Yeah, that’s me gone “BONKERS” !

I had a chat with the sweet lady behind BonkerBox and I sincerely apologize for not catching your name since I was too excited to try the booth out! :p I told her that I never heard of it but I remembered that a couple of bloggers wrote about BonkerBox – visit their FB page [ HERE ]  and it was a fun idea to try out during our gathering at Ruby Tuesday’s for bloggers ( A long post later on this gathering ).

Man, bloggers went bananas over the booth and props! I just thought we’d get colored photos but it doesn’t make a difference since the fun moment was captured :)

Follow them on Twitter @BonkerBox and I wish you the best of luck in the future and your project’s CUTE, regardless props in boxes or better setting ;p

For more info contact 50259366 or email bonkerbox[@]gmail.com



“This Tuesday Enjoy your favorite Ribs at Ruby Tuesday with our Buy one Classic BBQ Ribs and get one Free Promotion. Exclusive for our Salmiya Branch only.”

Visit the Salmiya branch and show that you have liked our Facebook page or followed us on Twitter.

Hurry offer valid only for today (7th FEB 2012) starting from 12:00 PM to 12:00 AM !!

 

Previous posts on RT [ HERE ] & [ HERE ]

Along with a couple of bloggers here, I was invited to attend her graduation ceremony & get treated to one of her self prepared drinks yesterday at Gloria Jean’s Salmiya (Opposite to Geant – where the old Salmiya cinema theater was located). I walked in to see [ NOON ], [ SWERA ], then got to see [ UM AZOOZ ] and last but not least – we weren’t introduced to each other – [ PINKGIRLQ8 ] n’ I made her a promise which I intend to keep till next time we meet enshallah :) there were also a couple of female bloggers but again, no proper identification – introduction was applied. Of course Naj was my date for the day but since you had your family gathering, next time we plan an outing to spend more time together. I walked out happy because I caught up with those ladies and it’s been ages since I’ve been around them with Alma on hand as well as duty resumption.

Kholoud, from Gloria Jean’s PR team welcomed me and allowed picture snapping around the cafe..

Our table – Hafsa Q., winner of Danderma’s blog competition was there and it was nice chatting with her especially about children ;p

Danderma busy making drinks

Again, Danderma busy behind the counter

Some of the items you could purchase from Gloria Jean’s

Now to be completely honest, I only tried Gloria Jean’s once when I was at KFH’s car branch in AlRai and I was amazed at their display! I didn’t know they offer such a variety of food items!

They had it all! Sandwiches in different types of breads and wraps, Salads as well as dessert

and as much as Kholoud tried to convince me to grab a bite, I remained loyal to my Diet center box in the car! :/ wella that chocolate cake looked scrumptious!

Moving on to our hostess…

I asked her for a skinny drink, something she’d recommend to me and I think she mentioned macademia nut something and she started preparing it

Milk with perfect froth!

My drink with my nickname ! :p

My drink with Swera’s doughnut balls

Busy barista!

The it came time to announce the winner of Danderna’s blog competition, mini speech and D.’s graduation

Hafsa receiving her gift from Gloria Jean’s

Mr. Subhi with the PR team and Danderma (I blurred the pics cuz I wasn’t sure if you’d mind posting pics or not ;p )

Danderma with the cap PinkgirlQ8 got for her

Dandermay’s certificate

We didn’t go home empty handed for the good people at Gloria Jean’s gave us a bag which contains French coffee – Kholoud tried to explain how to prepare that and I wanted to tell her I breathe Turkish coffee so that’d be no issue to me ;p along with Red thing which entitles holder to a discount from them

And just to be more fair, I tried the Toffee Butter coffee earlier today and it is AMAZING! I am no fan of flavored French coffee but this is going to be a problem for me! AND YES, it’s in a Starbucks cup- mug ;p

I would like to thank Danderma for this opportunity and say that it’s finally nice to meet you in person as well as see new and old faces. Gloria Jean’s also gets a special shout out for organizing this mini gathering as well as the goodies :) and after seeing the place and tasting the coffee, I would recommend you readers to try them out and post – comment on their FB group [ HERE ]. It was lovely to meet all of the ladies and see Azoon and Ahmed in mature and boooy is that kid adorable mashallah! Hafsa, I hope you start preparing drinks for us soon :P

Here are today’s pics of Alma while at Mubarakia on Friday. I was craving Kabab so bad, I decided to give myself a treat! Diet can wait!

My funky Dear Nanny!

ChikaBaby in the making!

P.S: i never stopped blogging to those who asked, I just find it hard to spare some time at home with Alma around since she starts bashing the laptops besides the fact that I don’t go out much as I used to. Guess I need to work my schedule out a bit!

I woke up really early on Friday and got all dressy and makeup-y to meet the ladies and arrived to the Avenues around 9:15 ish. First one for the class maybe, I was seated and offered breakfast (part of the package) and I only had coffee knowing that we will be tasting the dishes made (Only down side to this class is not having a “hands on” experience) which would have been great! I asked Mr. Lay (manager) *Waves Hi* to snap some shots and he welcomed the idea!

You see, it was empty yet the display was full and they had too many delicious stuff which I managed to keep away from :/ I love their place because it is spacious and comfortable on the eye with the display, seating arrangement and colors.

One issue though, I was lost as to how to get to there! I checked the Avenues’s iPhone app and it was wrong and like others with bad REAL client servicing, I informed them about and no one replied! Says on the application to park in P10! WTH!

What’s nice about Carluccio’s is that it’s diner as well as a deli where you can buy your favorite Italian cooking items like Pasta, Sauces, Coffee, herbs, sweets and kitchen essentials!

Coffee, Tartufi and biscuits, oils and rice!

Pasta, dried Porcini mushrooms, Pesto and others items you could buy from there!

Books and more Tartufi <3 Chocolate truffles which I got me a jar of ! It’s “drop dead” delicious!

The Interior

Last time I sat on that couch, I was with Ree ;p pregnant, hungry, not knowing what to eat! But i did eventually!

Yes, that’s what I was fighting! I want to have an Off Day from Diet Center!

Youm Eswed! *Cries*

Their Specials <3 Gnocchi !

The ladies arrived, got some breakfast which looked amazing and at 10:30 we were told to head inside where they had the place set up for the cooking demo

I just wish next time they’d consider having cooking stations for participants to get down n’ dirty you know!

Sous Chef Banish! Hope I got that right! :$

What was on the menu today

Head Chef  Mr. Davide in action ;p bonjourno !

Class started with The Minestrone a la Milanaise which is your hearty vegetable soup topped off with a nice dash of Parmigiana

Soup in the making! Oh I just wanted to stir the veggies up and I did! And Chef got scared when I was about to add the Zucchini at the wrong time ;p

Ladies finally got the guts to check the pot !

Final result of the Minestrone = Molto Bene !

Next on the menu was the Risotto Con Funghi with 3 types of mushroom, lots of butter and enormous amount of calories!

Porcini Mushroom, button mushroom and I forgot the 3rd one! ;p

Stirring the Carnaloni rice is essential while adding stock !

It was sooooo good, I had to avoid asking for another portion because as chef says: ” We addeeh more buuutteeer” ! cute accent!

Last but hopefully not least from their classes in the future, Coffee Panna Cotta! and if you ever think this dessert is light- think again buddy!

Double cream boiling after adding the gelatine and there’s a massive amount of sugar in this pot as well!

Sous chef plating the ready made Panna Cotta servings since it has to set in the fridge while Ched Davide makes the toffee sauce!

The reason Chef Davide decided to serve them up like this is 1. They have coffee in the recipe – 2. Each serving of the amount of ingredients we had contains 350 calories! :o MINUS THE SAUCE!

Beautiful up close n’ personal

I swear I only took 2 spoons only – tea spoons that it!

Done with all the cooking, Q&As, ladies (including us left with a good bag filled with Carnolini rice for the risotto making, Biscuits and 2 “buy one meal get the other free” coupons which is cool!

I didn’t like the Baci Di Dama biscuits, too heavy but I managed to buy a jar of the Tartufi Neri with almonds (I think) from the inside and they are divine!

Jar Vs. DC’s box = Jar wins!

<3

Overall, I personally had a great time specially meeting Jessy and Nunu + Ghalya who’s a cutie mashallah.

We paid KD 12 for the experience but I honestly think that next time participants should do some actual cooking but that price includes the breakfast, class as well as the goody bag which is fair. Bestest part is hanging out with 2 special ladies and hopefully this won’t be the only time.

Carluccio’s located at the Avenues, Phase 1 Level 1 -Phone: 22597310 for reservations. You can also visit their website [ HERE ] for more details. Special shout-outs to Mr. Lay, Chef Davide, Sous Chef Banish and the nice staff whom names I didn’t catch for the lovely event.

No post on this blog will not include a photo of Alma and today I am posting a picture I snapped of Ghalya, Jessy’s daughter at Carluccio

Isn’t she adorable! All focused with the chef! yakhtyyyyyy

And since it’s my sister’s b-day (one in the photo with Alma), I just wanted to post this here and wish her a fun filled day!

I celebrated my birthday on January – Friday 13th! and although the majority tend to be superstitious about that freaky date, mine was relaxing, full of love and wonderful! Clueless as I was to the surprise in the making, I helped my family a lot by providing them time for the cake to arrive as well as dinner so I went home to check if Dear Nanny had things done then left to my parents house… What no one knows except Julie ;p - LOL – is that playing on Instagram at my place, I managed to take a shot of this bug on our window

After that I was checking the Feed and spotted my name on a cake !

HAHAHAHAHA- Sorry Julz but that was sincerely funny!

So I kept quiet, played dumb and watched them buzz around the house trying to keep things ready and my husband was asking: “what do you wanna do tomorrow on your b-day?” or “I’ve got the feeling that I’m gonna mess my diet tonight” LOL !

I excused myself to go pray – more time for them to set the cake down and gather waiting for me ;p and it happened! All the clapping and singing! God, I am anti birthday celebrations :/ I’d consider every day my birthday if I’d receive gifts! >:)but what was really cool is having my Birthday cake done by Julie of [ A Little Sugar ] ! I’ve always wondered what they’d create – design for me and it came out beautiful as all her work.

A cute fully decorated cupcake on top of a Pink cake! So I’m full of sugar it seems ;)

Another view of “Me”

I love the details – which are all edible btw – on the cake!

That’s the top of the cupcake lady on top of the cake base – how cute! All is fondant covered and everything again I say is edible!

The saddest part was having to cut through the cake so we removed Mrs. Cupcake and dug in the cake base

Dear lord, if i hadn’t enough self control that things would have been eaten up by me! I took a thin slice of this chocolaty, yummy YUMMY goodness! OMG! The thing about Julie is she understands what her clients want and my husband told me he didn’t request a specific flavor but she know what I like :) chocolataaaaa <3

And because we got too curious on what was filled in cupcake lady, we cut through it to find a White cake with cream and cherries I assume! Equally delicious and fattening!

I was so happy to see the family gathered around the table, specially with Alma clapping (she does :) ) and smiling, my first birthday with her and enshallah many more to come. I was so happy that Mrs Julie managed to squeeze my cake on her already fully booked schedule because she’s always booked in advance mashallah!

I am happy that i got gifts: a Michael Kors watch, a Green ensemble which makes me look like a tree and I tweeted it and got hugged for it ;p

and my husband got me an Aigner watch! <3 My family knows – can understand my obsession to that brand! I have several watches of different colors to match any color I wear and the latest is a Black – Silver one with Pearl dial off the latest collection At Geneve Novelties..

The full “A” – Love the color BTW! Need Red ;p E7emmm

Thanks to those who made this memorable, thanks to Julie for the cake, thanks to those who sent in their b-day greetings and thanks Man for the gift and Alma :*

Previous posts on A Little Sugar read [ HERE ], [HERE ] & [ HERE ] or you could follow her on Twitter @A_LittleSugar & her FB group link’s mentioned in the beginning of this post.

La3yoon Ruby Tuesday Kuwait’s Tweep!

You know I like RT and I know I like RT! Only thing stopping me is my Diet Center diet plan but as soon as I get an off day, I will go hog on my favorite meal: Chicken Bella! and a Blondie as well! *drools*

Ruby Tuesday Kuwait’s having their Ribs festival which was and still is a big success. A variety of Ribs platters for your choice and liking - Dear Nanny said and I quote: “Deeliiii”shios” and you can read it [ HERE ]. I happen to be a huge fan of the person behind the Twitter account because she/he’s very active, interacts well with people and know what – how to answer if people address her/him but what I don’t get is a company like [ Cinescape ] deciding to have social networking media and handle it through inefficient individuals with all due respect but if you can’t answer a simple query or ignore tweets you don’t like and worse, block those who are trying to complain then might as well deactivate the account!

I will blog about Cinescape in details later! They need it!

YES I resumed duty! After ONE YEAR, FIVE MONTHS of maternity leave, I chose to resume work with the beginning of  the new year. I’ve been up since 5:30 AM- I made sure baby had enough of me and I left crying because I will be away from her from 8 to 4:30 5 days a week! *CRY* I wish times were much more simple and life wasn’t as expensive so women would stay home and take care of the kids and yes I would totally encourage any mom to stay home (Based on my personal experience and at least for the first 2 years)… I am aware that I will be missing some important milestones but there’s nothing we can do about it unless I win the God damn Jawhara account prize!!! YA RAB !

So many changes which I need to keep track of, too many people left, many yet to leave and I was surprised with a “kind of “ career change in spite of being under the same domain as well as a new location / office but this time there’s a window!! YES some ventilation hallelujah. I am kinda pissed cuz I am away from those that I know but change is good no?!

I am so happy that there are windows <3 !! It’s refreshing and the view’s a killer! I never knew that garden was THAT big! 7amdellah ! As for the office space itself, it’s just great! I am gonna have my own mini fridge – microwave – Nespresso machine! You name it! and am filling it with my baby’s photos <3 so I see her all around me! *enshallah*

Oh, and the Man decided to treat me to a Diet Center subscription, Let’s see how that’d work with 1050 calories per day!!

I just miss one person in this world more than anyone or anything else … :(

As received via email:

Are you tired of your daily routine? Feeling uninspired? Is your wallet burning a whole in your pocket, and you just have to spend your money on something artsy and different? Well the CAPS on carnival is for you.

GUST University is hosting its first and only CAPS on carnival on the 14th & 15th of December and it would delight us that you attend. Come show your support for new and old talents alike. Help them believe in themselves by showing your appreciation. Who knows you just might feel inspired to be in their place.

The carnival will host an array of talents, ranging from photography, art, crafts and many others. There will be shows and competitions going on through the length of the carnival. An auction will also be held, where pieces of art and photography will auctioned off to the highest bidder and all proceeds will go to dar elaytam “دار الايتام”.

 

So what are you waiting for? Get your CAPS on! and head on to GUST on the 14th & 15th of December.

It’s Time To Unleash Your Creativity, it’s time to put your caps on

photography, painting, drawing, crafting, designing, knitting or even cooking, this is the carnival where you reveal it all!

The C.A.P.S oN Carnival at GUST “Click – Art – Perform – sing” on the 14th-15th of december

Book your booth NOW by contacting:

Mobile: 99031124 / 97313861

BBM: 21A9B317

Last Friday we had a small family gathering at my parents’ place along with husband’s family members… We are all exhausted to cook honestly specially with baby around since she demands full attention so she is passed from one hand to another, reminds me of how we deal with our cats at home! hug-able and sooo kiss -able! BOTH BABY & CATS!

Husband decided to order dinner from Al Deek Al Roumi and while I was browsing Facebook, I came across [ Cake n' Bake ]‘s special Summer offer which is a Flake cake that comes with a tray of mini Basboosa and since I am a fan of both, I called them up and scheduled for them to be delivered on Friday. Every time we have guests husband gets sweets from Mr. Baker and I wanted to change, their confectioneries are excellent but one has to have options – we go to people we eat Mr. Baker, people come over we eat Mr. Baker! Mashallah, their chefs are creative and talented.

I tried their delivery service when they first started it and it was very good yet this time, I was so pleased because they were so punctual and to my surprise, the cake turned out to be big and in sound order, the basboosa tray wasn’t any less either – you know when you see food pictures and once you actually get what you order they turn out disappointingly different! This is not the case with these people – cake was enough for 12+ pax. I am glad to see someone competing with Mr. Baker although they set the standard bar high for the rest but all I can say is best of luck Cake n’ Bake, wish you more progress and I will be depending on you a lot! During Ramadan as well enshallah :)

But to be completely honest, I have to say that although the cake tasted really good, it has to be more moist – or I think I prefer it to be drenched in chocolate sauce or something! and for a Syrian, I know that the basboosa taste was covered with that of ghee otherwise, both are very good & cake was almost swiped out!

To prove my theory right, I was totally surprised when I received a call from the [ November Bakery ]‘s driver verifying my address to drop a gift item as he said over the phone and that was the sweetest thing EVER! First let me show you the pictures I took of the box and items included:

The box was big containing 2 smaller packs, a bag, roses and the Swarovski box! I wanted to rip open the packing off but I immediately called Eman up since we exchanged numbers before but never spoke to each other in person then Alma started crying as it was her feeding time so I was patient enough to put her to sleep then get dirty with the gift because I could smell chocolate from far away! *drools*

Now, she told me that each item has its own meaning and I honestly Eman couldn’t figure anything out ;p all I know is that my heart and tummy were sooooo filled with love & yummy treats – you diet ruin-er! :@

beautiful blooms

2 bags of 2 types of cookies which were gone on the same day – thank you very much!

Delicious chocolate chip cookies, reminds me of the Baking Tray cookies and I loved the double chocolate chip cookies even more..

I’ve always wanted to try their classic truffles and maaaan they are divine! They just melt in your mouth and if I hadn’t enough control, I would have licked the wrapper as well! :$

Another November classic are their mini cupcakes – anything with chocolate is a winner to me, not a big fan of Red Velvet but they were scrumptious as well and their mouth bite size is so convenient but you have a big tummy! wa7da wara wa7da !

Finally – I mean on top of all the above, she got me something awwww! a dragon fly pin which is beautiful!

I don’t like dragonflies but my husband got me a pendent and I rarely wear it except on the day I got her gift, I had brought it out of the safe to wear the next day for a visit! As copied from a website, this is what it symbolizes:

• Maturity and a Depth of character
  The dragonfly, in almost every part of the world symbolizes change and change in the perspective of self realization; and the kind of change that has its source in mental and emotional maturity and the understanding of the deeper meaning of life. 

  The traditional association of Dragonflies with water also gives rise to this meaning to this amazing insect. The Dragonfly’s scurrying flight across water represents an act of going beyond what’s on the surface and looking into the deeper implications and aspects of life.

• Power and Poise
  The dragonfly’s agile flight and its ability to move in all six directions exude a sense of power and poise – something that comes only with age and maturity.
  The dragonfly can move at an amazing 45 miles an hour,  hover like a helicopter fly backwards like a hummingbird, fly straight up, down and on either side. What is mind blowing is the fact that it can do this while flapping its wings a mere 30 times a minute while mosquitoes and houseflies need to flap their wings 600 and 1000 times a minute respectively. 

  The awe inspiring aspect is how the dragonfly accomplishes its objectives with utmost simplicity, effectiveness and well, if you look at proportions, with 20 times as much power in each of its wing strokes when compared to the other insects.  The best part is that the dragonfly does it with elegance and grace that can be compared to a veteran ballet dancer. If this is not a brazen, lazy, overkill in terms of display of raw power, what is?

• Defeat of Self Created Illusions
  The dragonfly exhibits iridescence both on its wings as well as on its body. Iridescence is the property of an object to show itself in different colors depending on the angle and polarization of light falling on it. 

  This property is seen and believed as the end of one’s self created illusions and a clear vision into the realities of life. The magical property of iridescence is also associated with the discovery of one’s own abilities by unmasking the real self and removing the doubts one casts on his/her own sense of identity. This again indirectly means self discovery and removal of inhibitions.

• Focus on living ‘IN’ the moment
  The dragonfly normally lives most of its life as a nymph or an immature. It flies only for a fraction of its life and usually not more than a few months. This adult dragonfly does it all in these few months and leaves nothing to be desired. This style of life symbolizes and exemplifies the virtue of living IN the moment and living life to the fullest. By living in the moment you are aware of who you are, where you are, what you are doing, what you want, what you don’t and make informed choices on a moment-to-moment basis. 

  This ability lets you live your life without regrets like the great dragonfly.

• The opening of one’s eyes
  The eyes of the dragonfly are one of the most amazing and awe inspiring sights. Given almost 80% of the insect’s brain power is dedicated to its sight and the fact that it can see in all 360 degrees around it, it symbolizes the uninhibited vision of the mind and the ability to see beyond the limitations of the human self. It also in a manner of speaking symbolizes a man/woman’s rising from materialism to be able to see beyond the mundane into the vastness that is really our Universe, and our own minds.

I guess this is what you meant Eman by the “meaning” of the gift or am I too “cold” from the right answer?! ;p

I have always wanted to try out November Company’s goodies and matter a’fact, I contacted them for my wedding reception dinner arrangements which was supposed to be held at Le Notre when we ended up choosing Hilton’s Resort instead because their work is simply amazing… all their bakery goodies, flowers and items they sell in their shop are so pretty and unique and I’ve always kept myself away specially when husband goes to Diet Center for his check up because I know I wouldn’t resist picking up a bag of cookies, tray of truffles or an entire cake maybe since all are giving back excellent reviews and feedback on the same. Check their FB group [ HERE ].

As for you Ms. Eman Al Habib, I would really like to thank you sooooo much (again) and you get the hug in person as we agreed enshallah ;) Thank you for taking time to go through my blog, which some people despise – like I give a shit – <– foul mouth I told you! What matters to me is having someone understand what I go through and get to share experiences, simply enjoying the company should it be in real life or online which reminds me of the reader SAM, who used to give me hard time with his – her comments and emails, special shout out to you buddy! Some people know how to leave a good impression.

As for November Bakery, I would like to thank you as well for the lovely pack I received and all the delicious diet ruining stuff you create! I love your packaging and designs.

P.S Eman: Little birdie ratted you out :p <– figure this out ba2a ! na naaa naaa boo boo