March Mani Time

Finally! New mani time! I’m using an old Sephora brand nail polish in a glossy teal paired with this dependably creamy Julep cashmere polish. It gives me a “working woman” vibe and I like how chic the combo looks. I’m modeling on top of the book I’m currently reading–The Debt to Pleasure by John Lanchester. It’s quite a curious book detailing the fictitious cookbook author and his whimsies. The style is amusingly snooty and the sparse descriptions of food are definitely enjoyable. Some of his random asides are rather educational too. I wouldn’t call it a page-turner; it assumes the reader has a high vocabulary and is well versed in geography, literature and gourmet cooking.

Check out this dainty spread! My workplace recently hosted this amazing afternoon tea event celebrating womens’ achievements the day right after International Womens’ Day! The ladies at work were invited to sample custard filled cupcakes, turtle brownies, scones, mini fruit turnovers and crackers with various pots of delicious jams! We mingled together and played a game where we had to guess which famous woman we were representing from the sticker on our back! I left feeling full and empowered :).

I made this! It was a surprisingly easy and quick meal to make:

-frozen breaded white meat chicken pieces

-thick sliced mushrooms

-carrot medallions

-sweet orange and red peppers

-lots of chopped scallions

-basmati rice

-sweet and sour sauce: canned fruit syrup, duck sauce packets, sesame seeds, black pepper, light soy sauce, crushed garlic with juices, squirt of lemon juice

Mimiboo and I enjoy some mother-daughter time. Everyday when I come home from work, I am greeted by her cries and gallops from afar! As soon as the garage door opens, she comes up and snuggles my ankles as if to say “Mommy!  Where the heck have you been for the last eight hours? Ah! I miss you!”

Shiny Objects

Pregnancy is hard, y’all. I’m miserable 24/7 with all my never-ending symptoms of nausea, vomiting, heat strokes, sore hips, clumsiness, and many many more. I’ve hit the 18th week marker and I’m still throwing up with the gusto of any first trimester mom. What gives?!

Online shopping is pretty therapeutic so I bought myself a ring. And oh, what a ring! This might be the prettiest ring I own right now! It’s a 3-stone champagne morganite with CZ stones all up around it set in sterling silver. The stones are lab created but so what? Gorgeous as can be! Don’t mind my chipping manicure as you stare into its amber depths.

Now this is the ring that my hubby chose for me on Valentine’s Day, or more accurately, as a present for carrying his child. It’s the hardest thing I’ll ever do. So this massive thing is a pink tourmaline cut in a cabochon style set in 10K yellow gold. It’s big and bold but not my style so we went back to exchange and resize. 

This beauty is very special to me. I felt like a giddy high roller in that jewelry shop as I designed my own custom ring from scratch! The shop had many natural gems to choose from but I ended up selecting this brilliant cut peridot as it’s the birthstone of my hubby and also of my unborn child. Just look at that delightful pear green hue! Then I chose a 14K white gold setting with 2 mini side stone diamonds. How simple and classy is this ring? It did cost a pretty penny but this particular jewelry store didn’t have a return policy so we had to exchange it for at least that value and more. The band looks fine in pictures but there is hardly any weight and feel to it. Half of it is hollow and super light. I do prefer simple, non-stone studded bands but I don’t mind a little heft and weight to them!