a thoughtful gift

should anyone ask, "Coffee, tea or me?", i think i may just incline towards tea that tad bit more! i do have a penchant for tea, but it does have its side effects on me :(  imagine my surprise when i found this on my table on valentine's day! it is indeed a very very lovely gift, especially for a tea-lover :)

p.s. name is blurred out to protect identity...

there was a huge variety of fabulous tea in this little white bag, together with the yummylicious marshmallow chocolate cookies from marks and spencers!  just taking a sniff of them is somewhat enough :) i was particularly intrigued by the delicate sugar snowflakes in the winter berry tea. sooooo sweet!

this is a wonderful gift idea for a girl-friend or a sister :) thank u so much R :) :) going to tuck into the goodies soon!

i've been incredibly blessed by the craftiness of the people around me, this year especially.  a hand-made frame, a hand-stitched phone cover, a beautiful set-up with tissue flowers and photos, an elaborate album detailing memories of our childhood. etc etc etc. so, so touched by all these gestures of love. recounting all these help me not take them for granted. from all these, im convinced of two things:

1) everyone can be crafty, really! i do hope to share the craftiness of others on this blog :)

2) i must strive harder to be even more of a blessing to the people around me.

010112

not too long ago, PP and i celebrated our 1st wedding anniversary. celebrated is an apt word indeed, for 1 year of marriage is not easy. though peppered with joy, blissfulness and a togetherness none other relationship can bring, we also have our tough times and without God in the picture, we won't be able to do it! so thank God, for one year of marriage :) to read my thoughts just before the wedding day, click here :)

as a little surprise (which didn't turn out to be one hahaha), PP and i took a 45 min ferry to Bintan, a beautiful little island. yes, it's rather commercialised and things are expensive, but i think it beats staying in Singapore. moreover, it is not too far away :) we left at 5 pm on the first day and returned on the next day at 5pm! it was a very short trip. was it wonderful? haha. we "quarreled" more than once. but these are memories and hence, i say it was wonderful :)

here are some peektures. it definitely was prettier the first time i went. so happened that day, it was drizzling plus the sand had splotches of oil which made walking on the sand rather unpleasant. we enjoyed ourselves nonetheless.

the highlight of this trip was the fireflies tour. it has always been a dream of mine to see fireflies but it is not possible in singapore because it just too bright. it was an eye-opening experience and i enjoyed myself very much. the sight of fireflies is not like fireworks, bright and dazzling. it's more subtle, with a sparkle here and there, altogether very intriguing though, especially as we consider God's beautiful way of making their ah-hem, backsides, glow! the guide told us that it is more ideal to come on a night when the moon is least bright, so the fireflies stand out more. i also enjoyed the experience of the night breeze blowing in my face as the boat speeds down the river.

no other photos, because it was too dark :) apparently, they offer tours in the day to the mangrove swamps as well :)

love the beach. love the sound of the waves. love the little creatures. love taking pictures at the beach.

here's a tip. choose a more affordable resort, den save the money for a grand meal :) we went over to the Treetops Restaurant at Banyan Tree and i was utterly captivated by the beautiful view! the Treetops is a restaurant tucked among treetops, on a platform overlooking en entire horizon (think 270 degrees) of waves, splashing at the cliffs. photos don't do justice to the place. you HAVE to go there if you have the budget for a good meal :)

the view before us

the view above us

the view to the left

the view behind us

the view of the pool

our food :) the bread basket came with 3 types of condiments, all excellent :)

can't remember what was in this but it was very refreshing!

the food was not extremely outstanding, but good enough. the view made up for everything.

after our lunch, 75% of our holiday was over. we went for a foot massage, and it was time to return home. too short, i'd say! :)

pancakes!

PP sometimes has to stay at work overnight and when those times come, i miss him especially much. hence this post, for this night i miss him and i'm reminded how he cooks pancakes for me :) thank u PP. they were the nicest pancakes i have ever tasted. YUMS. and im not even a pancake fan :)

what's better than pancakes? pancakes with ice cream! not just any ice cream, but my favourite earl grey ice cream from daily scoop :)

not forgetting a fruit platter...

 

so then.... what's better than pancakes with a scoop of ice cream? pancakes with TWO scoops of ice cream, of course :)

Don't they look absolutely lovely? my mouth is watering now just thinking about them. Here are some tips to cooking scrumptious pancakes:

1) add LOTS of butter. the more butter, the better :)

2) toppings are made up of anything you can think of: ice cream/maple syrup/fruits/gummie bears/peanut butter/nuts

3) if it looks nice, it probably tastes nice :)

4) as a result of reason 3, it is hence a good idea to buy a nice pan too!

here's a cute little pan from flutterscape :)

did you know... that Rilakkuma is actually the combination of "relax" and "bear"? no wonder i like this character so much hahahaha.

pirate-kuma

chaota-kuma

all the other kuma(s)

sweet memories like these make me smile. thank God for them. im learning not to take these things for granted.

the life of a branch

today, while driving in the car, i was listening to an audio cd of andrew murray's devotional, Absolute Surrender. the soft copy of this devotional can be found here. i was most struck by the last chapter (page 50).

"I will take my text from the parable of the Vine and the Branches, in John 15:5: “I am the vine, ye are the branches.” Especially these words: “Ye are the branches.” What a simple thing it is to be a branch, the branch of a tree, or the branch of a vine! The branch grows out of the vine, or out of the tree, and there it lives and grows, and in due time, bears fruit. It has no responsibility except just to receive from the root and stem sap and nourishment. And if we only by the Holy Spirit knew our relationship to Jesus Christ, our work would be changed into the brightest and most heavenly thing upon earth. "

the irony of it all! i was just lamenting to myself how tough life can be, with soooo many demands :( sometimes we forget the blessedness of having a God to depend on. sometimes, though we depend on Him a little, we want to manage some aspects ourselves. life as a branch involves:

1) absolute dependence

2) deep restfulness

3) much fruitfulness

4) close communion

5) absolute surrender

if we would live this life as a branch whole-heartedly, indeed, how simple life would be!

valentine's week of bazaar, 2012

as some may know, my sister and i decided to take up a bazaar during the valentine's day week. well, after some "complications", although we planned for only 2 days, we ended up with 4 days of bazaar! 13th and 14th of feb AND 16th and 17th of feb.

being the over-ambitious me, i thought it would be a piece of cake. here's my self-rationalization:"after all, it's not the first time you're doing a bazaar...just sell what you have... don't set your expectations too high and just enjoy the process...." sigh. i always end up proving myself wrong.

perhaps it's good to walk you through the phases that one undergoes in the preparation of a bazaar.

Phase 1: Brimming with confidence. It's just a bazaar. What's the big deal?

Phase 2: Oooh... I'm starting to get excited. Better start preparing...

Phase 3: Oooh, I'm excited. Why am I not preparing?

Phase 4: I MUST PREPARE NOW!!!

Phase 5: (probably 2 days before the bazaar) preparing like mad and overcome with doubts, fears, exhaustion and grouchiness :/ constantly telling myself, " i must be crazy i must be crazy...why am i doing this to myself?!"

i must say that PP has bore the brunt of my emotional instability in Phase 5... where i bombard him with questions/statements like, "I'm sure no one is buying this. It sucks. Why are you not helping me?"

sigh. thank YOU so much PP. you are definitely my better half when you remind me of God's goodness and assure me to just commit it all to God. and indeed, God's goodness was revealed to me through the bazaar. Also, a big THANK YOU to the lovely customers and people i have met. When you look at fitw products and smile, i feel warm in the heart because that means that something in it has "spoken to you".

here's a glimpse of Phase 6:

phase 7: now that i am in phase 7, looking back and reflecting, i can only say that God is good, as He has always been. How He gives me beyond what i deserve! All canvas products have been adopted by their special owner and i hope you are liking them and they continue to bring smiles to your, and others', faces :)

there have been many enquiries of whether i sell online or not. perhaps it's good that i clarify here. i prefer not to take custom orders and my online shop: www.fitw.bigcartel.com is largely a portal for me to sell what is left-over from bazaars. hence, it is seldom updated. i prefer selling my products in bazaars because i get to put a face to the owner and interact with my customers :) moreover, as i would like to keep prices low and affordable for many, selling my products online will involve too much logistics and effort, which i don't wish to transfer to my prices. perhaps, just perhaps, i would explore focusing on the online avenue one day and that would mean that fitw has taken a new shift in focus ;)

Lord, show me thy will...

time flies, doesn't it?

february is over! what a month. seriously, what a month. i had a bazaar, celebrated my birthday (month-long celebration hahaha!) and scooted over to penang at the end of it all. time flies so quickly! i have been meaning to blog every month so i can share the calendar pictures, but before i knew it, february is over and gone forever. thank God, however, that though time flies, His mercies are new every morning!

It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. Lamentations 3: 22-23

i am eager to share how the year has been thus far. however, i am also apprehensive. what do i share and what do i not? i do not want to flaunt and gloat :/ may this blog continue to be a blessing and bring glory to God's name.

on another note, i have been busy on pinterest, in the, ah-hem forgive the pun, interest of my new house. God-willing, it will be ready before the year ends. it seems like a daunting project to embark on, but PP and i are definitely excited :) check out my pins if you are interested!