I admit I haven’t been shooting as often as I would like to, and I REALLY SHOULD! But here are some random shots from the past week.

We celebrated my brother-in-law’s birthday last week with a treat to a nice Italian restaurant.

The beef carpaccio was YUMMY!!!

As was this risotto.

The kids had pizza and they looked happy…

These are some pictures taken on Sunday at church…

Just one more post for today…

I was really excited to go take some pictures today (partly because I needed new photos for scrapping) but also to get out for the weekend. We were going to Rob & Jackie’s place for dinner so we decided to go check out the zoo at Frauenfeld. Turns out it was a really SMALL zoo but what was rather impressive was that they had a pair of lions and tigers, even a puma and a panther. I didn’t expect to see these in such a small and unknown zoo. Of course, they were in tiny, pathetic cages so I pity these animals. After the zoo, it was dinner and we got a chance to taste, first-hand, Rob’s French cuisine. He had just completed a culinary course at Le Cordon Bleu and we were all eager to try what he had learnt. And the meal did not disappoint.. for starters, Foie Gras with Arugula and the entree was a chicken dish (arrrghhh!! I can’t remember the name!!) and dessert was a gingerbread cake with Creme Anglais… YUM!!! As you can tell, we’re probably VERY stuffed right now, so I’ll just leave you with some photos.

p/s: We celebrated Jackie’s birthday today and she got a little gift from us. Here’s Ethan bringing out the gift and then helping to open it. Happy birthday again!!

And hope you like this shot, it’s lovely.

More pictures of the day here.

Almost every week, we go over to the Hartzell’s for dinner (they’re the sweetest, to have us over so often!). This week, was no exception.

It was a beautiful day, so before heading up, the kids and I hung out at the playground for awhile.

And these are the pics from dinner …

On the menu, nachos with cheese, salsa, guacamole and sour cream. For mains, it was tacos, beans and rice. Yummy, needless to say, as Rob is a great cook. He’s going to Paris next week for a culinary course… watch out for some French cuisine coming up!!

We haven’t had local, Singapore food for some time.. so it was awesome when Jackie and Rob invited us over for dinner yesterday.. Rob and Jon’s colleague, Shankar were the cooks for the night. Check out the yummy, yummy food…

The lamb curry that Rob prepared was out-of-this world. I had 3 servings!!! More pictures on Jackie’s blog.

J and myself thought of giving ourselves a treat this Sunday, afterall it IS 10 years. We’re thinking of a buffet brunch, the champagne type.. heehee. We’ve been to the one at One-Ninety at Four Seasons twice, and might be going back there again. The food’s nice, ambience is too and the desserts are to-die-for, but it’d be great to have more suggestions. So, if you’ve been to a great champagne brunch, I’d love to know where. Do drop a post here, ya? Thanks!

Our princess turned 5 on July 9. We had a cozy family dinner at Baraonda Italian Restaurant at East Coast with B, T and the boys.

I thank God for these 5 wonderful years, she’s really brought much joy to J and myself.

You’ve got to try this if you haven’t:

Koung’s Wanton Mee
Lor 13 Geylang (you can’t miss it!)

Noodles are springy, char siew is tender, wantons are stuffed with meat. Yummm!!! Be prepared to wait though, 30-45mins when they’re really busy.

If you know me and Jon, you’d know we love steamboat. We eat it at least once a week. This is one of our favs, it’s at the Circuit Road Hawker Centre – love the shiok chilli and thick satay dip.

If you have a good steamboat joint to recommend, do leave a comment! Meanwhile, I’ll try to visit the rest that we frequent and I’ll post about them too.

It’s become almost like tradition. We’ll have Champagne brunch at Aunt Susan’s place and as usual, the food’s gastronomical. Here are some pics.

If you’re craving for a good steak, this recipe is the way to go.It’s taken from Epicurious. Of course, it’d help to have the best quality beef cut. Enjoy!

Oh yes, and on the subject of steak, this is a must if you want to have a good steak at home.

BEEF TENDERLOIN STEAKS WITH PORT-ROSEMARY SAUCE

SAUCE
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup minced shallots (about 4 ounces)
1 cup dry red wine
3/4 cup ruby Port
1 cup canned beef broth
1 sprig fresh rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dried

STEAKS
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 1-inch-thick beef tenderloin steaks (about 6 to 8 ounces each)

3 tablespoons chilled and unsalted butter
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary or 1/4 teaspoon dried

FOR SAUCE: Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add shallots and sauté until tender, about 3 minutes. Stir in wine and Port. Boil 5 minutes. Add broth and rosemary sprig and boil until liquid is reduced to 1/3 cup, about 12 minutes. Strain sauce and set aside. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

FOR STEAKS: Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Season steaks with salt and pepper. Add steaks to skillet and cook to desired doneness, about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer steaks to platter. Tent with foil to keep warm.

Add sauce to skillet and bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits. Remove from heat. Gradually add butter, whisking just until melted. Stir in chopped rosemary. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Spoon sauce over steaks and serve.

Serves 4.