Heavenly Paradise@AdelineAng.com

Moving is a tiring and tedious process. I’ve to admit that I’m fortunate in a way, since this is only my third move in six and a half years. I don’t understand how some people could tolerate the hassle of moving from place to place every year, or worse still, every school term!

Boxes are very useful when it comes to moving. Nonetheless, I’ve to say that it really is a waste of time packing and unpacking. Needless to say, transporting time can take up a big chunk of the day.

One of my biggest dream is to own a house; no more worries about the lease and moving issues (unless I really have to for some reason). I’m not a big fan of spring cleaning. If given a choice, I’ll choose spring cleaning over moving, anytime.

The positive side of moving that I can see, is to get rid of junks! Besides, it gives us a good idea of our “assets”; what we already own and what we don’t. So that we won’t be walking into the store and purchase the same thing over and over again. Sounds familiar?

Anyway, I’ll be relieved for a little while after this move. The next one is coming up in 4 months’ time, as anticipated….

Moments of joy we share
Tears of sorrow we shed
Love and laughter we cherish
Moments of comfort we embrace

With you walking by my side
Printing footsteps with each stride
Explore the love lane with my dear
Happy moments are right here

Time flies. Miles and I celebrated our first anniversary as a couple recently. When it comes to anniversary, there are different ways to celebrate it. It could be a romantic candle light dinner, a bouquet of flowers, a nice gift etc. A nice surprise, in my opinion, is a wonderful way to celebrate anniversary.

Having told that there will be an anniversary cake, I had no idea what the cake will look like, besides for it being a heart-shaped cake.

Surprise! A nicely decorated anniversary cake that Miles prepared in the midst of his hectic exam schedule. How sweet! p/s: very neat handwriting for one who doesn’t grow up learning Chinese.

The “interior” of the cake; red and blue (Miles’ and my favourite colour, respectively) marble patterns, with chocolate ganache in the middle, and topped with buttercream icing.

Of course, we shared the cake with friends too. It was one of the best homemade cake I ever had; rich but not too sweet. Very well done (someone mistakenly thought it was store-bought)!

Happy Anniversary, Miles! Thank you very much for the lovely cake :)

It feels great when the dawn is here before 7 a.m. nowadays. Unlike winter, getting into work in the dark and getting off work in the dark.

On my way to the bus stop this morning, I was greeted by the warm and friendly sunshine. Crisp morning, clear sky, and gorgeous sunshine! It’d have been a spectacular view watching the sun rising from the horizons. Unfortunately, Fredericton is not anywhere near the east coast :P

Among all the seafood delicacies, fish is one of my favourites. I enjoy eating fish, catching fish (fishing), and admiring fish. Fishes seem to have a good time swimming in the water, especially those living in a fish tank that don’t have to worry much about predators.

Keeping fishes as pets is certainly not my forte. I remembered keeping a Betta fish as a young kid, but it survived only a couple of months. Since then, I realized that I enjoy seeing them but not keeping them ;)

Miles’ Dad is a fish lover. There are four fish tanks in the house that are homes to many colourful and active fishies.

The Goldfish.

From left: Japanese Algae Eaters (orange), Neon tetras (red and blue), a Yoyo Loach (black and white patterns), and a Pleco Algae Eater.

From left: a Cichlid, a Green Severum (dark colour), and a Gold Severum (light colour).

This past weekend was Easter weekend. Besides a turkey meal, and many other delicious treats, we had a chance to enjoy this lovely Easter Bunny Cake!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter celebration!

Do you like soft cookies, or crunchy ones? Personally, I like the texture that lies in between; not too soft and not too hard. The baking time, hence, plays a major role in determining the texture of cookies. I usually bring cookies out of the oven when they start turning brown on the side. The cooling process allows them to harden some. Therefore, cookies will taste crunchy but soft for chewing ;)

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1 + 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp honey
1 + 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 cup rolled oats
1 cup raisins

Directions:
1. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar until smooth. Stir in the eggs, vanilla extract, and honey.
2. In a separate bowl, sift together all-purpose flour, baking soda, and ground cinnamon. Next, gradually stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture from step (1). Stir until well incorporated.
3. Lastly, stir in the rolled oats and raisins, just enough to mix.
4. Drop dough by tablespoonfuls onto a lined cookie sheet. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 F for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cookies start to brown. Remove from baking sheet and cook on wire racks.

* Adapted from Allrecipes.com