Sights In Sydney

Before heading home, MH and I spent a couple days in Sydney trying to get our fill of the land down under. 

Art Gallery of NSW

Chinese Garden of Friendship

Opera House

Museum of Contemporary Art

Manly Beach

A Weekend With Kiwi's

After I completed my work in Melbourne, MH and I spent a few days in Auckland, New Zealand. 

Thanks to our gracious hosts, S&T, we had the inside scoop on the coolest local spots and activities around town. 

Ocean View of the City

Cows on Motutapu Island                              New Zealand Lambs

Meat Pie

Fish and Chips

City View from Mount Eden

G'Day Mate From Melbourne

I had hoped to see the world famous Phillip Island fairy penguin parade, but making the trek to Phillip Island and back after a full day of work wasn't a realistic itinerary. 

Instead, we took the opportunity to catch up with some old friends (shout out to Mr. & Mrs. G!), visited some great local spots, and enjoyed several fantastic meals. 

City from St. Kilda Beach                                 Custom Rock Candy

Graffiti Alley

Flinders Station

A Day Trip To Malaka

Over the weekend, MH and I took the bus to Malaka, Malaysia. We weren't sure what to expect and arrived ready to try the local cuisine. 

Malaysians like their food S-P-I-C-Y and I could not hang. MH had the chicken dish pictured on the top and I had the noodle dish pictured on the bottom. All of the little flecks of red are chili and I was unsuccessful picking enough of them off to make the noodles palatable for my weeny taste buds. Instead I gulped down a refreshing watermelon juice.

All of the sights are clustered together in the center of town and it didn't take MH and me too long to get to each of them by foot.

In the event you weren't interested in walking, an assortment of gentleman peddling decked out bicycles were cruising the town for your convenience. Each bicycle had it's own decorative theme and some even had stereos blasting music.

Before heading home, MH sat at the restaurant behind the water mill and enjoyed some refreshing beverages. Visiting Malaka was nice to check off our list, but I don't think we would feel the need to visit again anytime soon. 

Sights In Singapore

Singapore is an absolutely beautiful country but the heat and humidity is not one of my favorite attributes. 

The week went by like a flash. When I wasn't working, I tried to fit in as much sightseeing as possible.

National Orchid Garden

Merloin & The Marina Bay Sands Hotel

Singapore Flyer

Sultan Mosque

Singapore Art Museum

Adventures In Downtown Los Angeles

My MIL & FIL were in town over the weekend, so we had a little adventure in Downtown Los Angeles. We met for lunch at the Grand Central Market and it worked out perfectly since we each wanted to eat something different. 

After lunch, we walked over to the Bradbury building to take a look around and appreciate some historic Los Angeles architecture. Since we didn't take a tour, checking out the building didn't take too long and then we walked around the corner for my first ride up the Angel's Flight Railway.

Treats From The Heart

To celebrate Cupid's day, I made a few special treats: chocolate and vanilla oreos and custom labeled vanilla sugar cookies. To finish off my boxes of love, I packed the cookies with an assortment of light and dark pink heart cut outs. 

I hope your Valentine's day was filled with love too!

Go Bananas For First Birthdays!

Happy first birthday Timothy! Your monkeys and bananas party theme was too cute. I loved all of the decorations down to the banana balloon weights.

MH and I look forward to watching you grow and celebrating all of your milestones for years to come.

The Artist

My SIL had an installation on display and MH and I were honored to see it at the opening reception. 

The installation titled "A Collection of Memories" featured her collection of souvenir pennies from her travels throughout America. She plans on completing her goal of visiting all 50 states before the end of this year. 

New Year's Day

MH and I spent the first morning of 2013 at the Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden. Since it was a beautiful and sunny day, we strolled through the arboretum and gardens at a leisurely pace and snapped pictures of this and that along the way.  

The arboretum is maintained very well and the grounds offer a variety of beautiful sights. It you are looking for something to do outside on a beautiful day I would definitely recommend checking it out for yourself.