Outfit #17

{bag: Hermes | scarf: Burberry | belt: Gucci | coat: RW&Co. | brown tunic: Suzy Shier | leggings: Costa Blanca | boots: Aldo}

My mom recently acquired an Hermes Kelly Eclat with a flash bright blue aztec color on the handle and the interior, which is considered a limited edition. So of course, I had to do an outfit shot with it lol... I am in love! But there's no way I can afford this! I can only dream... Or, I could also wait for her to be bored with it! Hahaha...

Happy belated birthday, Ann

It was my sister's birthday on January 20th but she was swamped with school and begged off from dinner plans last weekend. So after that awesome shopping day I just had today, I called her and asked if she felt like going out for dinner. She wasn't that enthusiastic but said yes anyway, probably because she didn't want to blow us off again. She still had a presentation this Monday. I definitely don't miss the student life lol... My mom on the other hand, took a shower right away and was waiting for us outside by the time we picked them up! She doesn't get to go out in a fancy restaurant all the time. Does the fact that she brought her camera along to dinner an indication of how excited she was? lol...

Anyway, I wanted to share some pics of our dinner at Ric's Grill. Word of warning: if you're dieting and/or trying to lose weight, stop reading now! Following next will reveal some scrumptious, mouth watering dishes and I'm afraid you might fall off the wagon and blame me for it! Hahaha... But before you leave, leave me a sweet comment to say you stopped by ok? lol....

happy belated birthday, Ann!

my beautiful mom! one day when i grow up, i want to be exactly like you! lol

i don't know how many outtakes we had of these, where syaf always had his eyes half-closed. said the flash bothered him...outtake no. 1

again with the eyes... he calls them his bedroom eyes lol...outtake no. 2

to solve this problem, he said he'll open his eyes 1.5 times bigger so by the time the flash came, it will be just right.
this was the result! lol

ann with sofia... well what do u know? like dad, like daughter.. eyes half-closed as well. ann and i don't have that problem :P

aha.. no wonder mom always takes horrible pictures of me! she takes them with eyes closed! caught red-handed you!

syaf's roasted lamb. it was gooooood! and coming from someone who refuses to eat lamb, that says a lot! the meat was sooo sooooo tasty.. but i still felt the gamey taste at the end.. if they could figure how to make that go away, i'd order this for myself :)

for myself, i chose the filet mignon with bernaise sauce. it was a good choice and i always always pick something with bacon on it lol...

ann picked the same thing as me :) great minds think alike!

mom had the chicken with scallops and shrimp in a mushroom-y sauce. it was delicious too! next time, i will order this.

apparently, the first pic of her food didn't look good enough because it was missing her hermes-clad hand lol...

Snowy snowy day and I'm out shopping

Syaf is going to have a night out with his boys on Sunday night so I took advantage of that! How? Well, he's always willing to take me shopping at the outlet mall. Normally, he avoids that mall like a plague. But when he knows I'll be home alone with Sofia and he's out having fun, he'll do anything to avoid a guilt trip! So today, while most Calgarians are probably staying inside because of the snow being dumped on us, I wasn't going to be one of them! I had a mission that was to be accomplished rain or snow! Shopping!!! What else??? I agreed to stop at dimsum first and had our stomachs filled. Hubby is very cranky when he's hungry. And I had every intention to have a shop-till-you-drop day. Sofia pigged out on deep fried shrimp and egg tart. I know, it's not the healthiest but I'm just happy when she eats at all!

So although I won't have an outfit post today, I have some fabulous and cheap shopping finds. Saturdays are my shopping days, since I'm at work all week. And no, it's not every Saturday! I'd have to get a second job if I did!

RW&Co. had a 50% off the last ticketed price and it was their last day today so I made it a point to make sure I snag some good finds there, and I sure did! I can't get enough accessories. And black blazers!

necklace - CAD $2.48

black bead bracelet - CAD $2.48

purple gem bracelet - CAD $2.50

grey-black bead bracelet - CAD $4.98

wool blend blazer - $14.97

black with satin patch blazer - CAD $19.97

I also found a leopard-print ballerina flats at the GAP for a further 40% off reduction! It cost me $12! It's too bad I can't wear them yet! Snow, will you please go away!

leopard-print flats - CAD $11.98

 And last but not least, a cute little gold Chanelesque purse that as soon as Sofia saw, declared that it was hers. Got it from Banana Republic :)

All in all, I'm happy with my purchases and called it a very very productive shopping day! :P

Outfit #16

Sofia wanted to be in the picture

I wanted to show my boots close-up but Sofia didn't want to move :P

This is just precious! I'm rubbing off on her big time!

{brown cardigan: Jacob | mustard sweater: RW&Co. | belt and scarf: Old Navy | jeans: 7 for All Mankind | boots: Nine West}

I woke up this morning cursing to myself, "Why can't weekends always be long weekends?" "Why do I have to come in to work today?" "Why don't I have a nanny?" Sigh... And then it dawned on me, it's Friday!!!! I have no business complaining! Obviously, the cursing didn't last very long. I had a full day ahead. There is a daughter to feed and dress. There are financial statements to review and reports to write. But first things first, what to wear? I'm not the type who plans what to wear the next day the night before. I just basically think through the stuff I have and mix and match them in my head. Yeah, I'm that talented hahahaha.... Kidding aside, I did give planning the night before a bit of a try. And I ended up changing my mind and wearing a different outfit the next day. So my mulling and trying on outfits the night before ultimately became a waste of time. So after a few of these incidents, I just stopped doing it. I didn't see the point. I'm convinced however that it will save me time in the morning. I just need to convince myself to stick to the original plan LOL...

I told my co-workers about the 30 of 30 Remix by Kendi and asked them what they thought of me joining. They didn't seem convinced that I could do it. No surprise there, they know what kind of a shopaholic I am. I can't stop thinking about it though. I guess I will sort of follow along on the side. Safest bet if you ask me :) I can still shop wooohoooo.... There is still a 50% off sale at RW&Co. We're talking 50% off the last ticketed price, not original price! These are my kind of deals - dirt cheap! LOL... I think it will end this weekend so I think I'm going to go check it out tomorrow. We'll see what the husband says. He hates going to the outlet mall. I can't really blame him. I could easily spend two hours at RW&Co. alone. Then there's Nine West, Esprit, Mexx, Le Chateau, Gap, Town Shoes, Brown's, etc. etc... Aaahhh, so many stores, so little time :)

So for today's outfit, I found this old old old old scarf I bought from Old Navy. It's such a lovely combination of colors that I didn't need anything else with it. The mustard sweater was purchased for a whopping $4.95 and I just love love the color! The jeans was bought off of ebay. I would never pay full price for designer jeans! The thought of paying $200 for a pair of jeans is completely alien and downright ridiculous to me. So I hunt for them on ebay and I've been lucky enough to score a few pairs :) All that hard work paid off! But then, shopping is never hard work for me hehehe...

Friend Friday – FBFF

This is going to be my first ever participation for Modly Chic's Friend Friday , so here goes nothin'...

1. What technology do you use in blogging?
I use my husband's Canon Rebel T1I. I bought it as a gift for him two years ago. You'd think that I should know how to use it by now, but I've only managed to use the automatic setting, so it's kind of a point and shoot for me :)

2. What computer and online technology do you use?
I use a Dell Studio 17 laptop. At the time of purchase, it was the high-end model with huge graphics capabilities. I am an avid digital scrapbooker and fried my old laptop from overloading it with huge scrapped pages that ranged in the hundreds of MBs in size for each page. I use Blogger for my blog. Never tried anything else. For my photos, I touch it up (on an as per need basis) on Photoshop CS3.

3. What is your process for taking pictures?
I used to put the T1I on top of boxes, put it on timer and run and pose before the camera clicks. I still do it now, but I've improved a little bit on the boxes and replaced it with a tripod. Oh I should also mention that my daughter and I take turns posing for the camera. I never asked her. She just declared that it's her turn and stand in front of the camera and imitate my pose LOL...

4. When it comes to backdrops for your photos what do you consider? Do you scout locations or shoot the same spot daily?
I look at other people's blogs and are awed by their locations. They leave me wondering where the heck am I to find comparable locations like that from where I live. But with a toddler in tow, there's no way I can do that by myself. I'm already rushing to pick her up from her dayhome as it is. I'm also a 9-5 gal. The photo shoot doesn't happen until I get home and fed my daughter. At this point, it would be 8PM and not even a bit of light left. Could I do it in the morning, perhaps? Sleep is precious. I'm also rushing to get her ready for her dayhome so I can actually get to work on time - which is already a rarity. But shhh, my boss doesn't have to know that :P

5. If you could splurge and get one new piece of equipment what would you be buying?
I don't know how much they cost but I would love a remote control for my husband's camera so I don't have to keep running back and forth between where I'm standing for the shoot and the tripod :)

Outfit #15

{maxi dress: Old Navy | denim blazer: RW&Co. | costume jewelry: Napier, Smart Set | shoes: Suzy Shier | bag: Louis Vuitton}

I am so behind on my outfit posting. I'm posting three outfit posts today but I cheated and manipulated the "Post Options" so that they post on the day that I wore them! Apparently, I have a life other than this whole blogging thing..LOL Not that it's that much exciting. It's the daily grind of work from 9-5, then I pick up my daughter from her dayhome, and we go home. I'm also the type who likes to bring work home. I have been trying to avoid it so that I can spend more time with my daughter, but when you've got deadlines to meet.. sigh! Why did I pick bean counting as a career???

I came across Kendi Everyday today and I was reading her posts on 30 for 30 Remix. I'm soooo tempted to sign up. The only thing that's holding me back is the no shopping for 30 days rule. I don't know if I can avoid shopping for that long. I'm too much of a shopaholic and I pride myself on being a bargain hunter. How can I even begin? At this point, I know I'd be setting myself up for failure. That said, I love the whole idea of the remix. With a day to make such a decision, I think I'm going to participate next time. But I will prepare myself for it. I will try to be hmmm....shall we just say watch where my money goes :P

Today, I wanted to wear this black Old Navy maxi dress that I bought off a friend of mine for a whopping $13. She had purchased it for herself without trying it on. When she got home and tried it, she said it made her look pregnant so she asked if I wanted it to save time from going back to the store to return it. I thought, well, $13 for a linen maxi dress, sure, why not? I wore a denim blazer with it just because I wanted to take my denim LV bag out for a much needed walk out on the town -- well, in my case, the office :P Well, daughter's in bed and husband's passed out on the couch, I'm off to work on those darned financial statements!

Outfit #14

{black turtleneck: Lacoste | skirt: Old Navy | belt: Reitman's | boots: Aldo | tights: Winner's | bag: Chanel | accessories: Le Chateau, Napier, LA Express}

 I see some followers and I'm happily surprised :) I originally meant to create this blog just for me as a means of documenting myself and my personal style and well, everything about my life I want to journal about. But the fact that someone else other than me is also interested is mind boggling to me LOL... From the bottom of my heart, thank you so much to my readers! A big shout out to those who took the time to write comments too! You guys inspire me and I do appreciate them... Keep 'em coming!

I wore my tall lace-up boots and am getting rave reviews on them from people at work! They are, I don't mind saying it, HOT!!! LOL... The heels are a bit hard for me to walk in as I'm not used to wearing this high of heels. That only means I should wear them more often. I need to get more mileage out of them. All $63 worth of them! hahahaha... To make my boots stand out, I wore something simple. I just threw on a simple black turtleneck shirt and a purple skirt. Everyday at work, the girls (the ones who care to dress nice to work) go to each others' desks/offices and check each other out! We all show off our outfits, anything we bought new, and we call each other "hey, hot stuff" LOL! It really makes my day... And I love it when people around me are also looking nice! Anyway, after looking at myself in the mirror during a bathroom break, I started feeling that my fingers needed to get more accessorized. I need those chunky rings!!! A simple yet one that will make a bold statement! So at lunch, off I went with my co-workers hunting for the perfect ring! By perfect, I also mean cheap LOL... Long story short, I bought this chunky ring with a purple gem (but plastic) on it. I think it's a perfect fit for today's outfit, and at a sale price of $2.99, what could be more perfect??

With mission accomplished, I'm finally happy with my outfit today. And yeah, it's almost time to go home hahaha... No one's even seen them yet. I better go and make the rounds and show off my ring before everyone leaves LOL..