A merry little Noel

Let Missy start it off by wishing every little soul that passes by here, a cozy little Xmas and a coming fabulous New Year 2008 :)

Missy, for one, had had a gorgeous time this year chilling with a couple of close friends and cutting down on loud music and booze intake. What can I say, it's been fresh!! And absolutely decadent.. *burpp

Some loving time, just the two of us, on Xmas eve.

Our little eve celebration with hubz' bearnaise steak on a bed of mashies and my tropical salad (you can't see, but there's fruit chunks in it), complete with sweets and reds.

After which, we did afterall, attended some midnight "masses" with 89% of the Asian population in Melbourne city. If you have no idea whatsoever what it entailed, let's just say that there were plenty of alcohol and music and kisses and sweat.. and why these made me go Eww now is beyond comprehension..

Moving swiftly along..

Missy and hubz woke early for supposed Xmas breakfast with another couple before arriving much anticipated to the doorstep of Xmas lunch.

Said couple were late and we sat down for breakfast at 11am. It was a pity because it was such a good spread but there's no way I would sacrifice the long-awaited lunch. Having said that, I did nibble a little here and there..

Bacon with spiced Egg Crumpet

Bacon-wrapped baked Asparagus

-to be dipped in..

Creamy soft boiled Eggs

So, we were semi-pampered for breakfast, and now let's get ready to be spoilt rotten for lunch!

We arrived to a meticulously laid table, complete with bon-bon and our own seats. Little treats wrapped in pink were added by yours truly *wink.

Host and hostess forming the perfect couple adding the final touch.

While Belle impatiently scoured around for company..

Behold the amazing Xmas spread:-

Entree:

Almond and Walnut Cheese Dips

- Oops, hostess reminded it was actually Almond and Cashew. Oh well, they taste goddamn fine to me all the same :)

Sliced Beef and Capsicum Canapes

Avocabi Prawn Tartlets

- Avocabi being avocado and wasabi

And my very very loved favourite..

Portugese Spiced Potato Skin

This was SO good, I can have it as a main. Needless to say, we cleaned the plate out.

Main:

From top to bottom, we had

Apple-stuffed Turkey Breast SO full of flavour, I loved it!

Tender Turkey Thigh The guys loved the fat, and I loved the tenderness, oh yums

Crispy Roast Pork with stewed Apple I'm not a pork person, but I can tell you, I like the apples!

Honey Mandarin Glazed Ham God bless the abundance of good food!

We were most likely bursting out of our belly but no, hostess showed no mercy.

Along came more fabulous foodie and treats.

Dessert:

Cherry Sorbet

- I made it for another bbq party and it was such a winner! Thanks heaps, my babe ;)

Yummy Chocolate Baby-muffins

Mince Tarts

- complete with cup of tea. Oh, I love a good hostess.

That's my good hostess.. :)

You'd think a lunch session will go for 2-3 hours, maybe 4? Not for us, whose time together flew in an instant.

12 hours, people. I'm telling you 12 hours. And it flew by just as quick. I miss it already.

Here's the family that made it possible for a cozy little Noel, and paving a smoother way towards my muffin top.

And here's us; both heavily fed and spoilt with happiness.

Merry Xmas, all!

Sneak Peek..

Here's a quick one for my partner and her man.

For him

For her

Heheh, can't wait for our Christmas luncheon! Missy is super duper excited and impatiently awaits the massive spread that will overflow the table.

Rest assured we will bring drinks. And empty stomach. And pressies, of course ;)

***

Missy had been working hard lately. Slogging it out like there's no tomorrow. But it's all good. In fact, fatigue aside, I feel that I can do more, or should do more anyway. As long as the good ol' crisp notes keep filling my wallet and bank account, I'm content.

One morning while getting ready for work, I glanced at the mini clock we had on our bathroom shelf.

And I thought of you, my dearest friend.

Wish I can fly back home and bitch non-stop with you pre-lunch, over lunch, post-lunch. Here's some mega hugs which I can only hope you'll feel through your everyday stress.

There are a lot of friends back home, a few whom I will die for. But because of distance, time differences as well as each lifestyle schedules, we hardly talk or update. But these babes of mine knew we've gone past the superficial daily updates, and can count on mutual trust and love to go on. For this, I'm glad and am so fortunate to have you all in my life.

The one with the nose concerns, please be good and happy, or at least try to.

The disturbed twin, please love yourself more and good luck with job, love and everything in between.

The fellow wife, please update more often on your fabulous cooking!

Well, if trying to be a good friend is not enough to keep her occupied, Missy now has to keep up being a good wife so that her hubz will still want to kiss her every morning, and love her with every beat of his heart.

So, one fine day, she finally decided it's time to pamper her hubz.

Stewed chicken rice with lup-cheong, mushrooms and steamed egg.

It's easy-ass dish, only a person as lazy as me can come up with. All cooking was done in that one pan.

1. Stirfry some onions and garlic, lup-cheong, marinated chicken, mushrooms and season with some spices.
2. Throw in 3 cups of rice, and briefly stir through.
3. Add chicken stock, or whatever you think is a good base for the rice to absorb flavour. (I tried Barley and Chinese cabbage soup before, and it gave the rice a fragrant sweet twist which almost all who had tried loved completely)
4. Stir through, and make sure rice is fully covered. Throw in roughly chopped cabbage but do NOT mix. Cover the pan and let it simmer for 15 minutes, or until rice is fluffy.
5. OPTIONAL: Make a few holes in the rice, not too close to one another. Crack an egg in each and season with pepper. Cover and steam egg for a further 1-2 minutes.
6. Release cover and you should have the whole house drenched in mouthwatering fragrance, and a hungry husband hovering excited, and lovingly, around. Serve with plenty of kisses and thank-yous.

So there you go. Easy, no?

What's better than taking it easy after a day's work, cooking a good meal for your husband, and just cuddling around till you fall asleep?

Nothing more, I believe.

Add the extra in the ordinaries

Days come and pass just as quickly. And Missy truly believes that it's the people and encounters you meet through the days that make each day so special and mention-worthy.

And that is why, in this post, I'd like to introduce two such extraordinary instances amidst the ordinariness.

Few days past, hubz and I were on the tram cruising towards city. The air was thick with chill and flies, and I was pissed sick with annoying gastric cramps.

And then, when we least expected, this special someone came and provided some form of entertainment throughout the journey, which was good.

Please, I'd like you all to meet Mr. Parisian..

*Please pardon the quality of the photo. I was, afterall, ahem.. sneaking..

You might not pick it up from this photo, but I truly believed, for 2 seconds, that I was transported to the artsy-fartsy of a Parisian street..

Ultra pointy boots.

Skinny jeans.

Medium length coat with peak collars.

And..

Perfectly curled, blonde hair. How sexy is that!!

In person, he looked much more like the part, though I can't really take in too much details even with my swift mobile. Hubz was chicken-shitting when I took out my mobile and pretended to use it for normal purposes. And then, I chicken-shitted after the third photo. We're sucha great couple, no?

Anyway, enough about stalking.

I was craving BAD for these little things since a month back, I think.

They're cute and fluffy, sometimes warm, sometimes cold and always a comfort. But, I can't even tell you how hard it is for me to locate them, or to catch some of them even when I managed to locate them!! It's really depressing..

Last Thursday, I braved against the evil half of myself who constantly wants to sleep, and roared up to challenge. It ain't small feat, I tell you.

Less 3 hours of sleep, in the cold breeze of morning, 20 mins into town, and I finally, finally got hold of the last 6 (six)!

Meet the Mrs..

And her little lovelies..

Awww..

It was only 11am, but they were ALL sold out. The last six snapped gently by yours truly, of course.

As you can probably see, pictures were taken while Missy was strolling excitedly in the morning sun. On her way to work.

So, I hope it ain't gonna come as a surprise that no pictures of these much sought after baby muffins will follow. Now, if you will excuse me, I'd like to go stuff my face before reaching the workplace.

Wedding and Marriage

Johnny boy got married on Monday, so we call him Johnny man now.

Anyway, the 3rd of Dec, their wedding day, Missy went about her day as usual. Waking early, going to work, and getting off at usual time. But all through the day, and I mean every goddamn second and minute of the day, I can't help but to reminisce about 9th June. I swear I kept replaying the memories and the words and the smell of that day over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and ov.. ok, sorry, I know I'm going overboard. But you get the idea, I'm sure. I miss it bad!

Indeed time sneaked by when you're encased in bliss. I hate those sneaky minutes!

Anyway, here's some pictures of that sweet day. Let's ooh and aah with me, my dearests.

Getting ready and excited.

A lonely statue and a rather inappropriate veil, I reckon.

The ceremony took place in Fitzroy Garden's conservatory. The inside looked like a magical forest. It was all too perfect and we can definitely do without the swarm of flies.

Marking our presence.

That's the best man, the groom in the middle and what do we know, Judy, the celebrant! Yes, we introduced her to the couple since she's amazingly wonderful. Good experiences should be passed around, no? My lovely someone would know ;)

At the end of the night, we realised that we didn't really take enough pictures with the newlyweds. But ah well, we being us, of course managed to entertain ourselves throughout. So, let's gingerly move along..

Bride emerging from the bright entrance like a fairy. Awwww I want!

A woman's once-in-a-lifetime superstar limelight.

I loved the veil. It's tied around the tail and flowed beneath the hairdo, I think. There's something magical in the way it cascades through. And uhm, nice shoulders, darling.

Exchanging rings and vows in the magical forest. Again, awwwwwww....

Pretties..

I couldn't get a good picture without arousing much suspicion, but check out the girl next to Christina the bride. She is super cute with an air like a model. Bitch, yes, but cute nonetheless.

Psssstt, just so you know, we sat on the same table. She was across me, and there were plenty of eye contacts *ahem. But that's it, cos you know why? Lovely hubz on my left, enough said.

John and Christina's wedding favor.

Perfect for us.

Half of the table that was us. After approximately 4 bottles among us, everyone sure looked happy.

If that wasn't clear enough a comparison, I'll show you this..

Before,

And after..

Oui??

The drunken couple in love.

And off the record, I was told that I lost quite a bit of weight of late. I didn't actually believe cos I did, afterall, live a healthy life now. As in exercising more and following a healthy diet.

Not until I saw this..

Like WTF!! I actually got another scarier one, but I reckon this one will do..

Camouflage..

Better..

But still, I'd better do something about it now. I love my bones, but not to this extent, you see..

Playing the part, and playing it well..

The weather is changing, (for better or worse, that's really hard to say considering we're living in this city called Melbourne) and so does Missy in all her changing-splendour.

Let's rewind the clock now and capture what happened of late, and erm.. not so lately..

The first change is, of course, being a Mrs. now. And that brought about a whole lot of domesticity, though my hubz would most likely put his hands up to say otherwise. But anyway, being domesticated involuntarily means an extra effort dabbling with cooking, a little more cleaning, less going out - more staying in (except when you're out to work, of course), oogling at baking utensils, scrimping that extra 5cents 'cos every little thing adds up, socializing with the hubby-group yadaa yadaa.. yah, you get that, don't you?

So here we go, two months back..

Some blueberry & pear wholemeal muffins (yah, still trying to be healthy, you see). It didn't quite turn out all fluffy and shit, and I tell myself it's because of the wholemeal flour. And if you don't think they look like yummy little thing, oh let's just blame it on the camera..

One turned out like a nipple, which I loved. It was my favourite and I gobbled it up, heh.

I baked a bigger batch, with added chocolate chips to cater for the man, and my baking companion but too bad, both her and her man didn't get the chance to touch it. Oh well, next time, babe ;)

Fast forward few weeks later, Missy finished a 10-hour shift and joined her hubz on a 50-min train ride to the countryside. For a party. For his colleagues birthday party.

It was good, actually. I had fun. And believe me, you would too if you've seen the tub of alcohol drinks. By tub, I mean bath tub, so..

I was so tempted to take some pictures to satisfy the curiosity of my readers, but deemed it rude to do so in a place where I only know 0.28% of the guests. Guests, speaking of which were made up of German, Finnish, Dutch, Australian, Brazilian, Mexican, Norwegian (him) and Malaysian (me). Talk about an international party!

The food catered were a wise choice, and splendid nonetheless. I specially liked the idea of a whole bread on a cutting board, and everyone helped themselves with some dips and grilled vegetables. There were also some fine sandwiches and wraps, but I was too busy going gaga over the dips and oh, fruits.

:) Happy birthday, Ricarda.

PS: She is what I was. Go figure!

Up next, just last night..

Missy's very own har mee, that is prawn noodles - the Malaysian way.

I know I'm known for my eccentric cooking, but trust me, it turned out so good my hubz drank the bowl clean. Drank it squeaky clean.

Well, to be fair, I didn't actually make it from scratch. But why bother when you can have the same satisfaction with half, or maybe quarter, the hassle? Maybe when I retire and committed to being a stayhome granny, I might try ;)

For now, this will absolutely do.

Ok, we're done with that, let's talk gradual changes.

I change mine, you change yours, everybody changes theirs. Let's face it, people who don't change it suck.

So, let us, non-sucky people, prep ourselves for some hairstyle-changes *wink. And before you launch into the whole financial drama, I assure you fashion can come without a heavy price tag. It only requires a creative mind. I know 'cos I'm as broke as a cow living on concrete, my dears.

Right, speaking of hair..

I've always loved mine versatile. I've had short crop before and bearing the baby fats on my face doesn't prove to be flattering. If anything, it is the direct opposite.

That, coupled with hubz' undying love for long, sexy flow, I try to let it grow. And all long-haired beauty share my grief, I believe. They are a disaster, I repeat, a disaster, to maintain. One good advice is less shampoo-ing, keep it to once every two days at best. But this, of course, ties in with your lifestyle. Meaning if you're an avid dancer, jogger, trainer or whatever makes you sweat, I say you go ahead and shampoo that whole damn scalp before you do anything else, babes.

Also, always.. always keep your hair treatment serum handy. It is the best thing ever you could bestow upon your strands of hair. I'm currently using John Frieda's Collection, and standing proudly by its bottles.

Anyway, long doesn't has to be boring. And it shouldn't cost much not to be a bore, too.

I like mine with a round egde. Swirled.

And damn, I mean swirled all through to the end.

I also like it disheveled. Messily spread out everywhere.

In good times, I like to keep it neat in a bun, with fringe pulled back at the crown.

And let's not forget the classic currrrrrrlss. I love my curls when they're all sexy and.. well, curly.

I sometimes make the soft curls, which are just slight curls over the end bit. When I have a little bit more time, and motivation, I do them the full-on way.

That, plus the girl-next-door plaits..

Hubz quite like it, see?

So what do I do when things are getting a little too stagnant? They say fashion goes in a circle, indeed, it damn well does.

It's time to revisit straight.

Perfectly ghd-ed hair.

Trust me, I've trimmed the ends but they still look as long, if not longer, than before.

I had to concentrate on fitting the whole length into the frame that I didn't even bother smiling. Needless to say, it wasn't an easy task.

And I still can't fit the whole length, if you notice.

Loving the sleek, exotic look.

For that one fine day.