Fab 5 Friday...

Ah, so happy that Friday has arrived...so, so happy. 

I think it is safe to say that we are all ecstatic that Blaine is home. While the kids were S-U-P-E-R good last week and I do mean SUPER good, we were definitely ready for a little break from one another. It's been fantastic to have some adult conversation again and the boys are glad to have daddy hugs in the evening.

It's once again a long weekend here in Malaysia - Yahoo! And, we're out of here! So, I will publish this and go finish up my packing!

Here it is, folks! Fab 5 Friday:

1. Dates with my boys. Last week while Blaine was away brought a couple of nice "dates" with my boys. Friday night had the three of us hitting Morganfield's for dinner together - which was fun and funny. Saturday had Grayson and I grabbing a quick date at Red Mango before he went to a birthday party. The littlest dude just cracks me up. Saturday night had Caleb and I having dinner together while Grayson was still at a birthday party. And, I just love sitting and talking to Caleb sometimes - he can be such a little man.

2. Presents. Upon Blaine's return we were showered with gifts from home! Nothing like a few prezzies to make up for 10 days away...Lululemon, Pandora, new Nano 4.0's, and some golf clothes for me! Woohoo! The kids also received some fab gifts and we are stocked up with Halloween candy for all of the Duta Tropika trick-or-treaters!

3. Mad About Coco. Monday night we took the kids to Mad About Coco to celebrate Blaine's return and their awesome behavior while he was away. Just a few yummy little treats!

4. Travel Plans. I spent the week trying to get things straightened out for Hong Kong and Vietnam. Vietnam was easy...booked my tour and a show to see while we are there. Hoping we'll catch up with Nate and that Nhi will be back from the States, too. Hong Kong has not been as easy. The 4 top tour guides I wanted to take us on a one day tour are all booked. Wah! And, I know we can go do the bus and stuff, but I really didn't want to have to think...I just wanted to follow someone around who has lived in Hong Kong for an extended period of time and see some of the lesser known areas of the city - plus, I was hoping for a little more of a foodie perspective. Anyways, I have an email into one last guide and we'll see if he can accommodate us. If not, my name is Robin and I'll be your tour guide in Hong Kong!

5. Club Med Cherating. As I said, it's a long weekend and we are outta here! Club Med Cherating here we come! Heading to Kuantan with some friends for an easy-peasy weekend. Our boys are excited that their friends are coming and to hit the kids club and I'm happy to hit the pool, read my book and enjoy a few cocktails.

Okay...that's all there is. I'm going to go finish packing and then we're springing the kids from school at 11:45 a.m. and heading to Club Med. I see a pool and an adult beverage in my future! Enjoy the weekend, peeps!

Need To Get This Off My Chest...

Yes, I have something to say...I've been holding it in for weeks and I just need to say it:

I hate pumpkin.

Phew. I feel better already. It's out there...out in the open. My friends back in the States are going pumpkin crazy...pumpkin lattes, pumpkin cupcakes, pumpkin pasta, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin pie, pumpkin, pumpkin, pumpkin, pumpkin...

 

I can say that I am pretty happy here in Malaysia where once September hits we are not bombarded with pumpkin craziness. My morning coffee continues on...same as always. I don't feel the need to bake pumpkin bread or head to the grocery store to stock up on pumpkin pie filling.

There are other things I miss about fall...cider donuts, cool air, American football...but pumpkin? Nope. That you can keep my friends. Please feel free to eat and drink my share!

Fab 5 Friday...

It's Friday! Woohoo! Hope you've had a good week! And, hopefully, you're here for Fab 5 Friday. I do not want to disappoint - so here it is!

1. Keeping My Mommy Cool. Yup, I have not lost my shit once this week. I came really close on Wednesday evening when Grayson, once again, lost another bag of clothes at school. But, in a calm voice I stated what the consequences would be and that he had until Friday after school to find the bag. And then proceeded to pour a large vodka and lemonade and meet Shannon at the pool so I could converse with an actual adult. Only a couple more days until Blaine comes home and I'm really hoping I can keep it together.

2. Caleb and Basketball. As I told you earlier, Caleb made the grades 4-5 basketball team.  He was ecstatic as many of his buddies are on the team and he just loves playing sports - all sports. They've had two games so far - a heartbreaking loss against GIS (after they led most of the game) and an awesome win against ISKL. He scored in both games and he told me that the team is going to get revenge on GIS when they come play at MKIS. Gotta love his spirit.

3. White Shadow and Turbo. We seem to have two snails hanging out by our plants that the kids have nicknamed White Shadow (the extremely large one) and Turbo. They've been checking on them everyday and I think they have realized that these two snails are the closest things we'll ever have to pets.

White Shadow

4. Book Clubs. In the past two weeks I've been to two different book clubs. I figured since I love to read I'd give the book club thing a shot. It's definitely been exposing me to some different books than would make my usual reading list - so that's been good. But, I'm not sure I can keep up with both of them...so I need to figure out which one is going to get my full attention.

5. Deadlift 5RM PR. Yes, this makes the list this week. I had a 5 rep max deadlift personal record this week. For a while, I was pulling from plates as my back was just not cooperating with deadlifts...at all. The past three times we've done deadlifts I've been pulling from the floor and my back has been good and not flexing and I'm happy. I probably could've tried again with an additional 5-10 pounds on Wednesday, but I didn't want to be greedy. I'm extremely thankful for coaches and friends who keep a special eye on me during this movement to make sure my back is extended and doing what it should be doing.  This was capped off Wednesday evening by catching my boys in the act of doing their own CF WODs in the home gym - complete with music blasting and shirts off! (I blame Jay for the shirts off!)

All right...please send me some good vibes to make it through the weekend sans Blaine. No meltdowns, no meltdowns, no meltdowns...for me or the kids!

Busy...

Can I just say, I am beginning to hate the word "busy." Today I saw this quote:

Someone asks you, "How are you?" And the response you most often receive is, "Busy. So busy."

I'm going to tell you that I am not busy. How's that for a straight-up honest answer? I know I've said that I am, but I'm not. I am NOT busy. I have time each day to workout, drink coffee, write, read, have lunch with friends, cook, go to book club, take golf lessons, help my kids with homework, watch television and who knows what else. But, I am not busy. I am fulfilled. I am happy, but I'm not busy.

Often, I think  the word  "busy" has just become an excuse. Oh, you don't want to do/participate/help with something?! Just say you're busy. (I've done it! Guilty as charged with that one! Repeat offender! Lock me away!)

And then again, everyone's definition of busy is relative. What is busy for one person is not busy to another.

But here's the thing...it all boils down to this:

So think about your priorities. Do what makes you happy. Make your life fulfilling, not busy.

Ellipses and Fab 5 Friday A Day Early...

No, I haven't been drinking...yet. I just don't think there will be time for Fab 5 Friday tomorrow - so I'm banging it out today. You'll get over it and if I have time tomorrow I'm sure I can find some additional topic to write about as the list just keeps growing.

This week I decided that I would dust off the resume. No, I'm not looking for a job here in KL. That's just not possible with our current visas. But, I want to look for some additional freelance writing gigs. I feel like I need to contribute in some way, shape or form. A measly paycheck from someone would make me feel a little more like I'm doing something of value. (Hell, I'd trade my writing skills for gift certificates if I could find a Malaysian company willing to pay me under the table.) And yes, my family thinks my cooking is of value. And, the kids probably think my homework helping skills are of value. And I know they think my chauffeur skills are valuable, but, I'm craving something else.

Anyways, I have to tell you this funny story because last night Blaine and I had a laugh and a half. I sent out some info on myself to a blogazine, that shall remain unnamed, but was looking for contributors. I sent a link to my blog and links to a couple of WOD Talk articles and told a little bit about myself. I had found the ad online and was anxious to send something out - so I didn't spend a lot of time searching through the blogazine's website - I just knew that the topics were things I write about all the time. BIG MISTAKE! (No, it was not a porno site disguised as a women's blogazine!) Upon reading through a few things from the editor, I found out that she hates ellipses - you know - these things...

I read this and just burst out laughing! My blog is so full of ellipses that she probably stroked out upon just reading my blog titles! Anyways, chock that up to a big, ol' learning experience. And while I could easily send her an email and beg ellipses forgiveness (because I can easily take them out of my writing as needed), I didn't. So there is your funny for the week. (If my ellipses bother you friends and family...well, I don't really care! Read or don't read! It's up to you! I'm not a commercial blogging machine. I write for me, family and friends. And you guys don't seem to complain.)

Let's get into the Fab 5 this week. Lots going on. I probably had at least 8 things that could've gone here in the weekly wrap-up, but I'm sticking to the 5! Tradition, you know!

1. Drinks and Dinner at Taps. Last Friday night we had drinks and dinner with Hub at the new Taps bar in 1MK. Fabulous variety of beer on tap and in bottles and some delicious ciders. The food was good, although kitchen service still needs to be worked out. I will give the kitchen staff props because instead of ignoring the fact that they were swamped and overwhelmed (which is what often happens here in Malaysia when a kitchen is swamped), they actually came out and admitted that this was the case. I think that if they can get the flow of food from the kitchen to the table worked out, they will be very successful.

 2. My First 9 Holes of Golf. I golfed 9 holes at Saujana with Susan and Brandie this week and it was AWESOME! Loved it! And while I will not be playing on the LPGA anytime soon, I was not a total disaster. We just found out yesterday that we've been approved for membership at KGPA so it looks like there will be more golf in my future! If anyone wants to come play at KGPA some time let me know. We probably won't have our paperwork completed until mid-October there, but then we should be good to go.

3. Bread Fruits. After a Wednesday morning that was just, well, crappy...I will say that the afternoon dramatically improved. I picked up Krystal and we had lunch at Bread Fruits in Sri Hartamas. Nothing like a yummy fruit smoothie, pasta and good conversation to make you feel better about things. So thank you Krystal and Bread Fruits for improving my mood!

4. Malaysia Day Fun. Tuesday was a holiday here - Malaysia Day - and the kids did not have school. So, after homework was done and Blaine finished making a big pancake breakfast it was off to the driving range at KLGCC. Cheap family fun for all. I ran into Louise and Mike (the golf pro giving our group lessons) as Louise was doing a make-up lesson. After chatting for a few minutes it was up to whack hundreds of balls. The kids could've stayed for hours, but margaritas were calling our name - so off to Fresca we went. The day ended with a boys' game of SkipBo and everyone was happy!

5. ShowTime on Apple TV. Embrace the little things, right? I don't know how I've missed this for the past few weeks, but yesterday I discovered that ShowTime had been added to AppleTV. So glad Blaine spent 3 1/2 hours on the phone with Ruth the other night clearing up our router/DNS issues because he leaves tonight and I see a full week of binge watching Homeland in front of me!

Okay peeps! Take a moment to laugh at the little things! Like ellipses...Enjoy the weekend! Send good travel vibes to Blaine! And, help me keep my single-mom sanity for the next 10 days!

Good or Evil...

 

 

I'm only a few sips in...and I do believe that evil is winning out. I woke up on the wrong side of the bed and my dismal mood has not improved with either a shower or coffee. Why so grouchy? Oh, where to begin?

 

Well, pure jealousy over my husband's trip to Minneapolis on Thursday. Yes, I know...it's for work. So what! Just the sight of his suitcases this morning made the green-eyed monster rear its ugly head.

 

And, that means it's me and the kiddos solo for the next 10 days - which will be a real test of my sanity. Single-parenting is not for me.

 

Oh, and then there were the two things I spawned this morning who could not stop fighting - both verbally and physically. Do these children think I'm blind? Caleb kicked the hell out of Grayson this morning and then tried to cry his way out of it....which really pissed me off. This resulting in me losing my cool and blowing a gasket.

 

And, let's add a few Facebook posts in the mix that were just too ridiculous to believe...and, well, here I am.

 

Okay...a few more sips of coffee into the system...Deep breaths...the day will get better....more coffee....more deep breaths...

WOD Talk Article...IN PRINT!

A few months ago my editor at WOD Talk said that one of my submissions had been chosen to be in the September/October edition of WOD Talk...not just online! Woohoo! Anyways...the issue has been released and here it is:

 

Anywho...happy to see the final result and reminisce about a fun day with some awesome women!

 



Fab 5 Friday...

Well, this week sure had its highs and lows, but we've made it to Friday and I've still got 5 fab things to share...so as I say so often to my children, "It's all good."

1. Friends and Cards Against Humanity. Last Friday night we had dinner out with friends that involved copious amounts of wine/prosecco, Mediterranean food and a game of Cards Against Humanity. If you are not familiar with this game...well, you can Google it. It is highly inappropriate, most definitely not PC and flippin' hilarious. I would not play this game with just anyone, but there was no worries with this group as they just threw all propriety out the window!

2. Beato. Saturday was date night for Blaine and I and we tried Beato at Publika for the first time. And I'm kicking myself for not going here sooner! It was delicious! And the service was good, too. Win-win! Blaine and I shared a yummy cheese tray to start and then devoured a steak that was cooked perfectly along with some sweet potato fries and onion rings. (Yes, we were still slightly heavy-headed from Friday night so fried food was a must!) We may need to schedule another date night as soon as he returns from the States just so we can share that steak again!

3. Howie Day. And our Saturday night concluded with seeing Howie Day in concert with some friends - Celine, Ashley, Gero, Jeremy and Krystal - at The Bee. What? You don't know who Howie Day is? Well, let this refresh your memory:

 

Celine's husband, Bruce, got us "on the list" at The Bee as the event was sponsored by Guinness. THANK YOU BRUCE! So we not only received some complimentary Guinness for the evening, but we got to go backstage and meet Howie. He put on a great show that evening and it was a fun night with friends.



 

 

 

4. Ping Coombes. Wednesday BIG sponsored a cooking demo with UK MasterChef 2014 winner, Ping Coombes. While Ping lives in the UK, she was born here in Malaysia. In fact, she won MasterChef UK by preparing what is really the national dish of Malaysia - nasi lemak. On Wednesday, she prepared a Malaysian inspired roast chicken with turmeric and lemongrass and coriander, cardamom rice, pickled shallots and green pea and mint raita. It was delicious - and while the main course was supposed to be the star, I have to say that the pickled shallots with their bright pink color were my favorite. Ping was delightful during the demo - answering questions and interacting with the small group who came to watch her cook. Malaysia should be very proud of Ping!

 

 

5. A Dishwasher. Yes, we scored big this week and purchased a dishwasher! RM500! Woot! We've been here a year without one and yes, we are very fortunate to have Elizabeth who does 99% of the dishes. But, I always feel horrible Monday mornings when she comes in to a kitchen that is overflowing with pots and pans and bowls because I've been cooking up a storm all weekend. So - problem solved!

 

 

That's all I've got this week. I have a few friends in the States that I am most definitely thinking about this week as I know it hasn't been the easiest of weeks for you. Wish we could be there to support you, but please know that we're thinking about you.

 

 





Reasons, Seasons and Lifetime...

Yesterday I received a message that my college roommate had passed away. She died of leukemia. This was not a message I was expecting.

When you receive a message like this, you can't help but reminisce about the "good, ol' days." She and I met our freshman year when we pledged the same sorority. Our senior year, 6 of us shared a house together. It was a wonderful 4 years of friendship.

But, when we graduated, we went our separate ways. I never heard from her after about 6 months. Really, I hardly heard about her in the years since graduation.

Until yesterday.

And then I could not help but think about an article regarding ex-pat friendships - which really applies to all friendships. It said that friendships are for reasons, seasons or a lifetime. Aren't all friendships?

Kendall, that was her name, started as a friend for a reason - the sorority. This friendship then turned into seasons...4 wonderful seasons, but it was wasn't meant to be a lifetime.

I think her death made me realize the importance of each of these three kinds of friendships. They are all treasured in different ways.

Kendall, you were a treasured friend. May you rest in peace.

Um...I'm Not Even Sure What To Say About This...

Last Saturday night Blaine asked me if I had been listening to Mix FM lately and if I had heard the advertisements for a new contest they were promoting. I told him no and asked what the contest was...knowing that they really do some crazy things on this station. He said that he surely must've misheard them on the radio, but he thought it was a beauty pageant called Miss Jumbo Queen...a plus-size, full-figured beauty pageant. I said, "WHAT!? Miss JUMBO Queen - surely you misheard them!" But, when we sat down to dinner, we looked it up - and there it was in black and white.

 



Now, after more than a few WTFs were muttered Saturday night, I let the contest go for the evening. But, I still couldn't let it rest entirely. I've been thinking about this...for a few days. Did I want to write the promoters a letter and state how derogatory and demeaning the whole thing is? I could do that, but, is one letter from a mat salleh really going to bring about change? Then, I had my light bulb moment! Maybe this is a chance for me to bring another contest here to Malaysia.

 

Registration is now open for the Prince Tiny Penis 2014 contest. Ladies, feel free to nominate those men who may be too shy to enter themselves! (I figure men with tiny penises are probably in charge of Miss Jumbo Queen 2014 - so I'll give them a little recognition, too!)

Fab 5 Friday...

The week totally got away from me. I meant to blog earlier in the week...and, well, it didn't happen. This is actually the first time this week that I've sat down with coffee and my computer and even thought about having an hour or so to get some thoughts written down. Happy for being busy (or at least relatively busy), but was definitely missing the "me time."

I was a delinquent parent Wednesday night and skipped elementary parents night at school. Yup, so bad. I know how much I hated that night when I was teaching...parents trying to get some one-on-one time with you to see how Billy was doing, others challenging you about your homework policy because they knew their slacker child was never going to meet the requirements (yes, I taught high school and parents did challenge me on my policy), and schmoozing with the great parents who actually seemed to understand how hard teaching was and wishing you had a room full of those parents for the school year. Anyways, I skipped Wednesday night and felt guilty for about 3 minutes and then I was over it. We've been here a year and I believe I have a pretty good grip on what's happening at school and with my child's education. And, while my kids are far from perfect, they know that school is something we take serious and that we expect them to do the same.

But, you're not here for my thoughts on education in today's world...you are here for Fab 5 Friday! And, it was a good week!

1. LEGOLAND and Universal Studios. So, last weekend was kids' weekend - LEGOLAND and Universal Studios. (This was a makeup trip for one we had planned last May, but needed to be postponed due to Blaine's injury.) The kids loved it! We stayed at the LEGOLAND hotel and hit the park on Saturday - and it was not busy at all. No long lines, the kids could ride their favorites multiple times, the hotel was clean and so was the park. We hit the water park in the afternoon and the kids had a blast. We even got Blaine in the wave pool without his brace - so LEGOLAND was a huge success.

Sunday morning we got up and headed to Singapore. It was our first time driving into Singapore, but we were fully prepared with all the necessary paperwork and got the little card you needed when we passed the initial entry point. We stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel on Sentosa - which was amazingly convenient. We hit the aquarium late Sunday morning and then spent Sunday afternoon lazing at the pool and hanging at the swim-up bar. Monday had us hitting Universal Studios - which was also very quiet. No need for express passes as the longest line was about 10 minutes. I even did the Transformers ride and The Mummy rollercoaster! Caleb was quite proud of me!

 

 

 

The drive home was not super fun due to holiday traffic heading back to KL. But, we were fully prepared for heavy traffic, idiot drivers and an extended amount of time in the car. The kids had a blast - so the ride home was worth it! Can't wait to head back in November!

 

2. Light Beer and Burgers. Yes, while we were in Singapore we hit the Hard Rock Café where we enjoyed Miller Light beer and big, ol' juicy burgers. Sometimes you just need a taste of home...and this certainly filled the craving!

3. Golf Lessons. Golf lessons started this week at KLGCC. I'm taking lessons with Louise, Lotte, Natalia, Celine and Brandie - and what a fun group they are! I don't know that my golf game will ever improve, but I'll definitely laugh a lot with this gang!

4. Ales and Lagers. Had a chance to meet Mabel at Ales and Lagers this week to catch up. While the place is small, he has a nice selection of beer and cider. I tried a cider while there - and it was so delicious that I had to have a second one! I'm anxious to try the new Taps Beer Bar in 1MK and see what they have to offer!

5. Soccer, baseball, basketball, and cross country. So both boys are currently doing soccer and baseball on Saturdays. Caleb last week had tryouts for the grade 4/5 basketball team - and he made it! And then, Grayson came home on Friday and said that he was going to run cross country. (This from the kid who really hates to run! Mrs. Lowe must be incredibly persuasive!) Anyways, we are sports heavy now and have put their golf lessons on the back burner until basketball and cross country are over for the season. I'm happy that the boys are each doing sports together and also participating in some stuff solo. This gives them a chance to see where their interests are and not just do what the other kid is doing.

Okay...that's a wrap for this week's Fab 5! We've got a busy weekend ahead with dinner and Cards Against Humanity with some friends this evening (Yes, bring on the inappropriateness!), kids' sports all day Saturday, Howie Day Saturday night, and two birthday parties on Sunday. Enjoy your weekend folks - I know we will!