We’ve got a nice little antique shop in our neighborhood that also has a little cafe inside of it. I’ve discovered that their chocolate lava cakes are to die for, and that’s usually all I get when I stop by. So I had chocolate lava cake for lunch yesterday and it was amazing.  Cakes, pastries, puffs and all manner of baking has taken over the entrées of the dining experience and no desert is complete without a cake and ice cream. So many events simply demand the presence of some sort of baking activity, weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and simple celebrations. There are many bakery shops in Singapore but which too choose? Which oe of them can build you your chocolate double fudge empire state building cake or design a something so unique and special that it is bound to be an ice breaker at any event you host? For simple gatherings and birthdays, there are many bakery shops all over Singapore of the local fare that can cater to your needs. Finding a bakery shop in Singapore is easy; most of the really good ones have had their reputation taped upon rave reviews online. Bakeries in Singapore have become more than just a location to raise flour and add a dice of icing, it is a full or artistes and creative geniuses who see the empty baking tray as a potential for magnificence. From the simple to the intricate, there are many bakeries to choose from, catering from simple get togethers to that 50th anniversary with that someone special. You can visit our stores all over Singapore. They usually have a wide range of flavours and some even give you the option of pre-ordering and delivering the birthday cake (or any sort of cake for that matter) right to your doorstep. They come with the standard candles, wafers a liberal spray of your loved ones name and digits in some delectable cream shop. Some of the flavours are pretty standard fare, from your blackforest cake, to your white or dark chocolate fares – they even throw in some local favourites like pandan or even chendol flavoured cakes. Don’t expect the extravagant, as these humble cake shops can provide good tasting and normally round shaped cakes, if you are looking for something shaped in a name with five or more syllables, you are more likely to find what you want in specialty cake shop. If you are looking for that something special and need the touch of a chef to make your cake more extravagant and give it a veneer of awe, then famous places like Bakerz Inn can give you plenty of choices to choose from and even an option to customize your order to fit even the most bizarre of tastes. These sort of places use very special ingredients and infuse exotic methods with expensive ingredients, combining to give you a mouth watering and eye opening experience. Just a fare word of warning though, they are going to be rather expensive, even going beyond the $100 dollar mark. The buck doesn’t stop here as they are even more intricate and gastronomic infused creations that are abound in some five star and beyond hotels. Hotels like Fullerton Singapore and the Oriental Hotel has some of the best bakeries and melt cafes that infuse special ingredients and new age baking methods to create fantastic creations. These are photo finish creations that come with a hefty price tag, but are apt for that really special occasion. The art of decorating cakes takes place when a man or woman has turned the kitchen into an art studio. When a cake is decorated in an artistic design it is pleasing to both the creator and the recipient. Creating a cake does not have to be a stressful experience, you just need to get creative. Don’t be afraid to try new ideas and techniques. For the amateur, it is the simple cake decorating tips, which are the best ways to help you get started. Decorating can be as simple as using a stencil and dusting confectioner’s sugar or cocoa powder on the top of a cake. Cakes can be iced with butter cream, royal fondant, or cooked icing. Adding to the icing cakes can be topped with flowers, spun sugar, or candy. Cakes can be created to look like a hot dog, pizza, or just about anything you have the imagination to create.

The boy and I sat outside and enjoyed our lunches. It definitely could have been warmer, but it was nice to actually be outside without a huge parka on. Spring is making a slow and taunting arrival.

We are loving everything our little neighborhood square has to offer. It’s really small and quant, but has a lot of energy and fun little things that give it a bunch of character. We don’t have to travel far to find a nice place to stroll.

How did you spend your first days of spring??

Alright, here it is! I’ve been debating whether or not to do this for over a week now and I just decided to go for it. I’m a nervous about being in front of the camera, so I drug the boy into it and made him do it with me. Of course he made me laugh the whole time and look like a complete goof, but it’s all good.

The 32 Questions:
1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?
3. HOW OLD ARE YOU?
4. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
6. DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
7. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
8. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT?
9. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS?
10. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
11. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
12. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
13. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?
14. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
15. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
16. RED OR PINK?
17. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
18. HAIR COLOR?
19. EYE COLOR?
20. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
21. SUMMER OR WINTER?
22. FAVORITE DESSERT?
23. COMPUTER OR TELEVISION?
24. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?
25. WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
26. WHERE ARE YOU LIVING NOW?
27. WHAT COLOR IS YOUR HOUSE?
28. WHAT COLOR IS YOUR CAR?
29. WHAT WOULD YOU NAME YOURSELF IF YOU COULD PICK YOUR NAME
30. WHAT IS YOUR DREAM VEHICLE?
31. WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GREW UP?
32. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE THAT YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE?
33. WHAT ARE YOU REALLY AFRAID OF?
34. DO YOU HAVE ANY SIBLINGS?

I originally saw this vlog over at The Quiet Life of Violet and her’s was uber cute. If you decide to make a “Getting to Know Me” vlog, leave a comment with your link and I’ll check it out. Be sure to stop over to The Quiet Life of Violet’s blog to see hers.

Enjoy getting to know the boy and I and don’t laugh at me. (I’m watching you)

The boy and I took advantage of the little bit of sunshine today to take the pup for a nice long walk around the neighborhood. We stopped at the duck pond where we discovered Porter James was actually afraid of ducks and it’s totally understandable with how these ducks looked. They were ragged and looked like they were pulled from either a fairy tale horror story or they were pumped with steroids. They were abnormally friendly, but made funky sounds when you got close. I spent a good time laughing at how they looked and Porter’s reactions to their sounds. It was the perfect way to add a little humor to our Saturday. I look forward to visiting this pond often to see if they are still there.

Are you having a good Saturday? I think the boy and I are going to do a video blog tomorrow! Kinda nervous.

So I’m trying something new over here on Sundays. I fell in love with LLYMRLS Sunday Portrait feature that includes a self portrait of some sort and a little recap about what’s been going on lately. Sundays are usually my ‘domestic diva’ kind of days, with no time for in depth blogging sessions. I’ve been searching for the perfect weekly post theme and I think this is it. I want to give adorable Lily 100% of the credit for this new adventure and I hope you guys like it.

1^ I unsuccessfully OMBRE’d my hair. I wanted it to be subtle, but not as subtle as it actually is. I was a chicken and didn’t leave the bleach in long enough for it to really do anything. Maybe I’ll try it again when I put on my big girl panties.
2^ Spring cleaning has officially started in The Veda House loft. Closets were completely emptied and reorganized with a large donate pile to prove I actually got rid of some stuff. (blog post coming tomorrow)
3^ My job is currently sucking the life out of me. I’m hoping there is some light at the end of the tunnel or at least some warmer weather. Something.
4^ I’m loving my new camera and lens purchase. It’s so much fun when your camera actually takes the picture like you want it to. Of course, I’m still learning and could always use helpful hints.
5^ The boy and I are watching Mad Men on a daily basis and have made it to season 3. I love this TV series so much it makes me think I should of been born in a different era.
6^ I love this sweatshirt!

Happy Sunday!

Busy day over here, so it’s MOVIE DAY! I don’t know about you, but I love little animated short films. I’ve posted two of my top favorites today, so grab some snacks and spend the next 10ish minutes to relax. If one of your 2011 goals is to take more time for yourself, here’s the perfect opportunity.

* Alma just happens to be my grandmother’s name, so I’d like to think this is my “Nanny” when she was a wee thing.

* pure greatness from Pixar!

* I’m in love with paper cranes and this little short is filllllllled with them.

—click on the video to see more information about who made them and how they were made—

It’s been really busy over here. I’ve been working my buttutti off at the agency and with freelance and blogging. It all has paid off with a really nice paycheck and a promotion at work. Go me!

Do you have a favorite children’s movie or animated short?

Hard to believe that I’ve discovered the best brownies on this planet, but it’s 100% true. A few weeks ago we had an employee leave for another job and we had treats in the office to send her off the right way, the sweet way. This super duper baker dude at work brought in a pile of brownies that aren’t your standard box style brownies and I was blown away. ( He makes Martha Stewart and Paula Dean look stupid. ) Over the next couple days I spammed his email box with requests for the recipe and a couple days later, I had the golden ticket. Try this recipe for yourself and see that I’m not lying. He says the key is to get QUALTY chocolate!

What you’ll need:
1 C. (2 sticks) unsalted butter
8 oz. high-quality unsweetened chocolate
5 large eggs
3¼ C. sugar
1½ tsp. instant espresso
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1 C. sifted all-purpose flour
½ tsp. salt
1 C. semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 400°. Generously butter a 9-by-13-inch pan and set aside.
2. Combine chocolate, butter and expresso powder in a heat-proof bowl and microwave on 70% power ,
stirring occasionally until the chocolate mixture has melted; set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whip attachment, beat eggs and sugar at high speed, 5-10 minutes. Reduce speed to low, and add melted chocolate mixture and the vanilla; beat until combined. Slowly add flour and salt; fold in just until incorporated. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
4. Bake until edges are dry but center is still soft, about 20 minutes for a dark metal pan and 30 minutes for a bright metal pan. Remove from oven, and transfer to a wire rack to cool. Cut into 3-inch squares, and store, refrigerated, in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

**Notes from baker dude**
Brownies are only as good as the chocolate you use; the better the chocolate, the better the brownie. I use Hersey’s (weird, I know) or Callebaut. Try adding 1 C. toasted chopped walnuts when you fold in the chocolate chips and reduce the chips to ½ C. Whipping the eggs and sugar for 5-10 minutes is critical! it does two things; dissolves the sugar and incorporates air into the mixture. The eggs are the only leavening agent in this recipe. I dust the chocolate chips (and walnuts) with approximately 1-2 Tbsp. of flour before folding them into the batter. It keeps them from sinking to the bottom.

I’m going to be honest with you guys. The reason there are no images of the final product is because my stupid oven didn’t cook the brownies evenly, so the edges were perfect and the center was like it never went into the oven. If the brownies tasted as good as the batter, I think I would of successfully replicated baker dudes greatness!

Let me know how it goes. I’d love to hear your thoughts. I thought they were magic, but maybe I’m just chocolate crazy.

*Porter James and the boy in the veterinarian parking lot. He was really excited!

I’ve been keeping this experience to myself because at first I thought it was stupid and I needed to just forget about it. As the weeks went on I found myself getting more and  more irritated. I thought pet vets were like doctors and they are supposed to take care of you and make you (your pet) feel better. Our vet didn’t get that memo and decided it was her job to make the boy and I feel like the worst pet owners on the face of this earth.

Two weeks ago we took Porter to the vet to get his yearly exam and make sure the one year old pup was growing like he should. The vet found that he had an ear infection in both ears and because Porter showed no signs of discomfort we had no idea he had an infection. To the vet this means we are unobservant pet owners. Without actually saying it our vet was saying “How could you be so ignorant and not know something like this was going on. Shame on you!”

The story gets better. After she made us feel like horrible people she looked at his teeth and told us that his teeth were too dirty for 1 -year-old dog’s teeth and that we should be brushing his teeth EVERY DAY! Excuse me…Who does that?? I thought we were doing good at brushing his teeth every two weeks! She then went on to say that if we don’t spend the $400 to get his teeth professionally cleaned (under anesthetic mind you) that he was going to quickly acquire all kinds of dog problems. Thanks… Thanks a lot.

* Thank goodness I had cute shoes on to make up for the lame-o day.

Today was our 2 week re-checkup visit and we requested a new vet. She was LOVELY and told us that his teeth are fine an to wait until he is about 4-5 years old to do the whole professional cleaning sha-bang. Unfortunately the pup still has an ear infection that will go away with time. Poor thing! Overall, our puppy is healthy, happy and as spunky can be. I advise everyone to find a vet that you love, love, love! Our vet was completely out of line and put an extremely sour taste in our mouth, but the second vet was a winner! Thanks Vet Louis from St. Louis!

Have any of you experience poor veterinarian services? If so, any suggestions?

Over this past winter break I was able to travel home to visit family and make a trip up to the lake house where my grandparents live. My grandmother has a pretty impressive vinyl record collection that is now collecting dust in her basement. She told me that I should go down there, check it out and that I could have anything I wanted. I found gems down there people!! I’m talking classics, like Thriller!

I ended up keeping about 20 of her records and I love how they sound better because they were loved by my grandmother. She’s got good taste in music to this day and I think she loved sharing her love for vinyl with me over the holidays.

My love for vinyl is somewhat new, but growing by the day. Any time I’m at thrift/second hand store/antique store I keep my eye out for the oldies but goodies. It takes some time to sift through the stacks, but totally worth it when you come across a keeper!

I’m curious how everyone stores/organizes their record collections. Have you found an easy way to sift through the stacks?

For all of you who have been following my photo journey over the past month or so know that I’ve had lots of things to consider with all the great camera out there right now. Nikon or Canon? Entry-level or Pro-sumer? This and that, back and forth. I finally weighed all my options and decided to buy the Canon Rebel T2i with the 18-135 mm lens upgrade. I’ll also be purchasing a 50mm f1.4 or f1.8 in the near future, but I have a friend that will let me test them both out before buying. (I’ll write about lens comparisons in a later post)

I found a really great camera shop here in St. Louis that has AMAZING customer service and they have the ability to make you not feel dumb when being surrounded by profession photographers. The man at the shop walked me through ALL my options and what the prices of each option would be. He then made a suggestion based on what my camera needs were and his suggestion ended up being what I had in my mind all along. I knew the T2i was the perfect choice.

I look forward to being able to have super high quality photos on my blog. I may even attempt to do some more personal fashion posts if I get used to being in front of the camera instead of behind the camera. OH! Another really cool thing about this little camera shop I found was that with any purchase of a DSLR you get two FREE photography classes for two people, 100 FREE prints and a FREE backup Canon battery! Those were definitely some of the selling points.

If any of you have camera shopping questions I’ve been completely immersed in the whole things for some time now, so I might be able to help. Also stick around for more camera goodness…I’m looking for a great camera bag!

I’ve got a pretty simple dude living with me and he’s got a style that hasn’t really evolved much since I’ve met him. Yes he used to were Abercrombie and Fitch and lots of American Eagle, but hey…he was 16. Now his style is pretty much brand-less, but much more “HIM”. He wears jeans every day with some kind of shirt and some kind of fancy pair of brightly colored sneakers or desert boots. SIMPLE.  Here’s what he wore to work this morning. Isn’t he cute?

These pictures literally took us less than 5 minutes to take on our way to work this morning. Maybe we’ll try to do this more often.

*Item not shown: Lacoste Navy blue jacket, Vintage.