Valentine's Day



For this year's Valentine's Day, I thought it would be fun to create a lottery bouquet for Daniel! I actually got this idea from my friend, Rosa, who created something similar for her boyfriend a year or two ago!



My work was actually closed all-day on Tuesday, because of a snow storm that was making its way to Toronto. This extreme weather ended up being a blessing in disguise, because it gave me lots of time to create Daniel's surprise gift!



First, I googled images and looked on Pinterest for inspirations, then I sketched out what I envisioned it would look like.



Next, I made a list of items I needed to pick up to make sure I didn't forget anything. I brushed my teeth and ran out the door, before the storm started to pick up. I trekked to the nearest plaza and picked up all of the art supplies and prizes. After lunch, I rolled up my sleeves and started crafting!



With the help of skewers and clear tape, I created this!



I definitely felt like I won the lottery when I met him! Daniel is on his way over right now, and I can't wait to see his reaction after our taco dinner! By the way, I wrote a clause in his card to make sure he gives me 90% of his winnings. ;)


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My Birthday



Thank you so much for the sweet birthday wishes guys!!! Just like last year, I kept my birthday low key and spent it with Daniel. We checked out this new upscale sushi restaurant at Yorkdale, called TORA!



When Daniel and I found out that they're the sister restaurant of Miku, we got even more excited! We tried Miku two years ago (Whoa, time flies!) and Daniel said that their sushi is similar to what he had in Japan!


It was actually my first time trying a conveyor belt sushi restaurant! I got so giddy every time our plates came. You can only order four plates at a time, and each plate generally had two pieces of sushi.


It was a fun dining experience and all the dishes that the chef recommended tasted good! There were a few memorable plates, like their aburi salmon and BBQ eel nigiri!


I just wanted to end this post by appreciating my man for trying to make my birthday special every year! I'm also wondering how he managed to capture me blinking in so many shots. The only photos where I had my eyes fully open were the close-up ones!@#$!@#


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Grade 8 Reunion

YOU GUYS!!!! If you told me that I would reunite with my grade eight friends 10 years later, I wouldn't have believed you! These girls are the reason why I started this blog in the first place!



My parents bought me my first digital camera in grade eight and I would bring it to school to take pictures during recess. Since my friends didn't have Facebook at the time, I decided to start this blog to share photos with them! I didn't intend to keep this blog running for so long, but I found that having a place to store all of my favourite memories really brought me joy!

When I saw the 10 year challenge floating around on Instagram, I decided to go back to the start of my blog and came across so many hilarious photos of us. I shared it with them and we realized that it was time for a reunion! It makes me SO happy to hear that they're both doing so well! We are planning to do a meet up every year now. :)

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Let the Good Times Roll



Last Friday, Alpha, Rosa, Tina and I went roller skating at Scooter's! Whoa, I just realized that the last time the four of us hung out was early last year too! What a coincidence! Speaking of coincidence, we did not intentionally plan our outfits. Wait a minute, we also wore the same colour palette a year ago too! LOL



Even though it was Alpha and Tina's first time checking this place out, it was definitely not their first time rollerblading. After 10 minutes or so, they were zipping around in circles. Meanwhile, I'm just there looking down at my feet the whole time, while sticking my arms out for balance. Every now and then, someone would either grab my hand or slap my butt to give me a boost! LOL

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It's So Fluffy!



This past weekend, Daniel and I checked out Fuwa Fuwa Japanese Pancakes for the first time!



I saw so many people posting about this place on Instagram and heard about the long line ups for it during the summer. I was under the impression that it was just an overhyped spot. When I saw people still posting about it recently, I figured there's probably a good reason why this place gets a lot of attraction.



I was afraid that there would be a long wait on Saturday. Luckily for us, we found a table as soon as we got in, but we can see the line starting to form as soon as we got our meal. These soufflé pancakes were so soft and airy and had a hint of egg flavour. It tasted good, even though our faces aren't conveying that in these photos. LOL



However, we both agreed that it wasn't something we would come back to eat again. LOL

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90's Hip-Hop NYE



Hey friends hey!!! I hope this year is going well for you so far! I didn't blog much this year. Actually, I only blogged once this year... but I have a good reason! Well, sorta. It's just that when I get home from work, the last thing I wanna do is spend more time on the computer. But have no fear, I'm going to make an effort to queue a few blog posts on my weekends to make sure I still have updates!



Without further ado, let's rewind back to my new year's eve! So every year, Daniel and I like to ring in the new year with our friends! This year, we celebrated at Tyler's place and Rosa came up with a fun idea that we all dressed up in '90s hip-hop style! This was the first time we did a themed event, so everyone was stoked!



I didn't want to spend too much money on an outfit, so I just went with what I already had in my closet and bought jewelry to spruce it up! Daniel and Tyler also took the party up a notch by setting up a photo booth. I'm so glad that they did this because we all get to have a new Instagram photo, plus memories to look back on! Win-win in my books!


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Best Moments in 2018



Looking back, I realized that 2018 was one of the best years of my life! This was the year of risks, perseverance and growth. So without further ado, here are my top 10 highlights:

  • I finished my bachelor's degree! I actually failed a course and didn't think I would graduate on time. I learned that it is okay to ask for help and to pursue a career that's unrelated to your degree.
  • I secured a full-time job before I graduated! I got rejected multiple times and compared myself to others repeatedly. It made me realize that focusing on these things was not going to change my situation. 
  • I visited Iceland. If you told me that I was going to visit this place this year, I wouldn't have believed you! This trip exceeded my expectations and made me realize that I shouldn't feel guilty for taking time off work to travel.
  • I watched my niece turn one year old. It's so fun watching her discover things on her own! I realized that she really looks up to me and the way that I carry myself is important. 
  • I visited New York. We went here the weekend before I started my new job. This trip felt like it signified the change that was about to happen in my life.

  • I celebrated my four year anniversary with Daniel. I realized there wasn't one significant moment that made me fall in love with him. It was an accumulation of many things, like how he never lets me carry anything heavy, always makes sure I get home safely in the evening, (whether that's coming to pick me up or calling me an Uber), goes out of his way to bring me my favourite meal and the list just goes on. I'm so lucky and thankful for him!
  • I finally got my full drivers license. After years of procrastinating, I finally signed up for lessons and passed my test! Woo hoo!!!
  • I was asked to be a bridesmaid. Alpha is always there for me, whether it's listening to me rant or going on random bubble tea runs during work, and I'm just so happy I get to be there for her on her special day. I felt like tearing up when I saw Dillion propose to her and when she tried on her wedding dress, so I don't think I'll be able to hold back the tears on her actual day! 
  • I did the CN Tower stair climb in under 20 minutes! I learned that baby steps are still progress!
  • My blog turned 9 years old!!! Holy schnitzel! I can't believe I've committed to this little thing since I was 14 years old! For those that have been following along on my adventures this year and the previous years, THANK YOU!!!! I can't wait to see what 2019 brings and continue sharing more with all of you! 


As for new year's resolutions, I want to focus more on my health this year, such as sleeping earlier, working out often and drinking more water! Wishing you all an abundance of health, love and joy! Happy new year!

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Pursuit OCR



Last week, Daniel and I did a double date with Alpha and Dillon at Pursuit OCR! This indoor obstacle course used to be located downtown, but now they opened a bigger location that's 10 minutes away from me! 



Alpha and I quickly realized that a lot of things required upper body strength, which we both agreed we didn't have.



Our boyfriends were super encouraging though and made sure we tried the monkey bars and hanging rings, instead of just falling into the foam blocks right away. I'm not even going to lie, my arms were sore for the past two days from all of this. LOL


I actually first heard about this place through BlogTO, so I had an idea what to expect. I was particularly looking forward to the giant ball pit and the tricycles.



The ball pit turned out to be the most tiring obstacle! It took Alpha and I a good 10 minutes to get out of there after we jumped in. I gave up at one point and told her to just go on without me and keep my camera. She was like, "NO CINDY!!!" LOL 



Sucha great friend!




There was also this sloped wall that Daniel and Dillon couldn't get enough of. Daniel was so salty that I didn't record him making to the top, since it took him almost 10 tries. Oops! LOL

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Cindy Goes to Iceland! (2/2)



When we drove to the south of Iceland, we definitely noticed a contrast between the top and bottom half of the country. We saw less mountains (that look like they should be on a Toblerone package) and more waterfalls!




For the remaining days of our trip, we went on slippery hikes, visited many places where Game of Thrones was filmed, touched glaciers (or "diamonds"), stood at the bottom of waterfalls and stepped foot on a black sand beach! CUE THE PHOTOS!













The black sand beach was definitely my aesthetic! It still boggles my mind that sucha thing exists. I always thought people photoshopped these images on Tumblr!






We also experienced a windstorm that left us stuck in this city for the entire day. The main highway was closed, which meant we didn't do five things on our itinerary. I didn't want us to waste the whole day by sitting inside a café, so I tried searching online for something we can do.





I stumbled upon an ice cave tour! Just our luck, we were able to sign up for it 10 minutes before it started! This day turned out way better than we've expected and we agreed that this excursion was definitely a highlight of our trip!




We couldn't leave Iceland without doing the classic Blue Lagoon. It was such a great way to end our final day! We bathe, sipped on smoothies, did the face mask and died in the sauna. I'm a mouth breather and it just felt gross knowing that I was inhaling everyone's toxins! LOL




Iceland exceeded my expectations! I feel like there is still so much to see and I only got a taste of it. I would definitely love to visit this place again with Daniel.



Speaking of him, I'm so glad I got to experience it with him. He was the best companion during the 14 hour drive. I feel like I could just talk to him forever and ever. IS THIS WHAT LOVE IS? When you don't run out of things to talk about? When you feel like a week together is still not enough?!?!

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