags for tomorrow, brush their teeth then bedtime (which is a little adventure in itself). This is when they usually get to watch half an hour of tv while I have my own kinda fun.

First order of business - I would like to thank each and everyone of you who participated in the Hambly Blog Hop for NSD. I was floored with the comments! You guys are the best!

I wanted to ask one of the girls to pick a winner from a bowl/hat/box/tin, you get the idea.. but I only have 1 gift certificate to giveaway and two daughters. So, no go. I don't want to spend the rest of my evening, reasoning whys and buts *grins*

So I used the trusted ol' Random.Org :)



I counted twice and Yay!! Parker and Emma's Mom aka Jennifer Hansen!
!! Congrats! Pls email me (button on left sidebar) for more info on how to claim your gift certificate!! :)

I made a card earlier today. I altered a postcard earlier today. Yup, a normal, generic postcard. Seriously, I can just cut a piece of cardstock to 4 x 6 and start from there, but it feels much more fun starting from a boring piece of postcard. It feels like I'm saving that postcard from sitting inside that basket on my table much longer. It feels like up-cycling.



Hambly Mini Bicycles Kraft paper, sprayed with Glimmer mists. This is ridiculously fun!



Hambly white Mini Graph overlay, made into a tag. Basic Grey brad. Kaiser pearls, i arranged the swirls myself.



Butterfly stamp from Label Tulip. Stickled the outline. *glittery love*



Dream and dream stamp from CatsLifePress. Susan of CatsLifePress is a sweetheart, do take a look at their super affordable stamps! My wish list is a mile long! LOL!

This lil baby will be making its way to a dear friend :) Her birthday is tomorrow and the postcard will be late, but she knows I love her!! Happy Birthday D!! *hugs*

(my girls just wasted their half an hour of tv time, arguing which channel is better... too bad so sad - I won't be extending that half an hour just because you can't decide. urmm actually i would if i am not done with this post... LOL)

Love your life,
xoxo
~Sasha the triple jumper *grins*

Believe me, I had grand plans for NSD. . .

**comments now closed**

I wanted to create something just for NSD. Like, special, you know? But as I said to some of you earlier, I have been like a mad woman on speed since last Saturday. Mad, totally crazy week. But if you ask me, I would do it all again in half a heartbeat, yes, just half, or less than that!

The week has been a super fun in every single way. Meeting old friends, making new ones, giggles and hugs, giving Chinese names to Western friends, showing one special girl what is my comfort food (and making her try it! lol), more giggles and hugs. . basically, just GREAT GREAT TIME!

After the creative madness, I spend two days at the girls' school. Took charge of some 8 and 10yr olds for a day. Then participated in Fruits & Veggies day the next. Then, as if it was magic, it's NSD!!

And it's time for Hambly National Scrapbooking Day Blog Hop!! Yay! Yay!!



What's up for grab?

A $15usd gift certificate to Hambly's online store! How awesome is that??

How?
Just leave a comment in this post. It is now 6.20pm (Singapore time).. I'm gonna leave it open until Monday 6.19pm and will announce the winner shortly after.

And you have 10 chances to win (only 1 gift certificate per person)! And because I love you, (i really do!! *grins*) I'm gonna leave the other 9 links here :) (now is a good time to say you love me too *chuckles*)

Hambly Blog
Kerry Lynn
Ania
Peg
Denise
Mandi
Dina
Celine
Kara

If they haven't posted the blog hop posts yet, please check back later, coz well.. I'm in their future (mostly, when I don't sleep my weekend/day/month away) LOL.. :)

If you haven't already, now is a good time to . . .

- follow Hambly on Twitter
- be a fan of Hambly Studios on Facebook
- hug your loved ones. Hug them tight, hold them close.
- check out Hambly's new store on Scrapblog.

I have tons of photos to share, let me just get them somewhat organized first okay? See you monday!!

xoxo :)
~Sasha

Just hug her, a few minutes longer. . .

I have been wanting to blog for the longest time! Sorry I couldn't make it here sooner. Those on my facebook will already know this - my mom was operated on last Friday. Thank you guys for your prayers, kind thoughts and comforting words.

We were all there for her by the time she got out of the OT, that, I'm thankful for. That and a lot more, actually. I'm thankful that so many people love my mom. Never-ending visitors, hugs and kisses and baskets of flowers and fruits and soups. Thanks guys, really. I might have been annoyed with some people (outside of the family circle), some of the time, but all is good now. . :D
She is home now, recovering well. I hope she will be back to 100% real soon.

I was done with this page a couple of days before she was admitted, but the photo taking got delayed until this morning. Just a simple one, that title, though, loaded with love. My mom, she just loves and loves and keeps on loving everyone. She is strict at work and when we were young.. but if she was not, then I won't be here. The amount of heartache I gave her when I was growing up, wow.. I can't even imagine.

I don't wish I can turn back time and be a good girl, because.. DUH, that won't be possible, we have to be realistic, no? I am just gonna hug her that few minutes longer from now on. And let her know I appreciate everything that she has done for me, doing for me and will be doing for me. Sorry for the sappy-ness overloaded, ok.. now the layout.



When i looked at this pic, this layout is kinda similar to my Night Owl layout, don't you think? :) Alike, but so different.



Stampin' Up Scallop Edge Punch and ric rac, again.



You can't find Hambly Dandelions paper in that purplish color, because I learnt from Dina (thank you, gorgeous) and sprayed glimmer mist on the Kraft Dandelions paper and then wiped it off to bring out the silver.



Then because I can't leave the layout alone, I punched some holes and tied red thread into what looks like bow, i hope. :D I'm hopeless with bow-tying. I don't even buy clothes with bows for my girls. Sham does.. and we only put it on when Daddy's around. LOL.

Okay.. what else. Oh yeah.. some links :)

Hambly's Earth Day giveaway. While you're there, scroll down a teeny bit and check out our amazing guest designer, Debee Campos, and also beautiful creations by Tulip Girls!

Are you a twitter-er? LOL that's a mouthful. Follow Hambly Studios! And not forgetting the Hambly Contest running at TwoPeas right now.

Saturday, I'll be in the company of amazing ladies at Creative Escape "Works of Heart" 2009, helping Kah Mei, Tia Bennet and Donna Downey teach their classes. Excited? LOL.. Are you kidding me? I'm beyond excited..! *grins*

So yeah, that's about it. I think I wanna scrap today, but I have mountains of laundry to fold. Oh well, they won't scream for attention, so I'll be okay, me thinks. :)

Thanks for stickin' with me this far out.. *hugs*

Mommy, do you need more funny faces?

You bet I do, girls!

Peggy! My girls couldn't be happier when I told them that I need some funny faces LOL. Right after reading your tag, I had to go out and about, you know the usual school and lunch run, and we took these pics in the car. Of course, I forgot to switch lens and ended up with my 50mm (typical Sasha situation). And no, these are not the only ones we took- Ha!Ha!!- I have hundreds, but I'm not gonna torture you. *grin*



Now who would I tag? Yeah.. you, you and you! She, the beautiful girl, who doesn't mind posting funny faces on her blog! Let me know if you're playing along!

Last week, phewww.. I would be back earlier if not for the destroyed layout. Yes, you read that right, one completed layout went into the bin when I spilled half a bottle of glimmer mist on it. Brilliant, right? I tried wiping, sponging, whatever-ing to save it.. urmm.. didn't work. Saved two felt clips and some buttons and off it went! Oh! My heart hurts just talking about it.

Anyway, urm.. I kinda got over it and started on another layout. Just a better way to spend my 'anger' LOL.



If you let her, she would have set up a permanent camp ---->> at the park near our house!



What would I do if Kaiser ever stop making those pearls? Dig them. Big-time.



Birdcages yet again. (is it boring yet? I hope not)




I don't totally trust adhesives when it comes to ric-rac or ribbon. So I handstitched the ric-rac to the cardstock and Mini Bicycles paper.



And this one just because you're all so sweet and lovely, and I want to show that the green Hanging Heliconia overlay was not adhered flat to the layout, I curled it a bit, then used a glue dot to hold it in place, and I feel like squatting down to snap the pic even though I look ugly doing so. *grin*

The scallops were done with Stampin' Up Scallop Edge punch. I knew I could use those little strips of Hambly that I saved! :D

Gotta run now! Thanks for visiting and come back soon okay?! :) *hugs*

Falling asleep to the tap-tap-tap-tap of the typewriter. . .

I used to do that. A lot. My dad is a journalist, (i remember using the word journalist so very proudly whenever people ask me what does my dad do for a living), and, before the era of the computer, he used a typewriter. Often, he will work late into the night. . .

I miss those. . . tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-DING!!-zzzzziiipp!-tap-tap-tap :) One of my biggest regret was not 'saving' his typewriter. They're gone, tossed out when they moved house a few years ago, my dad hasn't been using them any longer anyway. Sad, but if not for my mom tossing things out, we would be sleeping on tons of unwanted junk! So I laugh and cry at the same time. *grin* (and oh, btw, I'm just like my mom, if you're looking for something over here and couldn't find it, they're probably gone, or be kept somewhere very safe, too safe until I can't remember where I kept hid it)

You know where all these are going, right? Yes, I scrapped about my dad. Let me tell you, scrapping about my dad, was HARD! Like I got so many things so say, but to find a way to put all that into writing is very, very close to impossible. Maybe that's because I seldom, almost never scrap about my parents? Well, I certainly am gonna try to create more layouts abt them.(dear self, please take note about this, okay?)



The one I look up to.
No matter how tall I grow.
(not that I'm growing any taller)
I love you, Papa.



I know I want to use the typewriter for a layout about him the moment I laid my eyes on it. That is part of Decor Notes overlay. Cut apart and layered with plain yellow paper.

That little circles paper is just delish, eh?



I seem to like yellow a lot lately. What does that mean anyway, I wonder? But I also talk a lot lately, but that doesn't mean anything other than I can't keep my mouth shut. LOL!





The two sections are both lifted off the cardstock, for no reason whatsoever. I just like seeing the little black pearls peeking through.

What else do I wanna blabber about? Ah!! Yes! I got my tree back, as you can see! LOL! Adrienne, I stuck them with blue tack. Plain ol' blue tack from the stationery store. You can see colour changes on the photo, yeah, i was moving the layout around, and trying to find the perfect angle for my close-ups. Guess now I know :)

Do you notice changes around here? Yes, I stepped down from Pencil Lines about a week ago. Nothing dramatic at all, and I'm glad Anna is so understanding! I will join them when I can though, so, no, they're not getting rid of me in totalness (whatever that is?!!)

Have a good day!!

I have a starfruit on my booty just in case I get hungry.

Seriously? If you can't see the starfruit, click the photo. LOL! I thought this is so cute! *grin* I'm easily amused, I know. I laugh at other's a lot, but I laugh at myself even more... told you, I'm easily amused.

ETA : I took the photo, don't know who was that in the car. I was in the car behind him LOL. Whoever you are.. sorry *grin*

I posted the above photo to my Facebook account earlier today, but I thought I'd share it here for those of you not on my Facebook, or not very active in Facebook --->> You know, like a certain Norwegian girl I dig :)


What else? ohh.. I scrapped! (yeah, finally!) *One sec while I pull up my flickr.* It really has been a while. . and I miss them so, so I scrapped for OLW Word up #48.



Please do ignore the glare :) I don't have Magenta Ink on Kraft paper, but I have the Magenta overlay, so I improvised. I layered kraft cardstock with the overlay to recreate the paper look.


I am so very ready.
For those delightful smiles,
and squeals of laughter.
For all these. Anytime. I am so very ready.
For the warm fuzz inside my heart
every time I look at this photo,
For those happy, elated faces,
For the love you can actually feel here
I am so very ready. Bring it on.
Anytime.





Painted the acrylic heart from Heidi Swapp, added some blings, felt bellies from Chatterbox and a button.



Still very much in love with The Birdcages. Stitched around the circles, tone and tone with beige thread. Just some subtle textures.

Did you notice I stuck my layout on a lamp post? Ah! yes, my 'tree' is not accessible as there were some workers doing the paint job for the building near that tree. I miss my tree. *sob*sob* LOL...

Yeah, I scrapped! Yay me! LOL :)

See you soon!

Sometimes I wish I were a kid again; skinned knees are a lot easier to fix than a broken heart.

That anonymous quote I got somewhere I don't remember now, don't you think it's so true?

I decided to start my 'wish' album somewhere last month. My rule is that, each of the layout that goes into the album, must have 'wish' on it.. either on the journaling, or the title, or the doodling, or the anything for that matter. That rule will be broken as I deem fit seeing that I'm the only contributor to the album. LOL.

Do you remember this layout? Yeah, that's the first layout in my Wish album. It has the word 'wish' in the journaling. Okay, My Wish Stack, seeing that i don't have an album for that yet. just so you know, I have not been scrap shopping for a few months!! Not a single piece of paper! What an achievement for me, can I hear some WOOOOT WOOOOTTTT!!?? Heeeheee!

Here's the cover.



Simple, with some Hambly gorgeousness. That All Mixed Up overlay did all the work, really. *grin*



Painted thickers. Those were baby blue before.



How could I resist those birds? *sigh*

Who am I joking, right? I could never create a thousand layouts for this project in this year, but hey, one can dream. . and I can always maybe add "2009-2029" on the cover as I deem fit (again)! *big grin*

And Oh, that quote on top.. just something I wanna share. My heart is not broken right now. It's so full I feel I could burst from all the love. Thank you for each and everyone of you that took time to leave kind, warm and encouraging words for me. Please know that you're appreciated. So much. *hugs*

Why chase perfection when you can have happiness?

I once told a girlfriend that. *Hi E!* So, holding on to my words, I'm embracing my crappy photos from the pirates gathering. Only the photos though, my subjects are delightfully funny, beautiful and entertaining. *sigh* I am so not an event photographer. I can blame the camera (yet again) but I know it's only my fault for not reading the manual.

Danni asked me about the camera in the comments section of last post. I'm using Nikon D90, thanks to my generous husband LOL. (Love you D! even without the camera, but now it's here... love you even more!). It's brand new, at least I feel so (less than a month) and came with a 18-105mm lens. What settings? *blush* I'm usually on A mode. When the lightings get tough, I even use the built in flash, or the auto mode! *gasp!!!* LOL. I generally run my photos thru Defog and Sharpen action from Holly McCaig, from Pink Ink Studios. Bought them ages ago, when she still had My Digital Muse. You can totally process them yourself in Photoshop, but, I'm a procrastinator and God knows how long they will stay there on the hard drive if I have to process them manually. Hah! So yes, Thank God for actions. Other than that, I don't really add any special effects to them, unless it's for a specific project.


Okay! back to the Pirates.

*leaving you hangin' here for a while, while I go hang my laundry out, the sun is gorgeous!*

The party was phenomenal! Everyone had lots of fun. You can really see that Liza put her heart and soul into it. I don't have pictures for these, but the goody bags are embroidered with each child'a name. When I saw that, I was like. . WOW! I would never have done that. Daddy of the birthday boy built a ship, which is used for part of the games and also the photo spot for the childred. OMG... my words are not doing justice, but really.. it was just so amazing.





Love this girl. So much! So glad I got to hug her like a million times LOL.



The lucky birthday Boy. Aaqil. That face - priceless!!



Adorable Daren! I kept chasing him around he must be thinking, who is this crazy old woman? LOL. Soph, email me if you want full sized file, okay? not a great photo, but I thought you might want a copy.



Nidhi and Sarrah. Shy at first, but warmed up pretty fast! LOL! Sweaty, but oh couldn't be happier. The homemade head and waist wrap (is that what you call them), and the beaded necklace, all came from the goody bags. Now can I hear WOW?



The birthday cake. Its homemade. Another WOW please?





Then it's 'makan' time. (makan = eating, to eat)

And that's all that I have, can i believe that? I had a hard time believing I didn't capture a lot of things, but hey.. I had tons of fun. Thank you Liza and family for having us.

Scrapping wise. . .



Amanda and me are leaving Label Tulip. Super tough decision to make, a sad one at that, and I really think it's crazy since Cathy wanted us to stay LOL. But yes, I'm stepping down, to make way for life in general.

I just need to calm down. You know, when I wished to be calm, creative and happy earlier this year? I think I jinxed myself LOL. So lesson learnt - keep your big mouth shut, Sasha! :)

I hope to be back with some scrappy goodness soon. Whoever has sacks of mojo, pass me some!!

Love you all - with - all - my - heart!

One day I'm gonna have an ocean in my yard. . .

I'm back so soon this time. It's dark and gloomy over here and rain is gonna come any minute, nothing beats re-living the sunny, perfect days of our Mersing trip.

We stayed at Fishing Bay Resort, recommended by Harlyn. The place is not spanking new, but is very relaxing, very very relaxing that I dozed off after breakfast the first morning LOL. Then napped again in the afternoon and slept early that night. I blame the sea breeze. *grin*







At this point, I was already smitten. Beautiful weather, nothing more we could ask for.



You can see my crew wasted no time at all! *grin* The water was very sandy as you can see here, but I am happy with the sand and skies. We made do with the pool for swimming. Guess what were they doing?



Playing with baby crabs :D We put them into the plastic container for a while (evil, I know) then we let them go back to where they belong.



Yeah, make that a snap. Let them go, fast! LOL!



Baby girl. One picture I have to beg. Then they went swimming in the pool, and mommy had her one hour Thai massage.









Tell me, did you smile looking at the series of pictures of them? Tell me I'm not smiling only because those are my husband and my daughter. LOL. I love love love those pictures. They're blurry, but in all the imperfections, I see joy, I see love and I see my future. She was so delighted to be up there on his shoulders, that's her special place and no one else at the moment. If only you could hear her squeal. . . *sigh*



Sunset, from the jetty. Not the broken one you saw above, this is different. We walked a couple of metres out of the resort to get here. Breathtaking. I need to download pictures from Neha's camera soon.. she took some of me and everyone over here! :D



The pretty little lobby of the resort.



At night it gets so peaceful and quiet. Who am I kidding, the place is peaceful in the day, but it's just different in the night, maybe because the kids have gone to bed and all you can hear is some very muted adult chatters from your neighbors.
That's our front door, 20 steps from the beach.

Day 2.



Daddy scored some ball time with the youngsters. Nidhi wanted to be part of the action too!





My fishes!



Neha, in her own world. She is out of focus here. . (what the hell was I thinking?) but it's just lovely to me. Seeing my girl in the background, enjoying herself.









Can you see how happy she is? Totally! Someone very little tried the big pool, then changed her mind and went back to the baby pool.



This fish, totally in her element in the big pool. Why is she having a hairband on? I have no idea!



And again, she got a ride from Daddy. Now you know why she thinks that is her special place? LOL :)

Then I left them and went inside to start packing. The end of our 4 nights roadtrip. Maybe we'll be back, maybe we won't. We would like to explore more of Malaysia, so it all depends!

I'll be back soon with pictures from a gathering of pirates! LOL!