Dim Sum Fun

I went with some girlfriends to Golden BBQ in Chamblee for dim sum. This had only been my second time going out for dim sum so I was excited to try a different place. The place itself was a bit dirty looking for my taste. You order dim sum off the menu so there is no cart going around showing off the goods. One of our friends ordered for us which we all greatly appreciated!

I loved the greens! Simple, but delicious!

Sesame balls with red beans. This was yummy.

This has shrimps inside.

This is almost the same as the one above, but with bbq meat. I wasn't a fan of the flavor, although the meat by itself would be good. But together, somehow, I didn't feel like they went together.

Chicken feet. Yeah, you heard that right. And my favorite!!! Not kidding. Where's Brandon for that kiss?

I don't remember trying this dish.

Or this.

Or this.

Or this.

So, in summary, I don't remember tasting some of these things. But I will say, the chicken feet was awesome!!! 

If you ever get the chance, you should totally grab some adventurous friends, head to Buford Highway, and get some dim sum!

Thanks for reading!

Kaolee

Fresh Soy Face Cleanser

I've been using the Fresh Soy Face Cleanser in the evening, and I have been loving it! This is for all skin types, and it is a very gentle gel cleanser. This product has the following ingredients to help with various skin needs:

-Amino acid-rich soy proteins help maintain elasticity and health skin
-Rosewater is notable for its calming and balancing properties
-Calming cucumber extract aids in soothing the skin
-Borage seed oil helps to nourish

This cleanser has no parabens, sulfates, or phthalates. The cucumber extract is very prominent, and probably my favorite part of this cleanser. I like using this in the evening because it smells so relaxing, and makes me feel like I'm at the spa. This make my skin feel super soft and "fresh". If you are looking for a super gentle cleanser, this would be a great one!

Kaolee

Week 2/2 - Meal Planning

Last Saturday, Brandon and I went to the store to get groceries so that we could meal plan for the week. We had wanted to have a decent dinner every weeknight; however, due to work, we only had two nights of decent dinners. Here's what we bought:

The recipe called for dried mushrooms, but we just used regular fresh mushrooms. I do still want to try the dried ones as they sounded and looked interesting.

This dish is similar to the Korean dish; however, underneath all that goodness was cauliflower. I wasn't too fond of all the cauliflower; it just felt like I was eating rabbit food. You don't get all the carbs by eating the cauliflower, but I'll take my carbs and eat this with rice next time.

Do you meal plan? And if you do, do you have any meal planning hacks?

Thanks for reading!

Kaolee

On Getting Lash Extensions

I have some of the shortest, weakest lashes ever! I am always so jealous of ladies who are blessed with beautiful, thick eyelashes. Eyelashes just really help to open up your eyes and make you look more awake. I had always wanted to get them, but the price scared me quite a bit. With my budget, it isn't something that I can just make myself get.

I was out at lunch with one of my work teams, and I noticed that my coworker's lashes were absolutely long and beautiful. She has beautiful eyes, but on that day, they were especially gorgeous. I asked her if they were real (is that taboo for me to point it out?!!!). Anyways, she told me about the process, and who she used. Turns out that the girl she uses was Hmong, and was one of my friend's friend! Small world huh?! My coworker told me about the holiday special, and I thought, if I want it, now is my chance! My aunt, and another friend got extensions as well.

This particular eyelash extension technician did it out of her home. Brandon was supposed to watch Mason but was helping someone move so I had no choice but to take Mason. She was totally fine with me taking Mason, and at some point, her daughter and son actually helped watch Mason. When I got there, we talked about what I wanted, and I told her that since I worked in the corporate world, I don't want anything too dramatic. The 12s was the shortest so I asked for the 13s. She has an Instagram page so I looked at some pictures just to get an idea. I laid on a massage looking table on my back and closed my eyes while she put the lashes on. Since this was before Christmas, she had asked me what music I wanted, and I asked for Christmas music. I think she must have thought that was a little odd, me being Hmong and all, but I love Christmas! Anyways, the process was totally painless. However, it did take 3 hours. That time passed by really quick. It was super calming and relaxing though, so calm that I think I may have fallen asleep at some point!

My lashes lasted for maybe 4 weeks, and then it started going all crazy on me. The technician gave me a brush, and advised me to brush it daily but I wasn't the most diligent, and once the lashes got a little crazy, there was no helping it. After about 3 weeks, a few of them started turning in weird directions which didn't bothered me too much, but Brandon was constantly reminding me to brush them out. I did love them very much, and it meant that I didn't have to put mascara on, or remove all that mascara at the end of the night; however, there were a few things that annoyed me about them.

First, I couldn't wear my sunglasses! I don't have a very high nose bridge so when I wear my sunglasses (or glasses), my extensions would hit my glasses and it was absolutely annoying. My sunglasses would have to be at the very tip of my nose, and almost falling off. It was ideal at all. I know, boohoo, complaining! Secondly, I hate not being able to just stand under the shower, lashes and all. I had to remember to be careful when washing my face, and taking off my makeup. You can't use oil makeup cleanser which wasn't an issue for me, but if you wear waterproof liners, you may prefer oil makeup cleanser which can mess with the glue and cause your extensions to fall. Third, since my eye shapes are not symmetrical, they did not look even with the lashes. My left eyelashes curl upward but because my right eye is more hooded, my lashes on that eye tends to go down more so with the extensions, this issue was exacerbated. I had brought this up to my technician's attention, but I don't think she understood until I pointed it out to her. Looking back, I definitely feel like she should have addressed this sooner. She was going to charge me extra to try and fix it, but I honestly didn't want to spend more money on something that I felt was something she should have noticed. She said that she had never experienced this with anyone else. Lastly, the growing out phase is so freaking annoying. As the lashes fall out, my eyelashes looked weird with the long extensions coupled with my short, skimpy ones. And although my lashes went back to normal, I did feel like the extensions made my lashes a bit skimpier and weaker right after the extensions fell out.

Overall verdict, I think this would be great for vacation or a special occasion, but for myself, I prefer my real lashes, weak and tiny as they are!

Have you tried extensions, and if so, how did you like them?

Thanks for reading!

Kaolee

Happy 9 Years!

For our anniversary, I asked friends where we should go, and everyone praised the Sun Dial Restaurant so we decided to go there for this year's anniversary dinner. The Sun Dial Restaurant is on top of the Westin Hotel in Downtown Atlanta. You can get free valet with your $75 food purchase. 

When we got there, the hostess said that she had to count in order to remember where our seats were. I didn't quite understand what she meant until we got to our table. The interior of the restaurant spins around so that you can see all of Atlanta which was so cool. I didn't realize that it actually spins around. And of course, when I say spin, I mean, very very slowly. It won't make you dizzy unless you look down at the floor where it is moving. We were at dinner for about two hours, and I believe were had two whole rotation of Atlanta. We missed the sunset which would have been nice, but it was still amazing to see all of Atlanta.

Our waitress had been working there since December of 1983!!! She was a bit chatty, and we didn't get water/soda refills very much but she was nonetheless very pleasant. At the end, she offered to take our pictures standing in front of the glass which I was surprised at since I feel like at some places, people are not as receptive to picture taking, but I was glad she offered.

Overall, I enjoyed this place, and I'm so glad we got a babysitter, and had some time to ourselves.

Braised Oxtail - This is so delicious!!! We also ordered the Spicy Garlic Shrimp, but ate that before I remembered to take a picture. Both were superb, but the Braised Oxtail was definitely my type of dish.

Raspberry Lacquered Duck Breast - This was served medium, and totally melted in my mouth. So delicious! The zucchini bread french toast (it's a bit hidden in the picture above) was a little drier, but with the sauce, I think it was perfect. The french toast was very good though.  

Brandon got the Wood Roasted Salmon. It came with sweet gnocchi which I had never tried before, and this was very, very good. The salmon was cooked perfectly and all the flavors together were so, so yummy. 

I saw the creme brulee on the menu, and knew right away that was what I wanted. Brandon wanted the molten cake, but that was vetoed. Sorry Brandon! The creme brulee did not disappoint. Just thinking about it now makes me want some so bad!

Selfies! We so need a selfie stick! 

What a brilliant idea! I thought it was so cool that I could look down right at the streets, and see everyone walking around. 

Here's to another year of us!

Thanks for reading!

-Kaolee