seaworld on new year's eve

my first time at seaworld was in 2004. i know i had fun back then. but i must have forgotten just how wonderful seaworld was b/c i have not been squealing with excitement about coming here again today.

well, i had such a blast at the shamu show. it was really exciting to see the shamu jump out of the water high into the air, and wondering (with my head halfway ducked) if we will get splashed! fortunately, we didn't. but even if we did, it would have been such a fun experience and we would have laughed all the way through. and what a great memory-maker that would have been for my kids! maybe i gotta take more chances and live a little in the new year...

and the sealion show (clive & c-somthing) was awesome, too. it was cute and funny. one of the trainers looked like a pretty friend i have, betsy, who is just about perfect in every way. so i was a little partial to this show.

after a long day of walking and enjoying more shows and exhibits, we left the park for dinner and came back for the fireworks. it wasn't anything grand or spectacular (like disneyland's). but just before the fireworks, at the last minute, we found out about the "christmas celebration at seaworld" concert/show. i really liked that they were "real" christmas songs~ worshipful songs about the christ and his birth. i was worshipping in my cold stadium seat while enjoying more of shamu's dance.

it was such a great way to spend a special day. to top it off, it was free for the military service members & dependents, through a promotion called here's to the heroes. thank you amheuser-busch & seaworld. we thoroughly enjoyed our vacation here!

vitamix 5200

hubby got me a vitamix 5200 a little over a weeks ago. i could never justify the cost. but i guess he was sold when he saw the demo at costco and the promotional price. since, we have used it everyday, at least once a day.

vitamix users rave about this thing from A to Z. and i agree. and b/c the reviews are so widely available online, i will save myself & you of the details here.

but i will say this: it's so ugly. you'd think they can afford to make this thing look a bit more attractive. after all, how much did we, the vitamix owners, all have to shell out to pay for this???

terra sweet potato chips

i love sweet potatoes.

so when i saw these terra sweet potato chips, i had to get them.

it was another costco find. at $5.69 for a 16.5 oz bag, it's a bit pricey.

but it's so good that i think it's worth every penny.

"secrets"

i am loving this secrets teaching by kerry clarensau more and more with each passing chapter.

i entered the study with the thought "how can i make him a better husband... and make him a truly godly man?..." of course, i knew i had a lot of things to change about myself as well. so i started the study with a teachable heart, i dare say. well, it turns out, God was using this study to convict ME to change, to be different, to be godly, to keep a better attitude.

i won't deny that i still think my husband needs to work on a few things to make himself a better husband and servant of God. but i think MY own [desperately needed] attitude change has changed him a little as a result. it is truly transforming my life and marriage.

converse kids' chuck taylor® all-star® stretch lace ox

these piggy chuck taylors are soh cute!

seems like a perfect selection for my little piggy-daughter olivia.

$35 @ zappos.

remarks to the weather

i love the words from mrs. dashwood in sense and sensibility:

"If you cannot think of anything appropriate to say, you will please restrict your remarks to the weather."

well, i guess jane asten should take the credit.

garlic stuffed olives

these days, i have such a craving for these garlic stuffed olives.

never really liked olives. had little bits of kalamata and black olives in the past. i usually "pass." but a recipe for salmon nicoise called for them. so i trusted my favorite chef barefoot contessa and i tried these olives for the first time last year. i have to admit, i wasn't in love with them then. pungent. interesting. and yet, not repulsive. definitely needed a little time to get used to.

but oh, man, ever since then, i just felt so drawn to it at the store every time i passed by the olive bar. after discovering the mezzetta brand at a cheaper price, i've been picking these up at the store every time i went shopping. i'm so addicted to these briny fruit these days, i finish a whole jar in a couple of days all by myself!

if it wasn't for the sodium content, i'd gobble them all in one sitting! i feel bad about eating 4 or 5 at a time (about 15-20 total per day). but i console myself with the thought of adding many health benefits to my diet by this indulgence.

well, gotta go. gotta get my olive fix!

fruit & vegetable alphabet

i saw a fruit & vegetable alphabet picture yesterday.

it had everything from A-Z.

i wanted to make a cloth book for my kids with that picture.

sadly, my safari closed on me unexpectedly, and so i lost the site.

but today, i came across this one by nan carey.

although it's missing the "x" fruit/vegetable, this picture is so much nicer.

starbucks VIA

starbucks VIA is good stuff.

very strong version of regular instant coffee.

but it was so strong it made me jittery in 2 hours.

a brand new bike

... seeing my daughter's face when she got her very own bike.

no hand-me-down, for a change.

thank God for birthdays!

rainbow cake

determined to make this rainbow cake* tomorrow.

my daughter saw this while i was watching the martha stewart show a few months ago. she told me she wanted it. so i made up my mind to do it for her 4th b-day, which is tomorrow.

i don't think it'll be easy. it's a lot of steps. it takes a long time. it requires me to follow the directions "to a T." cutting off the tops of each layer is not easy to do. plus, frosting it on the crumby cake layers can also be tricky.

but i'm not giving up. i want the "WOW!" factor at her party.

also want to look like a cool mom.

*credit: the whisk kid, not martha stewart.

stuart weitzman

just bought these stuart weitzmans.

are these cute or are these cute!!

sadly, these are for my 4 year-old daughter.

(fooled ya with this picture that lacks the sense of size!)

I don't even have a pair of stuart weitzman.

star special reserve olive oil with garlic

a few years ago, i was fortunate enough to randomly pick up this star special reserve olive oil with garlic from costco. and i have become, not quite a connoisseur of olive oil, but at the least a garlic-infused-olive-oil snob. i've had other olive oils with garlic. but they are not the same. doesn't compare. AT ALL.

i used up the whole bottle (maybe 1.5 ltr) really quick. since then, i have been looking for it all across the country. no one seems to carry it. i wish costco would carry it again soon.

i am craving it.

yes, "craving," if that is at all possible to crave olive oil.

free starbucks coffee today

good stuff by starbucks: free coffee on april 15.

good stuff, not b/c it's free... well, that too. but for the cause.

stacy's pita chips

i love this stuff. so versatile b/c it goes w/ so many things.

case in point: even with salsa. (but it's gotta be homemade.)

Thank You, Jesus.

sur la table's free knife sharpening

new le creusets

my new le creuset: 6.75 qt. oval french oven in dijon yellow. i never thought i'd get a yellow one. but it looked very lemony and bright. and on sale for $170.25!

got my hubby a new crepe pan for his pancake-making business too. this one in cobalt blue. it was a bit more than i cared to spend on a pan. but they had the "save 25% on all cobalt & dijon" so i was a bit more inclined to consider this crepe pan. see, all other cheaper pans have been warping, sticking, caking, etc. nothing's been suitable for the pancakes. but this seems perfect. feels sturdy. a one of a kind. we'll see how this one fares.

i got these square baking dishes also. i already have a cobalt blue set. but i got another set (in kiwi green) because they are just perfect in so many ways (e.g., for presentation, for their perfect sizes, for use under the broiler, to name a few) and they were only $17! a cook can never have enough cookware & bakeware.

sur la table

another favorite: sur la table.

i wish this store is closer to where i live.

they offer special demos for free which sound really interesting. they offer cooking classes and even have a kids' cooking camp! i think i want to host a party here.

recipe for happy

in order to see me happy, i gotta have at least one of three things, if not a combination of two, or all:

1. sunshine (preferably w/ warm temp)

2. no mess in the house

3. health

if i don't have at least one of these, i tend to be cranky. but all these combined puts me in a perky mood, or at least allows me to be positive and kind to other people around me.

just a little side note: the claim above is voided if i see a bug. my husband tells me to just ignore it (the bug). but i can't ignore it on command. i just can't relax. all my senses are focused on that one bug and i cannot even concentrate on doing anything until it is terminated. we cannot coexist. i cannot be happy.

v-day presents

got these things for v-day along w/ a bouquet of hot pink roses.

(fyi, the choco pearls are from my darling daughter robyn.)

Word of God Speak

i heard the song Word of God Speak by Mercy Me at the bible study today.

i heard it for the first time, really listening to the words in silence, rather than as the radio background music. wow, it was so powerful! it may possibly become my new favorite song for a while.

I'm finding myself at a loss for words
And the funny thing is it's okay
The last thing I need is to be heard
But to hear what You would say

[CHORUS]
Word of God speak
Would You pour down like rain
Washing my eyes to see
Your majesty
To be still and know
That You're in this place
Please let me stay and rest
In Your holiness
Word of God speak

I'm finding myself in the midst of You
Beyond the music, beyond the noise
All that I need is to be with You
And in the quiet hear Your voice

[CHORUS]
Word of God speak
Would You pour down like rain
Washing my eyes to see
Your majesty
To be still and know
That You're in this place
Please let me stay and rest
In Your holiness
Word of God speak

I'm finding myself at a loss for words
And the funny thing is it's okay

white collar

hubz and i are enjoying white collar these days.

3-in-1 Foosball Table

my family is having fun w/ this new baby. another costco find.

movie night

normally we don't go out to see movies. w/ kids, it's tough to find one that's good for the whole family. it's also so expensive~ we'd rather wait for the dvd.

but my honey's coworkers were having a movie outing to see avatar, and spouses were invited. so i managed to find a babysitter and i tagged along. oh, just a disclaimer that the movie itself is not "one of my favorite things." but going out with him and enjoying the time w/out needy kids was. it was my very first time going out together since our almost-5-month-old baby came along. and definitely one of the very few times i hired babysitters during our 10 years of marriage just so that we can go out alone!

russell & olivia

russell is, by far, my new favorite disney character.

actually, i never had a favorite character before.

it was not like this from the beginning. when i saw the movie for the first time last summer, i didn't think anything of the boy, except that he cracked me up a lot throughout the movie, just like any other character in a disney movie. but recently, ever since we got the dvd and started watching it, i noticed he resembles my baby~ their chubbiness & small eyes.

and b/c he reminded me so much of my baby, i started thinking he was cute. and he just grew on me.

and this is my favorite scene from the movie, when he begs mr. fredericksen, "please let me in."

and after the storm when he says, in relief, "whooooo! i thought you were DEAD," i just think the way he says it is so funny & adorable.

he's such a good kid w/ a big heart. i wish olivia would grow up and become like him. but i know she's not gonna look like this when she grows older. i will miss this look very much.

"do all the good you can..."

"do all the good you can, in all the ways you can,

to all the souls you can, in every place you can,

at all the times you can, with all the zeal you can,

as long as ever you can."

-john wesley

i read this quote the other day.

but, for the life of me, i couldn't remember where!

i went through all the books, magazines, websites, devotionals, and letters i read this week. still coudn't figure out. i hate that feeling. but i'm glad i remembered most of it, so i could look it up and find it online.

recipe card holder & UP

for new year's presents, robyn & hubby got me very special presents.

robyn got me a mini rolling pin style recipe card holder.

as always, she insisted that she buy me something nice. but anything that's considered "nice" is always so expensive, esp. from le creuset. so it worked out really nicely when she found this for $3! it was affordable for her, and she was so excited to give me something so cute and useful. i agree.

and i got this blue-ray disc and DVD from my husband, too.

i love this movie. so sad, funny, and adorable!