The House Poet

Well, the last day of 2009 has been outrageous. Too many things happened at once today, which seems fitting. I don't want to go into all the craziness, but let's just say it was stressful and too busy for my liking. I can't wait for this weekend though! ;) 2009 has been the year of many changes and intense things happening in my life. I really feel like I have grown and matured as a woman. I received my camera for my 19th birthday in January, and then in April I started this blog. I met Andrew in January and we fell in love in Febuary. :) Best thing that ever happened to me! (Apart from going to college in the first place lol ) I am excited to see what this year holds in store for us! Hopefully a trip to Japan! :D There have been many hard times and obstacles this year. Yet, the wonderful things outnumber all the difficult ones. I've proved to myself that I am strong and can get through a lot! :) I am grateful for all that I have in my life and all that I have been give

When I was in elementary school, I had a special group of friends. We stayed friends all through middle school, all through high school, and now we are separated and navigating the choppy seas of adulthood and college. Two of those friends are still very important to me, and on Tuesday I was able to see both, albeit for a short while. Over the summer, we were all dealing with separate things and I was worried about them. Luckily, seeing them on Tuesday and hearing about their experiences this past semester has assuaged my worries. We are all growing and learning. :) I was having serious Vietnamese food cravings because my sister refuses to go out and eat it with me. Thus, my friend Andi and I went for Vietnamese food at Le Cheval. This restaurant is the third of three, owned and run by friends of my grandmother! The food is a bit pricey, but it's good Vietnamese food. I went over the summer with my grandmother, so I was excited to follow up on it. We got there a little before noon,

I know Christmas is done, but here is how I spent my Christmas eve! My father had to go to San Jose to say hello to a dear client of his, and so my sister and I tagged along. I was dying to check out the Kinokuniya Bookstore and Mitsuwa Marketplace there, so I was looking forward to it! :) After shopping at Kinokuniya for a bit, my sister and I went over to a cute little bakery called Clover Cake Shop. It was very Japanese in style and food, so it was fun to check out! All the pastries and breads were cheap, and I was so tempted to buy a lot, but I didn't. This was an almond danish. I ate it on Christmas morning, and it was pretty good. It seemed more bready than I would have thought a danish to be, but the almond flavor was strong and tasty. :) This doughnut was a hit! It was lightly coated in sugar and inside it there was smooth azuki red bean paste....yummm! This was still warm and really hit the spot! :) The flavors of the bean paste and the sugary doughnut outside complemente

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Here is what I ate in between the celebrating! Christmas Eve dinner was just about comfort food--breakfast for dinner! :) I had a cheese omelette with sausage, challah bread and butter, and peas! It was yummy and rich! Christmas came and we had a nice morning opening gifts. Then, we had to get ready to go to French mass in San Francisco, which was very cool! I loved hearing it in French and I understood it, which was special. The church was lovely as well. It was called Notre Dame de Victoires, which means Our Lady of Victory. There was a funny tiny old French man talking to everyone in his gravelly French voice. :D It was quite the experience! The last time I had gone to church was with Andrew over the summer, and being in a church again made me miss him so miuch. I was nostalgic for the summer days he spent at my place with me~ Our tradition is going to Gourmet Carousel, a cheap Chinese place in SF, for Christmas lunch. The food is good, qu

I adore Christmas lights. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas or other holiday you celebrate! :) Lots of love, Momofraise

Yep, it's December now! :) It's been quite a while since I last posted, but I was busy with finals, essays, and just life in general. I am at home for winter break but I miss Andrew and Stockton tremendously. Andrew will hopefully be coming over next weekend to see me and I am so excited! I will bake lots of goodies for him~! The above picture was taken a few days after he returned from the trip to the Philippines. I was ecstatic to see him again! It's been so wonderful having him back! The night after he arrived from the Philippines three weeks ago, he took me out to dinner. We couldn't stop talking and there was so much to say! We went to Dave Wong's Restaurant, a lovely Chinese place in Stockton. It is a gorgeous restaurant, oozing comfy yet upscale ambiance. The lighting is dim and golden, which makes for a romantic setting. They also have curtained booths for privacy; Andrew had put our names down for us to get one. After a while, one of the nice men working t

This past Wednesday, I luckily was able to go to San Francisco with my sister; it was the first time I'd been in a long time! :) Fiona and I took the BART train and caught a MUNI bus. It was a lovely sunny day, which was such a treat as you can see in the pictures! We got off at Octavia Street because I wanted to look at a Victorian hotel that is so beautiful inside and out. :) This is the Queen Anne Hotel, which supposedly has a haunted room! :D One of my dreams is to stay there someday~ I really want to show this to Andrew too! On my 18th birthday, my friends and I walked inside and sat down in the lovely common room. I then proceeded to open all my gifts there; it was so fun! Japantown! Yay! :) This is Benkyo-do, the oldest business in Japantown. They make mochi, some of which is really good, and sell Japanese snacks. They also have a food counter where burgers and hot dogs are super cheap; it's very old-fashioned and charming! All the older folks like to congregate there

My sister and I braved the outside and went shopping today, and for being Black Friday it wasn't so bad. We didn't go to many places, but still had fun. The weather is pretty miserable; it started raining really hard not too long ago and it's very cold. I am sure my love in the hot and humid Philippines would like this weather! ;) We went to Target, which was crowded but not terribly so. I bought a black cloche hat that actually fits, red long fingerless gloves, a light blue soft sweater on sale, and some essentials. Then, we walked up to Ming Quong, since the weather was sunny and nice, and I bought a new ring and a gift for Andrew, since our 10 month anniversary is next Friday, which is the day he comes back home! Yay! :D We then found ourselves at Saroor, a very good Indian restaurant I hadn't been too for a long time. Since I can't drink Chai Tea unless the milk is soy or lactose-free, I ordered a mango lassi drink ($2.50) instead, which was DELICIOUS! The flavo

Ever since my parents divorced when I was eight, Thanksgiving changed for me. I still wish I could be with my whole family for Thanksgiving, but maybe that will happen someday in the future. Until then, I usually spend it with my dad, sister, grandma, aunt, and my four cousins. I really missed Andrew yesterday and wished he could have been a part of it, but he is having fun in the Philippines. :) For lunch, my dad made homemade tacos, which were tasty and not spicy, which was good for me! It was a nice treat since it has been forever since he made them for me last. :) Tacos are kind of a funny thing to eat on Thanksgiving, but thats okay. :D Preparing for Thanksgiving dinner on the other hand.....was certainly interesting. The oven caught on fire right before I was going to make biscuits, so I decided against it. Luckily, the fire wasn't a serious one, and it died out rather quickly. I did end up making mashed potatoes and box stuffing, so I am glad I was able to contribute some di