Happy Mother's Day!

I was having a stress related illness this past weekend thus preventing me from going online never the less I still want to greet Mommies everywhere a belated Happy Mother's day! I hope you were treated like a Queen yesterday :) If not, they owe you one...

Pancit (Filipino Noodle Dish)

This is the absolute quintessential noodle dish found in almost every “Filipino Handaan” (feast/celebration). Growing up I was never a big fan of this dish, instead I would always ask for spaghetti but now that I'm older I found myself craving for dishes I had always neglected to appreciate back in the Philippines. I would have never thought that I would be cooking this dish in my tiny New York kitchen and loving every minute of it. I bet my friends are still in shock reading this entry and I have to say, yes I have indeed domesticated myself to some extent.

Apples!

“An apple a day keeps the doctor away” a phrase my Dad use to tell me when I was a kid and come to think of it I never really understood why a simple apple can do that, until I finally did my research. So if your game let me share with you its nutritional benefits so you can consider incorporating an apple (a day) in your diet.

Beef Short Ribs with Beans

This dish came to be when I was too darn lazy to do any grocery shopping and all I had in hand were short ribs in the fridge and canned beans in the pantry. I warn you that it might be too sweet for some people but you can definitely play with it. I just made a few adjustments to lighten up the sweetness of the beans.

English Mastiff (German Shepherd Mix)

A coworker of mine recently adopted an English Mastiff German Shepherd Mix puppy and let me tell you that this is the biggest four month old puppy I have ever seen. She is gorgeous and so adorable. A little background about Mastiffs – they grow so fast and get quite big (the size of a pony) but behind their massive exterior lies a peaceful dog. They are not fighting dogs (thank god) but if they see danger they will use their size to protect their owners. I was reading about the English Mastiff breed and here are the pros and cons.

Monkeys in the City

More often than not this is how I’ve been feeling lately...Hanging in there. Whenever I am in a funk I feel so disengaged from everything imaginable, it is my ultimate low self esteem period which absolutely sucks. No amount of encouragement can motivate me, isn’t that just sad? I feel completely lethargic during these times and worst of all I just want to be completely utterly glued to my bedroom (pathetic I know). What scares me is that this funk I’m in right now has been hanging around for weeks now and that worries me since it can lead me to the dark side.

Recipe Book Collection (part I)

Just last week I had posted about building my make up collection so I thought why not share my recipe book collection as well. Mind you I do not follow recipes down to a tea I always adjust some ingredients to fit my palate. I like recipe books because they serve as guidelines for me to follow. Basically it teaches me the fundamentals of a specific dish but it’s still up to me to be creative, play with the ingredients, come up with a different version, or even better create a new dish in the process.

Spring Time

If you’ve ever driven along I-95 New Jersey turnpike around this time of year then you’ll know what I’m talking about when I say the trees are coming back to life yet again. On our way to Mt. Royal, New Jersey we hit quite a few traffic jams and this gave me time to absorb my surroundings (as they say) and I was particularly drawn to the beauty of these trees towering over us. It’s simply amazing how they looked all dried up (and dead) in the winter and now they are all sprouting their pretty little leaves. I love that we have the four seasons here in the east coast because it always gives us a new canvas to look at every three or four months of the year. Don’t be shocked! I do have my nature moments and it may get a little mellow-cheesy but it’s all good right? Enjoy the rest of the gorgeous weather weekend.

Mac Eye Shadow Haul

Alright, alright I may have gone a little overboard building my make up collection but I figured if I'm going to do this then I have to commit myself completely (wink, wink) so I went ahead and bought thirteen (yup, 13) Mac eye shadow, technically 20 but I'm still waiting for the others to come in the mail. The colors I picked are Black Tied, Carbon, Brule, Sumptuous Olive, Omega, Satin Taupe, Smut, Electra, Electric Eel, Fresh Water, Deep Truth, Moon’s Reflection, Contrast and Gesso. All gorgeous color and very pigmented so you don’t really need to use a lot. Yeah, yeah you can I say I was a bit carried away but in my defense (hmmm this is a tough one) fine! No defense except this made me very happy. Well I am off to try blending different colors, now if I can only figure out how to convince my boyfriend to be my eye model (hahaha, fat chance I know). Till next time…end your day with a smile.

Sephora Visit

The same day I went to Mac I also stopped by Sephora. They carry the face primer that I like which is the Smash Box Photo Finish and I also picked up Urban Decay’s 24/7 Glide-On eye pencil in bourbon (already have zero & lust). I have over 600 bonus points so I was able to score this Tarte insider collection for 500 points. It has mini goodies like face & eye primer, different types of mascara and lip gloss. This gal is a happy camper :)