Thursday, April 24, 2014

A Simple Gal's Journal: One Long N Busy N Fun Weekend

Hello, Friends! I'm sure you all love long weekend. I mean, who doesn't?

Here in Indonesia we had a long weekend due to Good Friday, so long weekend was a long weekend for both Christians and non-Christians alike. Also, in April, Hubby and I celebrate our second wedding anniversary, so in addition to daily life, going to Easter mass, etc., we also had a lovely dinner on Saturday evening. It's not neccessarily anniversary dinner, just a lovely evening out. We both love trying out new restaurants, and are willing to pay more to experience the ambiance and the interior. Yes, we are one of those people! We allocate a certain amount of money for this spending every month in our family budget, titled "entertainment budget", but we don't go every month. Sometimes we do, sometimes we skip two or three months, just spending weekends at home. Or sometimes we just go to a nearby movie theater on Friday night for a cheap date. We are flexible and much more simple after getting married. ^__^

I didn't take special outfit picture for the dinner, so here I will share some pictures snapped with my iPhone of what I wore. The dress is a little bit shorter than what I usually wear, but it's still modest. The line is simple and I wore a lot of accessories to adorn this otherwise very simple dress. It's all about the details!

I bought this colorful necklace years ago, and I also wore it in this post here. It was a risky buy from an online shop, I hesitated because it looked so colorful and tacky. So glad I finally decided to get it, because it turned out an exquisite piece which has been accessorizing many outfits, including this one!

green and red, date look, fashionista mom, stylish mom, women over thirty

Here I wore it with another outfit sometime in 2012. You can tell from the quality that this picture was NOT taken with an iPhone. Haha!

green and red, date look, fashionista mom, stylish mom, women over thirty

This is the overall look, with the lovely red bow wedges and purse. I wasn't sure about the green and red combination, for fearing I would like an overadorned Christmas tree (in April!), but I think I looked somewhat put together enough. I hope.

green and red, date look, fashionista mom, stylish mom, women over thirty

And here's my stack of arm candies. I love wearing multiple bangles and charm bracelets together.

arm candy, stacking bracelets, charm bracelet

Yes, I am one of those annoying people who loves to take selfie, either myself, or with my son, or with my husband. Well, some might call it vanity, that's partly true, but I also love making memories!

veal dish, veal navarin, le quartier, jakarta restaurant

We went to a fancy French retaurant and bistro called Le Quartier. The interior is gorgeous and the food is nice, but we're not coming back since we didn't find it to be extraordinary in terms of food, and there are so many other restaurants we would like to try. We only come back to the same establishment if the food or the ambiance is super exceptional, or it has a special meaning and nostalgia to us.

I'm the kind of person who is more willing to pay for experience and memory, than stuff. I can justify spending more than USD 250 on a lavish Valentine's dinner (once in a while of course!) in a magnificently romantic setting that I can remember for the rest of my life, yet I cannot justify spending the same amount on a pair of leather shoes, for example. I can justify spending thousands of dollars on custom-made trip to Italy, yet I cannot spend it on let's say, a Hermes bag, though I know I can even pass down the bag to my daughter since good quality leather handbag practically lasts forever. I guess we all have different spending style and preference.

veal dish, veal navarin, le quartier, jakarta restaurant

That evening I got out of my comfort zone and try to order something that is not my usual favorite. It's a veal dish, called veal navarin, which is basically marinated veal with peas, carrots, mushrooms, mashed potatoes, garlic, shallot, lots of herbs, cooked till tender, swimming in rich savory broth. It's not something that I would commonly order, but it was absolutely delicious!

veal dish, veal navarin, le quartier, jakarta restaurant

The next day is Easter Sunday, so we went to Mass, then had breakfast at a neighborhood restaurant where they serve chicken porridge with many little side dishes. Delish!

bubur ayam

We spent the rest of the day playing with our son and just relaxing at home. Our weekends are usually pretty simple. One day I asked Hubby, "Do you notice that our life and how we spend our time together is much simpler and cheaper now compared to when we were still dating?" He agreed. Having breakfast together, either restaurant-made porridge or home-made omelette and toasts now is just as cozy and enjoyable as paying for brunch at a five star hotel.


I don't know why, but Michael looooooves car! Real cars, not toy cars or hot wheels! On the weekends, we allow him to sit in Daddy's car where he pretends to steer the wheel and makes broom-broom noises. So cute!

toddler driving

We wanted to take Michael for a ride in the afternoon, but he was being naughty and didn't finish eating his afternoon snack. Soooo, no ride for that day! I insisted on being firm and keep my promises. When I said we'll take him for a ride if he finished off his meal, and he didn't, then he must know that Mommy meant business.

It was such a hot day, Hubby decided to make homemade frapuccino for us. Yes, you can definitely bring Starbucks home with you with just instant coffee, some cold water and ice cubes, and vanilla ice cream. Blend it well using a blender, and voila! You have your own homemade frappucino! Such refreshing, icy cold beverage in the middle of scorching heat. Delightful!

homemade frapuccino

That was our long Easter weekend. How was yours?

I'm linking up to these wonderful Ladies:







Monday

Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
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7 comments:

Melaina25 said...

Sounds like you had a great time!!

✰Transatlantic Blonde✰

April 25, 2014 at 12:19 AM
Victoria said...

Love your arm candy. I found a lot of bloggers though your link list. What do you mean you are linked with those bloggers? How do you link with them?

April 25, 2014 at 4:28 AM
Kim-Marie from Kimba Likes said...

We had a very busy weekend with another long weekend following for ANZAC Day.

I do love an arm party!

Thanks for joining Wardrobe Wednesday x

April 25, 2014 at 7:42 AM
Lauren said...

I love that dress on you! Perfect for a night out. I agree with selfies as preserving memories- I tried to make a scrapbook for husband and I had no photos of our first or second wedding anniversary as we didn't have smartphones back then!

April 25, 2014 at 12:55 PM
Whitney 'Nic' James said...

Love the dress, and the accessories! Thanks for linking up...hope to see you Monday!

April 25, 2014 at 9:56 PM
Anonymous said...

Your son is too cute and I love the dress. Thanks for linking up for Stylish Saturday. xo ~ The Fashionista Momma

April 28, 2014 at 10:31 AM
Mummy's Got Style said...

Pretty dress and love the non iphone photo of you-beautiful, lovely family shots too!

April 30, 2014 at 3:17 AM

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