I.M. magazine going bi-monthly

Guess what? Crowd-sourced I.M. magazine is going bi-monthly starting this year! In the Jan-Feb issue, I recap a few memorable moments of 2012 :)

I.M. magazine Jan-Feb 2013 by Adline A. Ghani

Review: Buying Live Snails Online from Captain Pets World

I've bought lots of things online... accessories, home decor, books, craft materials... even precious metals, but today I broke new ground... I bought LIVE animals online! I've been looking for some apple snails to add to my fish tank and I found some on sale online at Captain Pets World. I placed my order and got in touch with them via SMS on payment and shipping details. Two days later (today that is)...

My snails arrived! They were delivered by Gedex and were packed in this box. They came all the way from Pontian, Johor!

I wasn't at home to receive the package, so I asked my husband to document the unpacking process :) The blue bottle is fish meds.

When I got home from work, I gave the snails a rinse and put them in my tank. My dwarf gouramis were very inquisitive about their new tank buddies. I'm actually a little concerned, because I read that apple snails sometimes eat ramshorn snails. To my surprise though, a ramshorn snail started chasing one of the apple snails around. 

Soon it was tucked into the apple snail's side. What's that about? Is it trying to eat the larger snail? Speaking of eating, here's one of the apple snails munching on a carrot slice.

Anyway, I had ordered 2 apple snails, one golden and one magenta, but I got 3 because the shop owner said the golden ones aren't very pretty this time around. So they threw one in for free :) Amir has named the snails Stinky, Smelly and Slimy...

So, if you're tired of making trips to the pet store, do check out Captain Pets World. You can have pet supplies (and actual pets, as in certain live aquatic ones) delivered right to your door! I give them a thumbs up!

PS: Found another clutch of ramshorn snail eggs in my fish tank today!

My aquarium

Hey, what do you know! It's my first post of 2013! Happy New Year everybody! To kick things off, I'd like to share with you my new (old) hobby. I grew up with fish tanks around the home and I'm excited to have one of my own now that I can share with my son. So let me introduce you to my new pets :)

Here are Chop and Chip, our dwarf gouramis. I really like the new generation of fish tanks, the glass is streamlined and super clear. The waterfall filter and aquarium light are cool too.

Review: Online shopping - White.my

I love to shop online. There, I said it. What's not to love? You don't have to - drive or find a cab to get to the mall, fight through crowds, browse endless shops or contend with annoying salespeople. Products are made available to you in the comfort of your own home or office and they'll be delivered right to your doorstep. To me, this is the way to shop! I, personally, hate window shopping these days. They can be such a hassle, especially when you have the family in tow and time is of the essence! Since I've been doing quite a bit of online shopping of late, I thought I'd share some of my experiences with all of you on this blog.

Today, I'd like to review a Malaysian web store called White.my. You may have noticed their advertisement banner flashing on the top-right corner of this blog at some point. That's how I learnt about them, through a Nuffnang ad on my own blog! 

I was first attracted to White.my because their website is attractive and user friendly, their products look good, their prices are reasonable AND they offer FREE shipping! Yay! To test out the store, I ordered a quirky orange-coloured rice scoop in the shape of a squirrel, a few months back. Before I knew it, the rice scoop was sitting on my desk. 

Since I was pleased with the first delivery, more recently, I decided to buy a few household items. See below:

While I was checking out, however, I noticed something wasn't quite right. The system was charging me RM65 for shipping to West Malaysia, when shipping should be free. I found their contact number on the site and gave them a call. The guy I spoke to, Sham, was very nice. He helped me find out why there was this additional shipping cost and later told me that I had helped them out because I made them aware of a minor glitch in their system.

Anyway, soon the matter was resolved and my items were shipped promptly. I ordered my stuff the day before yesterday and they arrived at my office this morning. My colleagues were so impressed by the knives I had ordered for a friend that they wanted some too :)

Overall, I'm happy with White.my's products and delivery, so I'd happily recommend them to you. Right now, their range of products is rather limited, so I hope they will be adding more stuff soon. That way, we can shop for lots of stuff "under one roof" :) 

PS: If you haven't tried online shopping, give it a whirl, it's so convenient!  

Blast from the past & Felt food tute @ I.M. mag Dec 2012

Check out the awesomeness of December's I.M. magazine cover! I've got 2 articles out this month. The first, entitled Blast From the Past, looks at things that will get you into that 70s groove. The second is another felt food tutorial, this time for sandwich biscuits, which is also featured at my other blog My Felt Friends :)
IM mag Dec 2012

My 70s article is also featured on their online preview copy :) Here's a screen cap:

Get As with Zzzs @ Her World Dec 2012

Today's my first day back at the office and though I started off the day full of beans, by 5 pm I was already suffering from a headache :P Anyway, I'm happy to share with you my latest article in Her World and it has everything to do with the importance of sleep for kids. Got to get home and catch some Zzzs myself! Blasted headache!
Her World December 2012

Gold Coast Morib Resort

Hey everyone, we just got back from our stay at the Gold Coast Morib Resort this afternoon. I feel a little tired, but I can't quite take a nap, so I decided to blog my experience before I get too lazy to do it later. But, before we go any further, I have to say that I'm not trying to be overly critical in this review, I'm just being honest.  I promise you, I'm not one of those difficult travellers who complain about every single thing and rubbish hotels on Trip Advisor. I'm as easy-going as they come! So alright, here we go!  

Here's the front of the place. GCM is about a 2-hour drive from Petaling Jaya, where we live. I guess this makes it popular with Klang Valley folk. We chose GCM because Amir loves to take a dip in the pool and they have a water park! We had to check it out!

This is how I (spring) roll...

I like the ease of frozen foods, but some ready-made products don't turn out so well once you've thawed them. They can end up crispy on the outside, but mushy on the inside, or worse, they can fall apart while you're frying them!

I'm happy to say that I've found some ready-made spring rolls that hold together well, are easy to fry up and taste good too. I spotted these Wafi'z brand vegetable spring rolls at Kedai Ayamas and thought they looked good, so I got a pack of 20 for RM6.90. 

It says on the packet that it can go from "freezer to fryer," but I had to keep mine in the chiller section of my fridge for a few days, because I had run out of freezer space. Anyway, when I took them out to prepare for tea time today, they were already thawed out, so they fried up in no time. They were crispy and the filling was just nice too.

PS: Next time, I'll try frying them up without thawing them out first, to see how they turn out.

Food frenzy @ I.M. Magazine

This month, I.M. magazine is covering food, glorious food! So as a dedicated hantu makan, I have contributed not one, but two articles to this fun, quirky mag. The first article, Bucket List Eats, lists the 10 foods to try before you die. The second article, is a felt food tutorial on how to make iced gem biscuits. 

* You can check out more felt food tutorials and creations at my other blog My Felt Friends.

IM magazine Nov 2012

So Proud of My Baby XOXO

Yesterday, my mum and I attended Amir's school's prize giving ceremony. Amir came first in his class, 2 Kenanga!

A very happy boy with his certificate and trophy :) 

Kleenex Ultra Soft Fresh Blogger Contest Prize - Part 2

The second part of my Kleenex Ultra Soft Fresh Blogger Contest prize arrived yesterday. Thanks for the RM250 AEON shopping vouchers Kleenex!