I'm just looking for something to do while I stay up late to regain some control of my time as a mom of two little kids. Will I regret staying up past midnight to work on my blog posts? 

Yes, but I also just updated my office set up and I want to use my new keyboard. 

It's only been a year and 10 months, or it's already been a year and 10 months? What have I been doing/creating with this time? To all the other moms with more kids and more life, what's your secret?

The last post was of me expressing my excitement to return to work after maternity leave with the second baby, and once work started, I really couldn't balance taking care of the family while working full time, and definitely had to drop some hobbies, including documenting my life online. 

Also, be in the moment, amirite? Who has time to read my posts anyways?

Since Jan. 2023...

• - Traveled to Germany, Boston, Hawaii, Victoria, Edmonton
• - Got a minivan 
• - Tried out a few new cafes and restaurants, but did not get to document most of it. By the time I whip out my phone to take a photo, the food would already have little fingers in it, or it would be on the ground (P likes to throw...) 
• - Helped out regularly at S's preschool
• - Started another new job and I can't tell if it's the transition to the new company or my wild kids that has created a few extra strands of whites in my hair
• - Finished a 1000 piece puzzle that is still missing 1 piece (we think P ate it)
• - Started reading fiction again, currently on book 20 of the year
• - Started using Classpass for spin and yoga classes, and might try a boxing class one day soon

Anyways, I am grateful for all that is currently in my life, and can't wait to make more things happen. Let's see if I can post more regularly.

I recently read Crying in H Mart, which put me in the mood for Korean food. I can always rely on P to follow up with my cravings, so she set up our group to dine in at Kook, with a group of 6 + my baby. Check out the spread of just the banchan! 

We ordered the Combo for 4, which comes with an assortment of marinated beef, pork, and chicken, deep fried gyoza with options for beef or pork, a bowl of tofu soup (either seafood or beef option), and a plate of japchae. I have not yet been to a Korean restaurant where they have given out 15 different side dishes, and maybe you think I'm inexperienced in the world of Korean cuisine, and you'd probably be right. I've never been to Korea! I've been to K-Town once only! 

The seafood soondubu was savory, but did not burn my mouth with the salt content. It came out bubbling hot, and yet, the tofu was still soft and fluffy.  

I didn't actually try the japchae because I was already too full at this point, and sometimes potato noodles give me indigestion. It looked really nice though: 

I'm very excited to return here, so that I can revisit the melt in your mouth soondubu and all the grilled meat. I'm also looking forward to asking for refills of the banchan, which I did not ask for this time. Actually, you'll probably find me here next weekend. 

Why does it feel like things tend to happen in groups?

 

July started slowly, with the worst heat wave in the history of Canada, and now, the worst wildfire season, as well as another heat wave on the way.  It's really time for all of us to start doing more to prevent or at least mitigate the effects of climate change. I hope I can do my part with the latest life change.

Actually, the latest two life changes. Stick around for the next updates.  

Ice cream cravings are real. H and I went to Glenburn for dessert on what one might consider a “date night”. We had the Fall Spice, which consisted of 2 scoops of their pumpkin cheesecake ice cream, graham crackers crumbled into butterscotch, and cinnamon whipped cream. This is the perfect way to end the night. I wonder what will be on their menu for winter and Christmas.

Before that, we visited the thrift shop, where I got a $10 pair of 7 for All Mankind. Date nights!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Another life update… I’ve been trying these products from Glossier:

Inspired by these ladies:

I don’t know why this brand is so fascinating to me. I could watch videos about these producs over and over… The cloud paints especially are irresistible. Pat pat pat, smudge smudge – blend that cream blush in a few seconds, and it looks perfectly natural. I’m excited to try out all the other colours, I’ve only purchased Dusk and Puff so far. Puff has more colour, Dusk blends in too much and I like it better as an eye shadow.

It’s the little things that add up to make a big difference. Here’s a list of “little” things that I thought about today while H is guiding his kids in Nova Scotia and I was hiking (if you have any questions about this bottom of Brandywine Falls hike, email me using contact info on About page):

1. This little plastic squirrel (beaver? whatever.) that I thought was a candy and that I tried to eat because I was hungry, waiting at Milestones on Robson:

I could’ve choked on this little pointy thing. There was also the small portion of popcorn shrimp that was deceptive at first, because of the real popcorn underneath all of it. This really bothered me. I’m paying close to $14 for a handful of POPCORN?! If the whole container was full of shrimp (which were also little), then I wouldn’t be so upset at the price. A’s seafood pasta was oversalted and I’m sure my kidneys are suffering from just one mouthful of the spaghetti that she shared with me. I only came to this place because it was A’s farewell party, and she’s sort of amazing so I had to say bye. Not coming back unless I have to.

2. Little habits and mannerisms add up, and become glaringly obvious to the point that they’re all I notice. Legs shaking, nose twitching, chewing loudly, unnecessary remarks/actions for attention or for whatever reason. Now I know this could be an uncontrollable physical/psychological thing, and I am trying to let it go. BUT SOMETIMES…!!! Tonight for example:

Scene – Soup is done, in the pot on the stove. Everybody is finishing dinner around the table, and to wrap up the meal, like true Asians, we drink soup.

Person1: Let me get you some soup. *starts to get up from the table to get me soup

Person2: OH I’M GOING FIRST. *jumps up quickly and heads to the pot first to get first dibs from a huge pot of soup

Now, I asked questions because I’m trying this new thing. I tried to be kind and understand why Person2 needed to be first to get the soup when there was so much and Person2 had been just sitting there with an empty bowl for at least 5 minutes prior to Person1 getting up from the table. The soup was already done a while before dinner started.

Me: Just wondering... Why did you get up when Person1 decided to get up?

Person2 had no good response other than a scowl and“What’s the problem?” in a very defensive tone.

3. Small acts of kindness, like Person1 getting up to get me soup out of the kindness of their heart. M asking D how his leg was, because she noticed a huge cut there and is a caring person. J planning a party for A. Friends going out of their way to keep showing up and be supportive. Food sharing even though you love what you bought for dinner and the portions are small!

4. Human beings are actually really tiny, adding our mark on the world (see photo above of waterfall). We did the Brandywine Falls hike again. One of the rocks we walked by ended up tumbling into the water. My big picture side makes me wonder... What will that fallen rock do to change the grand scheme of things?

H and I were tired and hungry after a long day of work, looking for a place to eat around Metrotown. We were craving some Shanghai food, but Wang’s was closeed. As luck would have it, We drove past this little strip mall, and noticed Preference:



We had the pig intestine noodle.


We also had this spicy pork dish.


Lastly, we had this starchy noodle with chicken and a hoisin/peanut sauce (I’m really not sure what’s in it). This was definitely necessary, as it was a cold dish and helped to cool off our tongues that were burned by the other two dishes.



The atmosphere reminded us of being in Asia – a group of boys were chattering in Chinese and taking photos of their food (one of them yelled at his friends, “WHAT ARE WE? GIRLS?”), and other small groups of Chinese guys were chit chatting about business. I felt a bit out of place, the service was rather awkward because of language barriers, and the menus had horrendous typos and very confusing descriptions.

I think I would still come back to this hidden gem though. Good food and price. We came into this family run restaurant, not expecting much, but that’s why it was so rewarding. This was a real food adventure, without any prior research on food blogs or review sites.

All the unknowns keep life exciting.

To drink enough water. To get enough rest. To make time for your loved ones.

This weekend was mostly about friends.

Saturday night, I went to PappaRoti with R, M, and P for the first time, and was pleasantly surprised that these bus were actually amazing. I had the Strawberry Field (strawberry + whipped cream and bun with chocolate syrup), and R had the one on top with strawberry and bananas. M and P had something with ice cream and more syrups, but no photo, SORRY. She had that chai latte thing, at the top left corner, and the tea on the bottom is mine.

The whipped cream and fruit and syrups are completely unnecessary – the buns are just amazing by themselves without the rest of the frou frou toppings. Had a nice chai tea as well, and I ordered the pot size, which came with a little timer to tell you when your tea is steeped to perfection. It was gooooood. Might get a bulk order just for munchies.

Despite having a cold, there is no better way to wind down a long week than a day in Whistler. Picked up this OTC drug called Eltor to help with my congestion:

Takes about an hour to kick in, then it KICKS IN. Super effective relief.

Our first run of the day was up the Glacier bowl. Reminder to do a warm up run first next time. The hike up is rather annoying though. See the tiny person at the bottom?

Hot cider to complete the day and clear my sinuses up:

I’m still pretty congested without the drugs. I really need to take better care of myself. It feels like there is never enough time. Life already feels too short!

Last day, rather early start, wandered into Mazarine Coffee for breakfast around 8AM:

I had found this place just by searching Google for coffee near me at the beginning of this trip, and I had wanted to go since the very first day, but circumstances brought me to Starbucks for efficiency’s sake. Eggs were done perfectly, just cooked, so softly poached with a light layer of sprouts and cracked pepper on top for flavours. I would come back in a heartbeat. Coffee was strong too. I think my barista was in training – the latte art got mushed up a bit. Not sure if that affected the flavour…

After breakfast, I had originally planned to finish watching Harry Potter, which was showing on the television, but after careful consideration and D’s reminder, I booked it to the airport to see if I could get on an earlier flight. Weather was being unpredictable in Vancouver…

Ended up spending about $150USD to switch my seat. There was even enough time to go to the Duty Free to pick up a bottle of Johnny Walker, a box of See’s candy, and this Laneige BB Cushion that has been out of stock EVERYWHERE for the past half year. I am just glad it’s back in my life. Still can’t find it on the Sephora website for Canada.

Laneige medium shade, and Nespresso as I get ready today.

I’m glad I cut my day short in SF because I made it back safe and sound, no delays. Whether it’s business or personal, it is sometimes for the best to just cut your losses, take what you have gained, and make the most of the situation. How do you determine at that you’ve given it your best? At what point do you walk away from the deal or the relationship?

Busy days and tough decisions ahead.

Here are the links to all the days from this trip:
Day 1
Day 2.. and sort of 3
Day 4 - Part 1
Day 4 - Part 2
Day 5 

Day 3 was sorta the same as Day 2, ie. work. Day 4 though. Everything changed because I was on my own again. D, M, and I went for breakfast at Honey Honey Cafe and Crepery:

I had the one with the crab cakes and cheese. AND IT WAS MAGNIFICENT. D seemed to really enjoy the nutella crepe. The only thing was that the sausage that M ordered was deceptive – he expected 2 sausages, but got ONE that was cut in half! Oh well, he seemed happy with it.



I’m slightly buzzed off Icelandic beer right now (see the photo of Garun Iclandic Stout here, definitely one of my favourite beers… it’s a bit difficult to type accurately right now just because it’s 11.5% alcohol and WONDERFUL), and just thinking about how bad things just happen and plans don’t always work out. For example, I ended up traveling around San Francisco alone last weekend; car accidents; being forced to move, snow storms, feelings and what not. D gives great pep talks , and I really appreciate having him around sometimes, because he’s right – bad things happen and you just deal with it.

“i love louisa ng” H said through all these troubles we’re having.

Got bored, went out for a drive and ended up at Choco Coo for some late night dessert. Getting fat will plump out my wrinkles.

From Left: Chocolate Cake, Hazelnut Cake, Tiramisu (in the cup), Matcha Mousse, (the tassel on my bucket bag made a cameo)

  

From left to right, top to bottom: Mint Dark Hot Chocolate; Tiramisu, Hazelnut Cake, Matcha Mousse

The matcha mousse had a waffle layer and was by far the best choice. Don’t bother with the Hazelnut or Chocolate Cakes, they’re not bad but also not that special. I’d come back to get the matcha mousse again if I'm in the hood, and try their other desserts, if I felt like going for a long drive again some day.

Sun Run today and I finished the 10km in 1hr8min. I blame my runners that gave me a HUGE blister for not being able to finish it in under 1 hour. Also, not enough cardio in the past few months. I think I’ll start training or at least doing more cardio.

Bonus picture: cat wants to go out.

Announcement of the Facebook VR rig using our cameras came out recently, and we're all pretty proud of this. I got my laptop dock, so I’ve switched over to it, and fiddling with it/getting used to it has wasted a bit of time. Brought work home for the past few days. I could feel myself crashing before lunch today… This week has been busy, and the answer to motivating your employees is GOOD FOOD.

Probably not enough coffee today too. NO PROBLEM! Fixed it with a batch of chocolate dipped butter cookies that our kitchen staff brought out after teriyaki chicken lunch. Here’s a few other desserts we’ve had in the past for Friday Birthday Lunch:

CRACK BROWNIES.

I love working here. There are a few things that could make it better, like not being in the middle of nowhere in Richmond. They could hire a few more people, maybe an assistant just for me to do all my expenses and data entry and screen some phone calls. Along that note, they could hire an in house Japanese chef to cook for all of us, because we ALL love Japanese food. I think I get the recognition I deserve and my opinions are listened to. The job’s not too stressful, and any job that involves working with the public will have its own quirky aspects (customer’s always right?), which I find hilariously entertaining.

Just blast my music and motivate myself to type faster – Tritonal – Blackout (Madison Mars Remix):


It’s you and me, you and me, against the world. Don’t you worry baby, there’s a fire for us. No we’re not going down in a blackout…

Anybody looking for a job? Pay attention to this: www.ptgrey.com/careers

Does Jessie J. write her own songs?

I still fall on my face sometimes, and I can’t colour inside the lines,

Cuz I’m perfectly incomplete, I’m still working on my masterpiece

And I wanna hang with the greats, got a way to go but it’s worth the wait

You haven’t seen the best of me, I’m still working on my masterpiece

 

Today’s Horoscope:

You can sense that something good is going to happen but there is no need to hurry it along. Venus, planet of harmony, in your fellow Earth sign of Taurus means the right opportunity will arrive at just the right time, so be patient.

WELL DUH. When things hit rock bottom, it can only go up. I’m not saying I’ve hit rock bottom, the bottom is pretty hard to reach. Murphy’s law though.

Went to try their regular coffee with pumpkin syrup… Still tasted like cardboard. Don’t get it. Not even worth a photo. Tim Hortons, WHY SO FAIL WITH PUMPKIN?

On another note, wind storm in Vancouver was dreadful - trees and branches falling over, it was like the end of the world. Today, the sun came out and I went for a run because boredom and sad from BEBHWBAKAM hasn’t spoken to me in a few days. Above & Beyond also keeping me company. We’re all we need.

2013 Hyundai Veloster Turbo from Destination Hyundai

$29,399 total vehicle price
All weather mats
Oil for life
$999 for protection for 2 cars (G had to get his car done too)

$2549 for insurance

This is it.  The love of my life. It’s this car, and this motivates me to make more money.  I wish I weren’t so materialistic.

 

The luwesa program: Work - Job Hunt -  Bike – Yoga - Party (of course) – Pho. A, C, and T think i should start an infomercial.

From Meghanmarkle’s Instagram

“So please ask yourself: What would i do if i weren’t afraid?

 

And then go do it.”

I love Suits and Instagram. I’m afraid of doing so many things; what should I do first?