7 tips to enjoying life

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It has been a busy few weeks for me, with a website revamp, a pop-up event (more on that on Azorias’ FB/ Instagram), a part-time consulting stint, and an upcoming project—that at times I can’t help feeling like I am being spread too thin.

The truth is, I think most, if not all of us, are busy at some point. There are so many things to indulge our appetites in, especially with all the new technologies, giving us access to way more things than we had access to in the past. Another reason is this—we live in insecure times. So we feel this internal pressure to do do do do do all the time! In fact, some of us may even be addicted to ‘busy-ness’. Do you feel this way sometimes? Like if someone asks you how have you been, your chest puffs out as you tell your friend just how ‘busy’ you are. I am guilty of this too.

Nonetheless, I'm not going to pretend I like the 24/7 hustle. There's a time and place for that and it's not in my heart or mind at every waking moment. I don't want to glorify busy or have my hands in so many pots I look like I'm a big deal; or worse, start to think I am. The thing is, when we go go go all day, every day, week after week we leave no room for rest, family, recovery, or play. And I don't know about you but these four things are some of my favorites!

Whenever I feel myself all anxious from all my commitments, I will take a deep breath and slow down for a moment. I may be busy, but I will still find the time and effort to savor every moment! Here are some tips that work really well for myself to ‘enjoy life’ even at my busiest times:

1. Prioritize

Staring at a loooong list of to-dos is incredibly demotivating, so focus on what is critical, and do not get sidetracked. We can tackle 3, or even 10 things in a day, but not 33 or 50! So focus your energies onto the important agendas.

2. Enjoy the little things



Have you noticed the little things in your life recently? Whether it is licking a delicious ice cream or curling up at home on a rainy day, there are so many delightful moments in a day— if only we pay attention to them.

3. Make time for what (and who) you love



If all we ever did was work on and attend to our obligations it could become difficult to find any sense of enjoyment in our day-to-day experience! If we never make the time to do things we are excited about, we could easily start resenting our lives. That’s why it is important to make time every day for the things we really enjoy, and this includes spending time with my loved ones. :)

4. "Living in the moment"



Something I always remind myself on a daily basis is—“Be present”. Be present when I am meeting a friend, be present when I am admiring a scenic view in Paris, be present even when I am walking my dog. It is only when we fully immerse ourselves in an experience, that we can enjoy it completely!

This also applies to mundane tasks. We cannot run away from our responsibilities and daily duties/ chores. But admittedly, following such routines will cause us to feel tired and not enjoying ourselves. Well, the truth is that life has to be lived and felt in all these moments that we live! Whether we are cooking for our family or cleaning the house or working at the offices, we are actually making change for the better. Well, at least that is how I motivate myself, haha. So I try to enjoy even these mundane tasks because I remind myself that it is all for a better living/ future.

5. Learn to just let go

Learn not to stress over the things that are out of your control. Learn to let loose. If your mind is busy obsessing over all the things that didn’t get done today, then you are not relaxed.

6. Do a gratitude review

This really works for me. If you take a minute everyday to review your blessings, you will start to notice more and more things to be grateful for. This is such a simple yet powerful way to feel grateful, and ultimate feel the enjoyment in your life!

7. Reward yourself



I am a hedonist by nature, so I never feel shy to treat myself, haha. It could be a hair treatment at my favorite salon, a new pair of shoes, or a smooth and creamy Magnum ice cream covered in a thick layer of cracking Belgian white chocolate with almond pieces— small pleasures like these instantly bring such joy to my day!




Ultimately, a day without pleasure is a day wasted. While we should put in our 101% in things we do, balance is extremely important and striking them should also be our priority. So try to make time to enjoy little pleasures every little part of your day, and end it with a Magnum White Almond. :)

My bridal shower.

So, the hubby and I just celebrated our first wedding anniversary this month.... and I still haven't blogged about our proposal, wedding preparations, wedding etc. -_- #badblogger

But today I am going to switch things around and talk about something wedding-related too! My bridal shower. :D It all started from this #hensdothrowback hashtag on Dayre (follow me at @revelinme!), and I started going through my photos and started feeling all giggly and nostalgic haha.

To be honest, my ideal hen's do is a girls' trip ala an island getaway! A few days of girlie time, cocktails and drinks, frolicking in sun and sand... I can't imagine anything better before being a Mrs! However, this little fantasy of mine is not really a possibility because most of my girlfriends are based overseas/ outstation. As it is, I already feel very grateful and indebted for them to come back all the way for my wedding-- I just can't possibly ask for them to come back for even longer/ for a separate trip just to accompany me on a holiday!!

So Jing and Teeny asked me what I want for my hen's night/ gathering, and I specifically stated that I don't want a wild night out LOL. My wedding ceremony was on a Sunday morning, so the only way I could have all my girlfriends present at the hen's gathering was the day before-- hence wild drinks the night before the wedding is definitely out of the question. Also, it's not really me la! I still want to remember what happened at my hen's night, haha. So I told them my priority is really to catch up with all my girlfriends, especially when I haven't seen some of them in ages!

So the only thing I know about my bridal shower is that it will be in the afternoon on the day before the wedding ceremony! And that Jing and Teeny were in charge. :P

At the 11th hour, my sisters asked me to wear a yellow dress for the outing. I was quite preoccupied with all the wedding loose ends then, and really had no time to look for a yellow outfit. Since I don't know the bridal shower theme, my plan was to just show up in a white dress 'cause you can't go wrong as a bride wtf. This caused me to get quite worried about the theme also-- 'cause why need to wear yellow haha. Don't tell me it's Minion theme wtf.

Anyway, on Saturday morning (the day before the wedding!), we had a mini rehearsal-- which is more to familiarize my flower girls and page boys with the venue, as well as to test the timing for the march in.


Feeling all surreal and happy at our ceremony site. It has always been my dream to get married under a canopy of trees!

I expected it to finish quite quickly, 'cause how long can a march-in take right? So that will leave me with plenty of time to go home and get ready for my bridal shower. *cue bouncy steps and wide smile*

BOY WAS I WRONG. When you add 5 kids together (three girls who are about 3 years old, and 2 hyperactive boys)-- you get havoc. But no regrets whatsoever in doing a rehearsal, because *jeng jeng jeng* during the rehearsal, I found out that KS, one of my page boys, is TERRIFIED of dogs!!

And Rocky was walking down the aisle with us. -_-


He was so afraid that he can't even be on the same ground as Rocky!!! He keeps on leaping onto people's laps despite our coaxing that Rocky is very tame and friendly.


My flower girls trying to convince KS that there is nothing to be scared of, haha.

Of course now I find it really funny hahaha. But at that point of time, I was literally sweating buckets!! My back-up plan was to axe KS, and just have one page boy only, haha.

So this whole thing ended up delaying me tremendously, and I was super duper late to my own bridal shower. T____T

But when I arrived, I WAS BLOWN AWAY.


Can you see that I am a little teary-eyed here, haha.


They threw me what Teeny coined as a "Glam Palm Spring" themed bridal shower!

Dashes of hot pink (my favorite color); my favorite tropical elements like flamingoes, pineapples, palm trees; sequins; giant balloons; wild-colored flowers... I cannot think of a more perfect theme to suit me!!! Heck, I wouldn't even have been able to think up of this perfect theme myself!!!


A bouquet of flowers for ME! And a gold pineapple (that Teeny painstakingly spray-painted).


Still in shock. Everything was just BEAUTIFUL. And HAPPY!!

I LOVE HAPPY!!


This quirky flamingo bride and groom cake is LOVE. Can you spot the top hat detail and the little bridal bonnet? Haha. I love it so so much! The hubby would have never allowed us to have a flamingo wedding cake, but now I have MY OWN!! Muahaha.


Colorful sundae and palm tree toppers. And PINEAPPLE STRAWS.


Bloom baby bloom!


And the best part of the day-- being surrounded by my favorite girls!

And all of them came in tropical-inspired outfits too! Just major love for every one of them. :D


And I found out why Jing and Teeny wanted me to wear yellow. -_-

They made me a pineapple crown, so if I wear yellow with the green pineapple crown (they did specify their preference for a LONG yellow dress)-- I will look 100% like a pineapple. -___________-


Weary about what other costumes they have up their sleeves, hahaha.

Alas, I was very sporting to wear the pineapple crown throughout k! Although I did look more like Sun Wukong HAHAHA.


Still can't get over these adorable straws. :D


With one-half of my loves!


Can you see that the balloons are actually flamingos? HAHAHA. Teeny is too creative!!


Another view of the table setting. This ombre sequin table runner is EVERYTHING.


Rubber duckies casually hanging out amidst shiny sequins!


The mastermind behind all this ADORABLE goodness. She even got the tassels on the balloons-- something that I have admired on Pinterest and off-handedly mentioned to her before.

If you want to hire her for party-planning, please contact me wtf. I will charge her a minimal agent fee HAHA.


Tropical outfits yo! Audrey in palm tree prints and Jing in flamingo prints. *hearts in eyes*


FLAT HAIR FLAT REUNION!! A faceless Jaclyn, me, Smalls, and Kit Mey! My old readers will definitely remember us. *teary-eyed*


Selfie with Suet!


One of my high school best friend, R, who is back from Langkawi (where she is posted as a doctor) just for my big day!


Jing and Ally! This Ally damn funny, the moment she saw me, she told me, "Hui Wen! I am wearing YELLOW and PRINTS for you!" while pointing at her shorts, haha. Very tropical, dahling. :D

My bridal shower outfit:


White lace/ organza 3D peplum dress: Korea
Pearl necklace: Korea
Patent pumps: Wittner, Australia

Luckily I insisted on wearing this white dress! 'Cause I didn't know what other occasion I could wear it to, haha. Imagine if I have worn a yellow dress!! Then I would have fallen into my sisters' trap wtf.


Pineapple got eaten wtf.


Top (L-R): Jaclyn, Smalls, Ally, Ran, Suet, Aud, Ean (my sister in law!)
Bottom (L-R): Kit Mey, Jing, me, Teeny

Once again, thank you all my bestest girls!!! It means the world to have you all with me throughout my journey in life. :)

One more bridal shower for my wedding reception next year k? HAHAHA.

Rockefeller Center, one month apart.

I saw this photo of Rockefeller Center on my Instagram feed recently, and did a double take:



Why, you may ask?

'Cause it looks SO SO different from the Rockefeller Center that I saw in New York! :O :O :O


SEE?? Same location, same angle, same view... SO DIFFERENT. And it was only a month plus ago??



Another view. Right opposite is 5th Avenue, and you can just FEEL the energy of New Yorkers bouncing off! :D

The place was covered with colorful blooms and cherry blossoms, and the ponds (previously they were ponds!!) were filled with neon pink rubber duckies.


You heard me right. NEON PINK rubber duckies. I love how pretty and random everything looks!


I repeat, now it looks like this. #mindblown

Couldn't resist to take some nice OOTD photos with all the cherry blossom background:





Ruffled eyelet slip dress: AZORIAS (Also available in Pink)
Bracelets: H&M
Black pumps: Forever 21

 I love this dress, which is inspired by Self Portrait! Looking back at these photos, I regret not wearing the pink version, it will look so nice with this awesome pink background-- rubber duckies and all! :P

A little more about my day, other than our Rockefeller excursion, haha.


Spent the earlier part of the day by myself, 'cause the boy had to work. Felt like a local New Yorker 'cause I carried a coffee in my hand while navigating around Manhattan LOL.

I honestly thought I was so smart, 'cause it was really cold and I honestly believed that holding a hot cup of liquid in my hands would keep me warm. Why else would everyone be carrying a cup too right?

WRONG. 'Cause hot liquids will turn cold too wtf. And it was so cold that my coffee literally turned cold in 3 minutes. -_- USD4 down the drain FML.


Queuing in Momofuku Milk Bar.


For THIS.

THIS is what I came to New York for! *hearts in eyes*

When planning a NYC trip with my sisters in the past, one of the top to-do in my NYC bucket list is to eat this famous cereal-topped soft serve from Momofuku Milk Bar. I came to know about it from Instagram, and many of the New Yorkers that I admire all rave about this. Also, if you know me well, you will know that I am a sucker for anything milky. So I was so dead set on trying this at least once in my life!

And I did.

I seriously felt like a hundred of emotions running through my veins while licking sloppily on this milky heaven. Deliriously happy and touched was the main emotions! :D



Also ticked another must-try food off my list. Because when in NY, you have to have street food! And the Halal Street Guys come highly recommended.


It doesn't look that appetizing, I know. But it's really good value for money (USD7 for the biggest pot of rice ever wtf), and very yummy too!

Tip: Ask for extra white sauce. And add the red sauce with caution 'cause it's really spicy!



Finally finished off our day out with take-away cupcakes from Sprinkles, which is supposed to have the best red velvet cupcake.

Wait till you see Sprinkle's cupcake ATM!! :O

Wait till you see my eat red velvet ice cream with toasted red velvet cake toppings! :O

Ended the night with cupcakes in bed and the most aching legs, but with a heart that was bursting with happiness and gratitude. :D

#Shitmyhusbandsays.

I have a great relationship with the boy, and I can safely say that we adore each other. Even after 12 years HEHE. But sometime the things he say ar, haha...

I think I actually need to start a series on the blog called Shit My Husband Says. :P

For example, the hubby showed me this one day, and asked me to build my dream man according to the $5 rule:



I pored over each trait, and I really couldn't decide! All the qualities are very important leh.. T__T Sense of humor is incredibly important to me, I just can't deal with boring people. But money is also crucial to lead a happy life LOL. Have to be smart right, I have no patience for stupid people, and our children how!!

I wailed to him, "I NEED MORE MONEY!!" T_T But he insisted that I must make my selection, grr.

In the end, I picked:  Funny, Smart, and Faithful. Just nice, $5.

He looked through the list again and nodded, "Wow, you got such a good deal! You paid $5, and you got back $19 in value in me!"

-_________________________-

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It's been 2 years since my mother-in-law has left us, and over the weekend, there was a huge ceremony and prayers to signify the end of the mourning period. With that, the boy can start wearing bright colors.

Him: "I am not used to wearing red."

Me: *sympathetic* "Aww, baby, it's ok, these things take time..."

Him: *completely ignores and continues* "Red makes me look fat! Black is a much more slimming color..."

********************************************************************

While browsing for study lamps in Ikea, the boy asked me what genes would I like us to pass to our children in the future.

"Hmm, I want our kids to have my book-smart genes, and your street-smart genes!"

He nodded in agreement.

"And I want them to have your height! But have my looks, HAHA."

He gave me a -_-|| face but nodded again wtf.

"Mmmm, I want them to have my health genes! Okay, fine, my grandparents' health genes 'cause they are still so fit and health and they are going to live foreverrrrr!!"

"And OH OH! I want them to have my HAPPY gene!"

"Harh? Can just take a fraction of the happy gene ar?"

"Nooooo, cannot! Good what, my happy gene! Can be happy ALL the time!"

"Oh great. Next time everytime I go home, I go back to freaking Disney**."
 **'Cause I am always singing and dancing at home wan!

HAHAHAHAHHAHA.