Sunrise and Sunset in Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Just wanted to share some of the photos I took from our trip to Angkor Wat, Cambodia last November 2011. If you haven't been there, put it in your bucket list!

 Sunrise at Angkor Wat

 Sunset at Phnom Bakeng Temple

 

Sunset at Ton Le Sap Lake

Meet Kiki

Kiki is a Pomeranian x Silky Terrier puppy. My daughter got her when she was only 3 months old. When she's in the mood to play, she'll bring her toy to you and she won't leave you alone until you play tug-of-war with her. She loves to run around the yard, play with the soccer ball and chase birds.

She's a bright little princess who always think before she acts. During the day when she's by herself, she loves to lie down near the front window and watch people go by, sometimes barking at them, sometimes not (just depends if she likes your energy or not!). And when she needs to go, she goes up the stairs to her pee pad in the bathroom. 

She keeps herself busy with her toys and takes naps every now and then. Thank God she is not the type who would chew your furniture but she's got one weakness --- she loves to unroll the toilet paper when she's bored to death when home alone.

Kiki likes being silly, enjoys playing fetch and is always willing to collect her toys but of course with a price ... her favourite crispy liver treat.

Kiki is 10 months old today. Here she is posing at the camera (well, she was forced to by the human!)

Always on my mind, Forever in my heart.

God saw you were getting tired, and a cure was not meant to be
So he put his arms around you, and whispered come with me
With tearful eyes we watched you, as we saw you pass away
Although we love you deeply, we could not make you stay
Your golden heart stopped beating, hard working hands at rest
God broke our hearts to prove to us... He only takes the best.

A Week of Rain

It's been cold and wet all week in Sydney and it looks like it's going to be the same for the weekend. On the brighter side, it's nice to stay indoors to do some sewing in this yucky weather!

Wish Upon the Moon

Yesterday the sky was so dark, there were no stars but only the moon so round and bright! 

I could not help but take a photo and make a wish upon the moon!

Easter Egg 2011

Thought I'd take a break from sewing and take a photo of this egg!

Handmade at its best

In November last year, my daughter told me that the Art Gallery of NSW is bringing China's Entombed Warriors to Sydney. As soon as I found out about it, I marked my diary. The same way I marked my diary last year when the Gallery of Australia brought the original masterpieces of Van Gogh, Gauguin and Cezanne from the Musee D'Orsay. So off we went last Monday (Jan 3). There was a long, long queue but it was worth the wait. Actually, it wasn't that bad, we only waited for 1/2 hour.

What caught my eye was the description of each type of figures ... "each was individually finished by hand, no 2 figures are alike"! Wow, handmade at its best!

The Gallery only exhibited ten of the main figure types that made up the First Emperor's Terracotta Army plus rare objects from the First Emperor's burial site and other tombs. It was amazing, considering these Terracotta figures have been buried for over 2000 years. Unfortunately, picture-taking was not allowed so here are some pictures I took from the Souvenir booklet I took home. One day, when I get to visit the actual place in China, I will get to take a picture of them. In the meantime ... enjoy!

 

Merry Christmas Everyone!

♥♥♥ Merry Christmas Everyone! ♥♥♥

It's been an exciting and busy year for us. 

Thank you for all your support in 2010.  

Have a safe and happy Christmas!

I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all year."  ~ Charles Dickens 

 

 

 

Only Once on this Earth

Here's a beautiful quote about each one of us being an individual.We are all different in one way or another because each one of us is unique.

"At bottom every man knows well enough
that he is a unique being, only once on this earth; 

and by no extraordinary chance will such a marvelously
picturesque piece of diversity in unity as he is, 

ever be put together a second time." 

~Friedrich Nietzsche

 

 

I Can Smell Summer

In 2 weeks time, winter will be over (here in Sydney) and we all know what it means ... that summer is coming soon. Yay, I can't wait, let the Christmas countdown begin.

I can't believe 2011 is only 4 months away. It's actually quite scary in a sense that the days are going so quickly. I think I should pinch myself and concentrate on getting things done. From now on, I promised myself not to get distracted and I hope I can stay focus!

Winter Break

I am officially on a winter break. Kikay shops on Etsy, Dawanda and Madeit will be closed until July 10. If you wish to get updates, please visit my facebook fan page as I will be updating my status every now and then. 

While on a break, I plan to focus on my photography so I will try to take as much pictures as I can. This is my chance to really play with my camera. Well, that's the plan!  

When I come back, I will be working on preparing for the show in August. I hope it doesn't get cancelled ... again! 

Last Friday, I went to watch the lighting of the sails at the Sydney Opera House as part of the Vivid Sydney Festival 2010. Here are a few photos, enjoy!  

 

There's a Time for Everything

How do you manage to do everything you need to do in a day? 

If you don't find time to take the time then you won't get anything done. There is so much to do in this world but so little time ... hundreds of ideas, just don't have the time to make it a reality. 

To overcome this, I always think that there is a time for everything! 

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: ~ Ecclesiastes 3:1

Life is too short

I always hear this phrase and as I grow older everyday, I come to realized that life is indeed, very short. Day in and day out we do our normal daily routine that we don't have the time to appreciate the little things, like the flower weeds on the streets or the beautiful trees around us. 

On the weekend, I found that one of my high school friends was diagnosed with Stage 4 Brain Cancer. Three years ago, she beat Stage 3 Breast Cancer and she is again fighting for her life. She is a very strong woman, so I hope and pray that she will beat this once again like she did before.

It's good to know that she has family and friends that she can lean on. My whole batch have organized to raise funds to help for her chemo treatment and all other medical expenses. In my own little way, I hope to pledge some proceeds from any sale of my bags. As you know, these treatments are very expensive and for someone like her who have 4 young kids, it is not easy especially when you live in the Philippines. 

To Madge, 
May every sunrise hold more promise, every moonrise hold more peace ~ Anonymous
  

Celebrate

Two weekends ago, the suburb next to where I live had a fair and the highlight was the fireworks at the end of the day. Here are a few photos I took and some quotes to go with it. Enjoy!

 The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate ~ Oprah Winfrey

Celebrate we will because life is short and sweet for certain we're climbing two by two to be sure these days continue ~ Dave Matthews

 Life has meaning only in the struggle. Triumph or defeat is in the hands of the Gods. So let us celebrate the struggle! ~ Stevie Wonder

A Whole Day Affair

It is my birthday weekend so I gave myself a well deserved break from sewing. After all, tomorrow is the start of a more serious preparation for the looming Sydney Stitches and Craft Show in April. 

At first we thought of going to Taronga Zoo since we have not been there since the girls were small. But the entrance of $41 per adult was huge turn off. So we decided to walk around the Sydney suburb of Newtown. Lots of handmade shops. The Thai lunch was not the best but it was okay. Then we went to watch the movie, "A Blind Side". It was a good 'feel good' movie, something nice to watch. 

It was a fun-filled day and the finale was the Moroccan dinner and Sydney Gay Mardi Gras Parade.