Bear Candies and more

Another crazy busy week is finally over! No matter how hectic life is, I love to appreciate the small things that makes you smile through out the day.

Here are my little happy things from last week;

- bear candies from Hong Kong
- home made pizza
- raki night at friends'.
- christmas cake pops
- cake at my 9 month pregnant friend's house

5 best deserts I had this year

2011 is almost over... As I was going over my iphone to clean up the photo album, archive some old photos and make room for new memories, I have realized how many amazingly delicious new food I had tried over the last year. Deserts made up a significant portion of my food experience and memories of contentment.

5 places that I would recommend to check out and taste deserts are;
- Snowice. I did not know until a few months ago that Korean culture had such an interesting version of shaved ice in snow texture, stuffed with all kinds of desert garnishes including nuts, fruits, sauces and etc...This is a must try item!
- San Diego Seaport Village Hyatt Hotel's club bar has really impressed us when the chef started displaying the desert items on the buffet table. The chocolate covered strawberries covered with gold, silver and shimmer touches were not only a feast on the eyes but also in the mouth :)
- I have been a big fan of cream puffs since the first time my class mate had made me try them one time at the food court at San Francisco shopping center. These ones from Beard Papa's are also delicious. I think I love the coffee filling a little more than the vanilla filling.
- San Francisco Creamy is a famous and very popular place among the bay area residents who likes to enjoy a good selection of ice cream deserts. If you have the courage, you can also challange the stomach with the famous kitchen sink desert that serves one ( if you dare) or up to 6 people. We did not go for the challange by the way :)
- The best of all, to be honest, was a desert I recently tried in my home, made by my husband. I had a cold over the last week and could not really take care of the house and kitchen work. So hubby stepped in and showed his talents in the kitchen. :) Receipe coming soon...

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New Make Up Storage

Nothing makes me feel better than organizing the storage areas in my house and this weekend's project was to clean up and organize the make up drawer. I have to confess that I have not been doing a very good job with keeping that area very tidy. Because of the messiness of my make up bag, a few times in the past I found myself buying the same make up item multiple times even before the old ones were finished or expired.
With a surprisingly strong dedication to this project in mind, I went to Target to find out what kind of storage product would help me complete my project. Now that I think about it again, Container Store or even Wallmart could have offered more of a variety but no big deal..I was still able to find what I was looking for at Target.

Thanksgiving in South California

A holiday tradition for me and hubby is to get away from the SF Bay Area everytime we get a chance in Thanksgiving holiday since our families live way too far away from the US. Making a road trip to San Diego and visiting some old friends on the way in Newport Beach seemed to be the best deal for us this Thanksgiving. On our last day we woke up at 5:30am, checked out at our hotel at Seaport Village and started the trip back home very early in the morning so we could avoid the holiday traffic. We made it home in about 8 hours and not hit any traffic at all. That was one of the best parts of the whole trip :)

What I loved loved loved about our trip to San Diego;

- Our friends' 11 month old boy Bora
- panda and koala at the San Diego Zoo
- taking the trolley to Coronada Island
- Glass art work in Spanish Village in Balboa Park
- trees in Spanish Village decorated with gift box ornaments
- kids in matching clothes posing for family photos
- walking around in Seaport Village
- petting the rabbits there...
- visiting the Old Town, having tequila and Mexican food
- random bridal photos in Balboa Park

Bits of joy from this week

My friends got married this weekend and I was the designated photographer who was given the honor to capture the happiest moments of their lives and even start my own professional portfolio with that experience. :)
Both me and my husband took the day off to attend the wedding cerremony in San Francisco City Hall. Papers were signed, photos taken, wows exchanged, tears of happiness and emotions ran through the cheeks and finally time for " champagne and celebration!" I danced thru the night till my foot started swelling and the shoes did not fit any longer.

A few other things that made me happy over the past week are;
-the cream puffs we had at the game night in my friend's house.
- the hike at the Stanford Dish.
- a well deserved chai tea latte and breakfast bun followed by the hike...
- Specialty's Cafe's pesto and mozeralla sandwich.

Misses mixed with kisses

I very much believe in that quote " You would not know how much you have missed your family, until you have seen them again". Living thousands of miles away from my family, I tend to keep in touch with them pretty often over the phone, emails, skype...and also try to fly over at least once a year.
Today I am looking at some family photos and wishing that I was in these pictures. I can not avoid the fact that I will always miss them but looking at things from the bright side; We will always have something to look forward to in our lives and I am very lucky to have my dear husband in my life who is my family in California :)

Orange & Black Halloween

I took some pictures this weekend that capture the colors of Halloween; orange and black. Harvest time is starting in October when things look orange everywhere due to pumpkins, autumn and leaves. This is where the orange is coming from. Black color refers to the festival of the dead and darkness which is a belief in Halloween. So this is where the black comes from. Regardless of the meanings of the colors, the combination of the two always reminds me one of my favorite holidays where I get to eat a lot of candies and chocolates like a kid :) I love Halloween...