trips, time and taking heart

 100 Trips to Take In Your Lifetime

I saw this on Business Insider and

was marveled again the many things

I have yet to see and experience.

On one hand I feel so blessed to have

seen so many beautiful things and

experienced so much. I know that there

are others who are not as blessed

or who have not had the means to do

so and I am so grateful for all that I have

gotten... yet being human, and being me

sometimes it isn't enough.

The wanderlust stirs in my blood.

It keeps me wondering about the next

time I board the plane, the next place I 

will be. I feel the magic when I see photos

of places on my wishlist and I daydream

about the places and what it will feel like...

Then there are times when I wish I could turn

back the clock. To not only revisit the places

I have been and taken more photos and savored

the experiences a little bit more but to 

undo the things that I did or didn't do

which have such repercussions on my life now. 

They could be things done here where I live

or the things done abroad but they are things

that I wish I could undo nonetheless.

I know there is nothing much I can do at the

moment for things have already been done.

Things have already been spun into motion.

All I can do is pray and hope that things

work out for the best because at the end of

the day, it is His will and not ours.

Sure they are my mistakes, but I know

in my heart that whatever happens and 

how things change after this, it will be

for the best decision at the end of the day.

I must be strong. I must take heart.

There is no one who will be there on my side.

And yes, it does call to mind the different mistakes

made over time that have changed me... I hope

this one does not have such severe repercussions.

God you hear me and you know what I ask of you.

Let your will be done. Amen.

Timelapse - Disneyland

I came upon this interesting timelapse video which is made out of 30,000 photos taken over a year in Disneyland. Photographer Daniel Navarette put this massive timelapse together of the magical kingdom so sit back and enjoy it *smiles smiles* 

31 & 1

I turned 31 on February 19th. 

I celebrated my 1st wedding anniversary with B.

More on that soon *smiles*

Happy 1 Year Anniversary B

Today is my first year anniversary with B and we are

are celebrating on the sunny island of Krabi *smiles*

Anyways, its amazing to think that we have been married

for a year now. At times our relationship feels so new and

at other times it feels as if we have been married for ages

and ages. We have been through so many things in this short

year. We have had many losses, we had our share of 

disagreements and days when we just want to be alone

with out thoughts but at the same time, there has been so

much joy, new memories created, new experiences 

shared and a whole lot of love and respect for each

other. We have grown as a couple and as friends.

So Happy 1st Year Anniversary B. 

May there be many many more anniversaries to

come. Love & heart you many many much much.

XOXO

Small steps to help Kate

Hi Alls, My little pet craft project, Hearts & Crafts, 
is doing a mini CSR project for a girl named Kate who isn't
well {read more about Kate here}. 
So all washi tape from my store will be sold at 50% off until 
19 February 2013 {postage not included}. 
The 50% you save will be donated to Kate. 
If you are not into washi tape, you can also participate 
in a handmade auction to raise funds for Kate 
on Allie's Handcrafted Crafts. 

Alternatively if you want to donate your 
handmade items to be auctioned off, please contact 
Allie fundsforkate@gmail.com. Remember, things 
always start small before they can become big. 
So take small steps to help someone in need.

Do also note that I will be away on vacation but 
I will attend to your requests when I get back as 
I have limited internet access when I am away.

I also know that I have heaps of posts to catch 
up on but big things are brewing here 
{no, I am not preggers!} so am just waiting for
things to settle some before sharing that 
big thing and work has been crazy too due to 
Chines New Year holidays and my 
colleagues being on leave and all that. 

So check out this space soon for new updates, 
and happy things {not many of them these days 
but am working on changing that} *smiles*

Interior Styles Down Under

Checked our Adore Magazine's blog and was inspired.

For their Melbourne Style Trail posts, I spotted two shops

that I would love to visit the next time I find myself down

under. Check out these two pretty shops *smiles*

Turner & Lane and Mynd Interiors

Seen @ Adore magazine

a teacher & a student

Seen from DW's instagram page

Encik Rahimy taught my brother when he was in primary school 

and later he taught me as well for two years. I was 10 and 12 

when he taught me and I remember him to be a very inspiring teacher 

in the sense that he nurtured my love for design, drawing, 

colours and anything related to art. He encouraged us to participate 

in colouring contests, he brought music to the class, he gave us 

rolls of coloured paper and without a pair of scissors asked us to 

create a backdrop, he yelled as us when we were rowdy and 

disorderly, he brought us for adventures to explore, he gave 

us prizes when we did well with his own money, he allowed us 

to explore acting and so much more. 

When I left primary school, it was difficult to say goodbye to 

him and my other classmates as we were all going to 

different schools and do we made promises and wrote

in our autograph books that we would be friends forever,

we were all still afraid of what our new adventure would

hold for us. Encik Rahimy however, was quick to tell us

that we would be okay and that we would all do well

and that we should not worry.

I didn't see Encik Rahimy for many years. I thought about 

him every now and then when I heard a song or when I passed

by the old primary school I attended and then just recently

my friend Soorian who was coming back from LA said that

we should try tracking him down and so I did. It was fairly

easy and as luck would have had it, he was visiting Kuala

Lumpur as well. So long story short, I got to meet with him.

It was a surreal experience in some ways. Almost 18 years

had passed and here we were, teacher and student.

He remembered quite a number of things about me and in

particular he remembered how I loved to draw, to colour,

to create. He said he kept the cards I made him {and in 

fact several people did mention this to me... about keeping the 

handmade cards/bookmarks I made for them yonks ago.} 

I was happy to hear this because somewhere

between then and several years ago, no one bothered

to encourage me much in developing that part of me.

It was always about studying, getting good grades, not

failing in my exam, vying for scholarships, part time work,

writing, more writing and then getting a good job, and then

performing in your job to get bonuses, increments and 

promotions. Then there was the endless dramas of boys,

men, friendships, death, love and everything in between. 

There was hardly time for creating and colouring.

And seeing him there, older, quieter, married with a

daughter of his own I realised that it was always in me

this desire to create, to colour, to draw but I had forgotten.

It was a good affirmation to meet him and have him 

remind me of the girl that used to be, the girl that actually

still is *smiles smiles* I am so thankful that I got to meet

him with B and I like the pink soft toy snake that he got me.

I am going to be planning a reunion for me and my primary

school friends 'cos when they saw this photo of us on FB,

they too wanted to say 'hello' and to thank Encik Rahimy

for being such an awesome teacher. Some of them were as inspired 

as me as well and I hope that Encik Rahimy knows how 

many lives he has touched and how we all 

remember him for his awesomeness.

And yes, I am going to keep on crafting and creating.

Happy CNY 2013 everybody!

A very Happy Chinese New Year 

to all of you. May the coming year be filled with only the 

best things that life can bring. God bless.

My semi personalised angpaus for the coming

Chinese New Year *smiles smiles* 

Goodbyes Moshi

B's dog Moshi passed away this morning. He was such

a loving dog who taught me how to love other dogs.

Without Mosh, I would not have Belle and would 

probably have taken ages to warm up to dogs.

Dear Moshi Sushi, You will be missed terribly

by B and I. We will always remember you and keep you

our heart. I am sure you are happy with mum and

Angel. We will see you again one day *hugs*

This song is for your Mosh Mosh.

A song called "Love is Strange" from the 

cartoon from Disney's "Frankenweenie".

Monogrammed Patterned Mugs

Seen here

Seen here

Seen here

Seen here

Seen here

Seen here

Seen @ Pixel Impress

There is just something lovely about
sipping coffee or tea in a monogrammed
patterned mug *smiles*

Machu Picchu

Seen @ telegraph.co.uk

I have always wanted to travel to Machu Picchu.

It sounds so exciting and I can only imagine how it must

feel like to be exploring these ancient places

and being surrounded by secrets and mysteries from the past.

One of the Seven Wonders of the World and often referred

to as the "Lost Ciny of the Incas", Machu Picchu is one of 

the 100 Most Endangered Sites in the world.

Anyways, since I can't go to Machu Picchu just yet

{due to the lack of funds and my unfit state of self},

click here to see Machu Picchu like you have never seen

before in all its 16 Gigapixels glory *enjoy*

This is the closest you will get to see Machu Picchu in a photo.

Exploring in the New Year

It's a new year!!!

Let's go exploring! 

Yes I am a little late with this whole new year thing

and can you believe that January has come and gone?

*egad* it flew right by didn't it?

Anyways, I loved this Calvin & Hobbes comic 

and thought it apt for the start of a new year...

and since Chinese New Year is just around the corner,

I thought why post this up anyways.

It's a wonderful year to try something new,

to do the things you always wanted to do.

To explore. To have adventures galore.

To live. *smiles smiles grin grin*

Have a good week ahead and if I forget

or get too caught up with things {as usual},

Happy Chinese New Year!

2013 - A year of living awesomely!

Seen @ JW's pinterest collection

I forgot to post up this awesome poster

that I spotted in pinterest.

Captures exactly what I want to say.

*hint hint* it has my One Little Word in it...

which btw, will be revealed soon in time for 

my 31st birthday which is just around the corner. 

*smiles smiles happy happy*