It occurs to me that we put a toddler in driver seat often, on the idea that you have to learn to drive early in your life!

off to work!

when the toddler cannot really reach the wheel, have an adult sit in the same seat (oh, and holding a baby would help!)

hope it is a nice day out there!

uh, kid has grown so fast. 

cross stitch progress

cross stitch progress july 26

cross stitch progress july 17

books & beer happenings

july

Once a month we go to Books & Beer. Here, you can drop off any books you wish to pass on to others and pick up some new reads too. The event is usually in a bar and you can order a tasty burger and a beer to enjoy while you look through piles of books. I've been able to find some great reads. The first event we went to was in May where I picked up Cities of the Plain by Cormac McCarthy. It turned out to be the third book in a trilogy, so I read All the Pretty Horses that month. In June I came away with a good stack, which included two Jane Austen novels. Today I found Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys, which is from the point of view of the mad wife from Jane Eyre. Ming brought back a nice stack too.

june

may

a visit to the national library

We checked out another library this morning. This one is much closer than Bishan Public Library, which we went to last Saturday, and far more impressive. It looks newer and it is very spacious. The Central Public Library is located in the basement of this huge structure, called the National Library. The National Library also houses the Lee Kong Chian Reference Library. Unfortunately it was raining today, so I could only get a partial view of the building. Today I read A Spy in the House of Love by Anaïs Nin. After I finished, we went to our monthly Books & Beer event.

a visit to bishan public library

I was looking up the world's most beautiful libraries last week and Bishan Public Library actually ranked on a few lists. It doesn't really compare to the ornate ones in Europe, but it is very modern and really well stocked. It is supposed to resemble a tree house and you can sit in those glass compartments and stare out into the street while you read. I've been wanting to read Bonjour Tristesse by Françoise Sagan for awhile now, and today I found a copy and was able to finish it at the library. I think I will make a list of other short stories so I can read them there whenever I get the chance to go back.

Quilt entry

I finished a wall quilt to enter this year Hoffman Challenge. The size of the quilt is 27.5" by 30" and it is suitable for hanging (a hanging sleeve was sewn on the back, a lesson worth have watching YourTube). The theme fabric is

The theme fabric was incorporated into "rain drops" and with brownish background, the quilt morphs into a underground cross section! Some of the shapes I created look more like worms. I also like the flowing water machine quilting. By the way, the lower left background piece was done by Waipal several years ago!

Camden yard (use partial green filter) - July 14, 2013.

authentic napoli pizza

We discovered a great pizza place near our building about a month ago. Pizzeria L'Operetta at Icon Village has a special every weekend where you can order any two pizzas for 30 SGD. This restaurant serves certified Vera Pizza Napoletana. And not only is it authentic Napoli pizza, it also tastes amazing and the service is fast! We ordered different pizzas before settling on our "regular". Ming likes a tomato-based pizza topped with ricotta cheese. My favorite is this one, with parma ham layered underneath the arugula. Who knew Singapore would have the best pizza I've ever eaten?

Beautiful Oriole Park at Camden Yard. A sold out crowds watching Oriole vs. Blue Jay (July 13, 2013). Oriole won 2-1 over the series (July 12-14, 2013).

mcdonald's in singapore

We've stopped going to McDonald's here, but we do live right next to a 24-hour one. I like to see all the local specials. I used to get iced Milo and I've also tried Lychee McFizz. Plus, I'll never forget the garlic chilli sauce, which made the fries so much more tastier.

Nice fish

Visited friends at the fish tank.

merlions galore

original statue at merlion park

The Merlion is the national personification of Singapore. It has the head of a lion and the body of a fish. There are five official Merlions, and plenty of unofficial ones. Here are some of the Merlions that we've come across so far. 

lego version in toys r us at vivocity

giant replica at sentosa

another view of the giant replica at sentosa

school project

remember this quilt? Hanging on the wall for a long time and becomes a fixture. It has so many aspects and embellishments!

i'm working on this stretchy crochet pattern. buuuuut, there is no pattern at all, all u do is crochet from the back loop at every row. this soft-soft yarn i use is redheart boutique-treasure

cross stitch progress

cross stitch progress june 29

I began this project around mid-June. I like the pop of colors against the black background, but I feel some of the colors are a bit off when compared to the photo. I took a break to read, but I will be returning to this soon.

cross stitch progress june 23

from mom

4th of July celebration

Bowie Baysox vs Akron Aeros as the early July 4th celebration. The evening of July 3rd started with a down home picnic and ended with a postgame fireworks show.

testing out clarins shaping facial lift

I just started my five-day trial of Clarins Shaping Facial Lift. I picked up the sample at TANGS VivoCity over the weekend. You can learn more about the product here.

welcome to my first post. It is Monday and a great start!