Cute IKEA Candle Holders

Last weekend, we walked around Ikea to find neat things that we would like.

We found two cute candle holders that can multifunction and be used for other things.

IKEA candle holders cosmetics

For the pink one, we actually used the candle and then used it for cosmetic holder.
I remembered that the blue transparent holder was around 7 dollars and the pink one is around 4 dollars.
Cute and practical and decorative!
They clean out their inventories at the end of winter, so it was good timing.

H&M Kids' Rain Jacket

The other day, we bought a good quality rain jacket for our kid from H&M.

The price was 40 dollars but the quality is worth the money!
It has usually good coating outside and warm and comfortable inside.
(not too thick either, so good for all seasons.)

H&M Boy Kids Rain Jacket

I would not be surprised if other brands sell similar jackets for more...
Good quality for a boy rain jacket!

NanoBlock: House

The other day, I made a house using the nanoblocks that my wife's friend brought us.
The end product is very mini size and cute!!  I like it!

I will attempt to make other "giant" projects using over 450 pieces!
(the "site to see" series)

The design is small and similar to Lego but it is somewhat challenging to make.
The blocks are so small that it takes effort just to hold them using the finger tips.

I can't imagine people with big hands and big bodies using their fingers to make tiny things.
haha....will be extremely frustrating for them...

Cows Calendar (Canada) 2012 Review

In Canada, we have the Cows calendar available to us every year in the calendar stores.
It is produced by this canadian firm with a website available, selling different products:
T-shirts, bags, calendars, pens, mugs...etc.

The headquarters actually situates in Prince Edward Island (very rare in Canada) because it is a less populated place.
http://www.cows.ca/

Cows Calendar

We have been buying their calendars for 7 years because we love the cute cow art and their parodies.
(funny comments and imitations for pop cultures)
The comic expressions are indeed cute.

They will play puns on languages relating to cows and relate that to TV programs or celebrities.

Cows Calendar back

It is always fun to wait till next edition to see what they come up with.
 check the link below....they have funny shirts....
http://www.cows.ca/kids/youth_tshirts

I would recommend this calendar if you have the chance to use it!

Tim Horton's New Doughnut: Mint Chocolate

When I went to Tim Horton's last week, I saw a new doughnut...Mint Chocolate Doughnut.
It looks great and tastes good! The mint taste is not too strong so it was perfect.

Tim Horton's Mint Chocolate

NanoBlock: New Block Toy for Both Adult and Kids

Couple of years ago, a new toy was getting very popular in Japan for both adults and kids audiences.
The name is nanoblock.  It is made by a Japanese company called "Kawada".
It produced small blocks of World Heritage Sites, cute animals, or even simple day to day objects and structures.
It finally came to North America and the fever is catching on!

nanoblock world heritage series

http://www.mynanoblock.com/site/
I love visiting world heritage buildings and sites and I love collecting their souvenirs.
Within hundreds of products that nanoblock has, I picked 3 from the world heritage series.

For people who live around Vancouver, Canada, the best way to purchase is to check their local London Drugs.  Or, drive down to Cascade Mall in Burlington, Washington to get the world heritage "Sites to See" series.  I am sure all toy stores will start selling these soon!

The small blocks are hard to build for its size, but afterwards, it makes good decoration for the cabinets!

McDonald's Canada: New Oreo Pie

Time to review McDonald's Canada's new Oreo pie!
Oreo is known for its chocolate cookies, and this time, McDonald has come out with a new variation of pie using Oreo.  Please note that the box in the picture says "Apple Pie", but the inside actually is Oreo Pie.

McDonald's New Oreo Pie

  The crust is made of Oreo cookie and inside is filled with the cookie cream they are famous for.
It tastes good but something is missing from the cookies in this pie...
It still tastes a little different.
I miss the Chocolate Banana pie that was on sale last year because I think it was the most delicious pie that McDonald's has come up with.  Too bad it was not a permanent menu item.

Since the picture, I have tried the Oreo Pie several times and while it is good, it is still too sweet for my tooth.
I think it is just because I don't eat a lot of sweets anymore.
I will give this pie a 60% approval because it is good but not exceptional...

Happy New Year!! 2012!!

It has been another year already!! I can't believe it!  It is 2012?

My kids are getting bigger and bigger and time flies by faster and faster.
I felt like every year goes by like a week.  (Yes, aging comes with it, too....haha)

I hope this year is another safe and wonderful year!

Japanese Pet Shop: Cute Photo

I went to a Japanese pet shop in kyushu and I saw this cute scene and took a picture of these two dogs.
One was sleeping on top of another.  I wonder if the dog below felt uncomfortable.

two cute dogs sleeping in japanese pet shop

They looked like they are having a good time sleeping.

Japan Trip 2011: Kumamoto City

For the last 12 years, I have visited Kumamoto in Japan a number of times, but I never get tired of it. 
Especially the castle, it is beautiful from all angles.  The castle ground gets more and more complete everyday.

Even though Himeji is beautiful from inside, I believe the castle ground and surrounding buildings of Kumamoto castle is the best in Japan.  The newly built "Honmaru" goten imitates the structure and craftsmanship of the original.  I believe it is rare in Japan to have castle ground this complete with "honmaru goten". 

Kumamoto castle

Kumamoto castle honmaru goten

Golden Room in Kumamoto Castle Honmaru Goten

Old Kumamoto Castle town

Burger King: Angry Poutine

We went to Burger King last weekend to try their Angry Poutine.
It is very hot but not as tasty for me for some reason.
The poutine sauce is added with jalapeno with a faint barbecue taste.

I usually like spicy food from all culture and fast food chain.  Somehow, this one does not turn out as well.

Korean Food: Seafood Pancake, Bibimbap, Barbecue, Kimchi Fried Rice

We tried all kinds of Korean food in various restaurant.
In Insadong, a Korean craft district, we tried seafood pancake, bibimbap and Korean steamed egg.
In Korea, food always comes with free kimchi and other vegetable dishes and I love that.

korea seafood pancake and steamed egg in Insadong

Korean bibimbap

We also ate in the local barbecue restaurant with my wife's friend's family.
The plate they use is very interesting, slightly slanted.

Korean fried Kimchi rice on teppan

After they barbecue, they have the option of frying kimchi rice themselves.  Very interesting and very tasty I must say.I also tried a bowl of Korean cold noodles.  (not sure what they are called, Japanese would call it "reiman".)

Korean cold noodle

The noodle is also very tasty but hard to chew.  (maybe it is supposed to be like this.)
However, I liked it as well because it is very different from any other country's noodles.

Sauteed barbecued beef

I really enjoyed the real local korean food and I wish that I can come back again to try them.

Korea: Lotteria's Shrimp Bulgogi Burger and KFC's Big Mouth Burger

In Korea, we tried all kinds of local food.  Even Western fast food with local flavors.
We went to Lotteria and KFC to try their new burgers: Shrimp Bulgogi Burger and Big Mouth.

Korea Lotteria Shrimp Bulgogi burger

The shrimp bulgogi burger is quite long but one can get very satisfy with this. This has two tastes: shrimp and bulgogi. It is exactly half and half. 

KFC's big mouth is also quite tasty with cheese and lots of mushroom and barbecue sauce.
Korea is a country very focused on skin care, so when we bought the combo, it came with two face mask packs.  I find it quite funny because fast food and skin care are totally different kinds of products.

Korea: Changdeok Palace

Changdeok palace

As seen above, this is another spectacular heritage place to see.  The exterior and the surrounding complex of buildings are amazing to see. (Also, the gift shop here has neat things to sell.)

The palace ground was large to navigate and with kids, we did not dare to stay too long.
There is a famous secret garden that we did not get to see but we were happy enough to enjoy the palace itself.

Changdeok Palace korea

This day was very sunny but very chilly...

Korea: Kimchi Onigiri

One more neat thing about Korean food I like is the Kimchi Onigiri (rice wrapped in nori).

You can only buy them in Korea, and they sell them in supermarkets or convenience stores.
They were very tasty with various taste and styles to my surprise.  They can come with seafood, tuna, barbecue sauces, etc.  We loved it and we ate lots.

Korean Kimchi Onigiri

Yummy.....I miss it so much.

Trip to Korea: Yucky Soba

On the airplane ride to Korea, we had lunch on the airplane even though it was a short ride.
It was soba.  I was so happy because I love soba and I have ate soba for year and they never go wrong.
It turned out to be the most disgusting `soba` I have ever tried...

Yucky soba....not ``Yakisoba`` haha.

The rice along with it was super disgusting, too.  It is sour but not like sushi rice.  (Perhaps Korean style that I don't know?) I thought this is a Japanese soba bento but I have not tried anything like it.

The kids menus were better and I ended up sharing my son's sandwich and yogurt.

Korea: Seoul: Jongmyo Royal Shrine

On a sunny cold day during our Korea Trip, we visited the Jongmyo Royal Shrine.  It was five minutes walk from our hotel but it was almost 0 degree because the water in the pots was frozen.

We actually all did not wear a jacket because we thought it was going to be sunny and 20 degrees like previous days.  We were so wrong.  We got a guided English tour for only 2 dollars US or 2000 won.  However, we were sooooo cold during the hour of tour.  We wished we had the jackets so we can enjoy the tour more.  The tour guide was nice enough to lend us her guide uniform jacket to cover the baby.

On a sunny day, the place was beautiful!

Jongmyo Korea

This place is where the kings rest in peace in Korea.

At the end, the guide said she was nervous but we ensured that she did a good job and took a picture with her.

Korea: Seoul 2011 Lantern Festival with Pororo

The first day of our Seoul trip, we happened to stumble upon a lantern festival right beside our hotel.

It has various characters including Pororo, a famous Korean Penguin cartoon character.
They also had Superman, Batman and Anime robots.

Pororo lantern in seoul korea

They also have other Asian cultural themed lanterns such as rabbits making rice cakes on the moon.
It is an ancient tale for the mid-autumn festival that these rabbits were on the moon making rice cake.

rabbit making rice cake lantern festival

They also have lanterns displayed in other countries' themes or world heritage buildings:
Statue of Liberty in USA, Tower of Pisa of Italy, themes from Philippines, China and Japan, etc.

Statue of Liberty lantern in Seoul Korea

Tower of Pisa lantern in Seoul Korea

Nebuta Matsuri Lanterns in Seoul Korea

and some goldfish:

goldfish latern in seoul korea festival

We all had a lot of fun looking at these and we are glad that this is right in front of our hotel!!

Korea: Seoul: Gyeonbok Palace

On the Second Day of our trip to Korea, we visited the Gyeonbok Palace.

We took the subway there and it took only 3 minutes for us to walk to the palace.
The palace looks beautiful.  (The picture was taken on a cloudy day, so the colors might not show as well as intended.)

Gate of Gyeongbok Palace

At this sight, they have the "changing of the guards" performance...the Korean version for visitors to see.
It was interesting to see the old military costumes and hear old military music.

Gate to the main palace in Gyeonbok Palace

The ground of the compound is very spacious. After going through a couple of gates, we can go up to the main palace room where the emperor sat but could not go in because it was barricaded. 
The who palace compound look well preserved and the style is a little different from Japan or China's.

(People with non-oriental backgrounds might think they look all the same but the buildings from different parts of Asia have differences.)

From the palace, we went to the department store and Lotte Mart near Seoul Station.

Giant Pocky Stick Box in Korea

If you are familiar with Oriental snacks, then you know "Pocky", a Japanese chocolate stick snack that has a thousand flavors nowdays.

I found this giant box of pocky that I have never seen before.  The biggest I have seen before was 40 cm boxes but not this big.  The biggest one in the picture, the length is 70 cm.  The medium box on top of the big one is around 50 cm long.  I am wondering if the sticks inside are actually that long.  I wish I had the budget to try it.

Giant Pocky Lotte in Korea

Just Got back from Japan and Korea...Jet Lagged

We went on a trip to Japan and Korea and just got back.  It is so difficult to adjust to the jet lag, especially with the kids.  I will feel sleepy at noon and nap if I can or can't sleep at night. 
Last two days, I was sleepy but my kids woke up at 1 am and 3 am.
They are sleeping well so far tonight but it is my turn that I can't sleep at all.

Japanese Mantis

Our relatives sent a picture of a Japanese mantis.

Japanese Mantis

Japanese mantis 2

I thought this is an interesting picture to share.

La Roche Posay Full Size Toner Sample

Last week, I got a free full size sample of a La Roche Posay full size sample. 
It was a facebook trial offering last month but I was surprised that they sent it within couple of weeks.

La Roche Posay Full Size Sample

I was truly surprised that they would send out a full size sample.  I guess it is good promotion of their products.  Before, some other makers would offer similar samples but I did not receive them after registration.

Nuk Baby Milk Bottle: Winnie the Pooh Edition

I found a cute baby milk bottle for my kid.
It is a Winnie the Pooh edition for Nuk.
It was very cute and I could not resist but buy this bottle!

Winnie the Pooh Nuk bottle

Fred Meyer's Bakery Section

Fred Meyer's Bakery section is so much prettier than most Canadian supermarkets.
The desserts are not as sweet as the Canadian ones with better creativity and presentation.
See picture of counter:

Fred Meyer bakerty section

I bought some chocolate marshmallows, chocolate sandwich cookies and fruit tart.
They are absolutely delicious and not overly sweet to my surprise.
I would definitely try other sweets in the counter next time!

Chocolate sandwich cookie, Marshmallow, Fruit Tarts

Burger King in US: Using Internet Coupon for Family Meal

Early October, we went to Burger King in the States and used their 10 dollars family deal internet coupon.
The amount of things we received is amazing. 
We will never get anything like this in Canada because everything is double priced.

Burger King Family Meal Coupon

We received 2 large drinks, 3 large fries, 2 burgers, 2 strawberry cheesecake (tastes great!), and 10 chicken nuggets!!!
Amazing!  I can easily pay 30 dollars plus for these kind of volume in Canada.
American pricing and volume for fast food is just incredible.

20000 Hits for My Blog

I know I haven't update my blog much these days because all my photos are in my cellphone.

However, I have reached the milestone of 20000 hits for my page. 


Gotta keep going!

London Drugs Canada: October Cosmetics Deals for RoC

Recently, I have been trying to find coupon deals for various things and I found a great deal for RoC cosmetics in London Drugs that I just can't pass on.

First of all, the RoC brand was on sale for 30 percent off.  That is a deal in itself because it is an expensive brand.  Same as Vichy or La Roche Posay.

I bought a "Wrinkle Correxion Gift Set" that retails for 49 dollars but is on sale for 34 dollars.  It is the same price as buying the Wrinkle Correxion Creme alone but also comes with a 36 (regular price) Anti-wrinkle eye creme.

I also bought a very small tube of Anti-age Eye Cream for 16.80 (regular 24.00).  Therefore, I spent over 50 dollars.

Now, it is time to use my 3 store in store coupons for that week's promotion.

First, if I spent over 35 dollars, I get a tube of Anti-age Correxion cream that retails for 32 dollars.

Then, if I spent over 40 dollars, I get another tube of Multi-Correxion Cream that retails for 42 dollars.

Last, if I spent over 40 dollars, I would get 10 dollars off.

Now, with 12 percent sales tax in BC, Canada, I paid $47.23 and got 5 RoC items that retails for $183 dollars.  That is a 74% saving over the regular price!!

Not only that is my total percentage shopping for a trip so far, it is my total savings record as well.

That is roughly 136 dollars of saving from the non-sale prices.

I hope they have this sale again....

Trader Joe's Tuna in Green Curry Sauce

We found this Tuna in Green Curry Sauce at Trader Joe's last month and decided to try it.
Amazingly, it taste pretty good to me.  I am always amazed at the new products they come up with every month. 
This one actually taste like green curry from Thailand.

box of trader joe's green curry tuna

Actually, it is from Thailand if you look at the box.
Here is a picture of the tuna and sauce (sauce not too clear from the picture....supposed to be light green.

Trader Joe's green curry tuna

Very yummy.....

McDonald's Canada: New Blueberry Pie

The other day, we tried the new blueberry pie introduced by McDonald's.
It was definitely tastier than the usual apple pie.  I think McDonald's should seriously be thinking of keeping the banana chocolate pie and other pies on the regular menu to give customers varieties to choose from.

McDonald's Blueberry Pie

Here is a look from inside the bluberry pie.  It has a sweet but nice taste of blueberry. hmm...
I like it.  I wish the Canadian fast food chains can come up with more varieties and new ideas.