our glorious third

He's my husband, my friend, my lover, my hero, my light, my joy, my strength,

my soul, my life, my everything.. deux=un, two hearts as one.

Thank you for sharing your life with me.

May we be so close throughout the years,

that when one cries, the other tastes tears.

Toi et moi, pour toujours.. je t'adore de tout mon coeur, mon chéri!

fly us away...

After much searching, we finally bought our air tickets - OUI! So we'll be flying on Saturday, 13th January and will reach Singapore on the 14th. So take note, you guys.. get the banners, confetti, flowers, red carpet, etc.. untuk tetamu terlambat dari negeri Panchis.. hehe. Well we hope we'll make it to Singapore as planned this time around, insya'Allah.

We're really looking forward to see all of YOU soon!

destination paris

Another vacation, you ask?.. nope, we were in Paris today for a doctor's consultation. It's the final step to determine the kinda medication that is best suited for me and also to get to the (much deeper) bottom of things and find out the cause of my stroke. Since the hospital in Paris has a much more sophisticated equipment to deal with the analysis of blood and all that, I was referred to the Paris hospital by Dr. Bakir (Bakri? :).. the doctor who followed my case in the hospital here).

So I grudgingly dragged myself out of bed at 5.30 am this morning.. we slumped in the back of the cab by 6.30 am and reached our destination at 8.45 am for the 9 am appointment. The meeting lasted for about an hour or so and after the bloodsucker had taken around 16 tubes of my blood, we left the hospital, jumped in the cab and endured the 2 hours ride back, dozing off every now and then. The meter counter read an astounding 308.80€ when the cab sailed to a stop at the foot of our apartment.. we've travelled in total, a distance of 320 km in one morning. And thanks to the social security system here and my hubby's company insurance, we didn't have to draw out a single cent.. everything is taken in charge, due to the nature of the trip.

That was the first time both of us reached Paris by car. Compared with a train ride, it's effectively much more convenient and comfortable though not necessarily faster (due to Paris's infamous road congestion) and plus, it can cost you an arm, a leg and some toes. So our preferred ride to Paris would still be the much less convenient but reliable train system.. unless they're on strike.. which would leave us with not much choice other than the cab.. which would then leave us with a beat-up wallet.. which I hope would never happen.. ever.

I had a really good surprise upon reaching home and found out that I've got a snail mail from far away Singapore. It's a birthday card adorably hand-printed by my 2 darling nieces, with greetings from Omi and family.. it's simply priceless.. thank you, you guys! :D

buon appetito!

I've been wanting to eat risotto fait maison (homemade) for the longest time and I've finally snapped out of that hankering mode, bought the right ingredients, put on the toque and worked the kitchen. Since I'm feeling Italian-ish today, I went all out and did the full spread. I started with an antipasto platter, followed by creamy-licious risotto and a classic Italian dessert - the heavenly tiramisu. I've just found out that tiramisu means "pick me up" referring to the two caffeine-containing ingredients, espresso and cocoa.. very apt. And making your own tiramisu is much easier than I thought - you just need the right ingredients and a light hand.

I'm really thrilled with the outcome of my cooking. I love trying different kinds of food and I think when you make it with your own hands, you'll appreciate the food much better.. and not to mention the satisfaction you'll get when the food turns out looking good and tasty. What could be more better than having an Italian dining-in with the company of Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou and Jean Reno on a frosty autumn evening...

i've been radioed

So I was in the hospital the whole morning today. I went through yet another test.. for like the umpteenth time.. it seems endless and I'm beginning to feel like a lab rat! I've just gone through a small bowel radiography.. another probe to find the cause of my anemia. It's an X-ray examination of the upper gastrointestinal system. As opposed to the more invasive tests like the endoscopy and colonoscopy, this one was a walk in the park.. well I was sitting/lying down most of the time, more like.

All I had to do was to swallow a few cups of a contrast material called barium (a water soluble iodide).. kinda resembles an unappetizing milkshake - chalky-ish taste laced with vanilla flavour, to make the intestines show up clearly on film. I was then asked to lie on the X-ray table while the radiologist took pictures of my small bowel.. various films were then taken at 15 minutes intervals. The test is over once the liquid barium has passed through the small intestine.

So my morning was basically spent flipping through magazines in between posing for the lens on the table - "nice".

it's your party...

Shahreil, Boboy, Boy, Maman, Abang Boboy, Shah,

Many different names, still one person

That's my little brother.. not so little now

Used to be the baby of the family

(title taken over by the 2 little cuties now)

Sememangnya masa kecik-kecik dia kiut

tapi bila dah besar, miut.. tak seberapa kiut lah tu

All grown up into a young man now

Tapi masih ada ciri-ciri zaman kecik-keciknya

It's always good to keep the child in us

Strive to be a better person but never change

cause we love you just the way you are

Happy 26th, Shahreil Bakri!

it's my party...

On the contrary, I didn't have a big party bash here (dah tua pun.. tak payah party-party).. instead, I spent a quiet, cozy evening in with dear hubby. So it's my first birthday away from Singapore. Although I had to slog in the kitchen on my birthday, it's well worth it... on the menu was smoke salmon, escargots, scallops with tapenade paste spread over sautéed potato and a luscious chocolaty nougatine treat to top it all off, accompanied with fizzing champagne. I've also concocted a fruity cocktail similiar (or almost) to the one we had in Paris.

Thanks to dear hubby, my tummy is happily indulged with all those delectables.. quelle merveille! (marvelous!).. and I'm being endlessly spoiled with not one but a few gifts. I'm one happy woman, I am :) Merci chéri!.. and thanks to my family too, for the lovely card with its award-winning, perfectly rhymed witty message.. so I've decided to share it with you:

Oh Cik Julie,
Paling suka makan kari,
Nasib baik tak basi,
Kalau tak mencret berkali-kali,

Oh Cik Julie,
Hari ni hari yang kau dilahiri,
Oleh ibu kita bernama Suli,
Sampai lah ke hari ini,
Kamu menyambut hari jadi,
Untuk yang ke 33 kali.