While my 2015 was a year of hard work and challenges (I left home and moved to Adelaide, went back to uni and graduated, got engaged, got married, and balanced uni work and life), 2016 is where I got to reap what I sowed. The Lord has been so incredibly good to us. The past few years of my life, I am repeatedly reminded to just have faith.

Finally had a weekend off and took the opportunity to drive back to Adelaide. It was a Saturday night so I arranged for my friends and I to have some fun at Adelaide's board game cafe, The Hungry Hippo. Oh yes, I'm a nerd and this is my idea of fun. Haha. I had been meaning to visit this cafe for ages. The reviews have always been good - saying that the food is as good as the games. And it's true!

The tourists are beginning to swarm Moonta. Summer has just about begun and because it's warm now, 'tis the season for crabbing and fishing. Meanwhile, us "locals" (okay, we've been here only a little over 2 months), continue on with our daily lives. Okay, maybe I'm actually sort of a tourist too. I'm still in the process of discovering what this little town has to offer and food is usually #1 on my priority list.

The best thing about fall fashion is that it's so easy to change your look by changing your layers. (Although we're approaching summer in Australia, it's autumn in other parts of the world..) So here's a post where I'm wearing the exact same outfit and transformed it to a whole different look by simply changing jackets and shoes.

When my family from America came to visit us in Australia, I quickly planned a 3-week holiday with stopovers in Sydney, Adelaide, and Melbourne. We started the trip in Sydney. It was winter time and if you didn't know, winter here is between June to August. We had a 13-year-old and a 3-year-old with us so if you're looking to plan a Sydney trip suitable for the whole family, you've come to the right place!

I've never thought I was particularly a "city girl" but I've never thought I would be a "country girl" either. Perhaps I've got too much city in me to be country, and perhaps country is too quiet for me to give up the city. If you've been following this blog for a while, you'd know I moved from the busy city of Cebu to starting a new life in Adelaide. This time, I moved 2 hours away from Adelaide, to a tiny town called Moonta for a work opportunity. I'm still in the process of adjusting to country life.

As soon as my Jord watch arrived, the husband excitedly opened the box and lo and behold, there was this gorgeous timepiece in the most beautiful box. I unintentionally ordered the watch a couple sizes too big so it fit the husband quite perfectly. Soon enough, he was calling it 'my watch.' And because I love him, I told him it's his now. And because he loves me, we share. Haha!

If you've been following this blog for a while, you'd know that I have an affinity for borrowing my then-boyfriend's watches as seen in blog posts HERE and HERE. So it's quite interesting to see that this time, now married, I get to share my very unique watch with him.

Winter has officially come to an end in Australia. September means the start of spring and these Zaful items arrived just in time. So on a sunny day, I grabbed my boho style beach blanket and off I went to the park.

The snow was exactly how I had imagined it to be - pristine white, soft, and utterly beautiful. It was our first time to see snow and we were off on a skiing adventure. Skiing, on the other hand, was NOT how I had imagined it to be. If you're a first timer/beginner and are planning your first snow adventure at Mt. Buller, then read on for a detailed copy of our itinerary and budget breakdown.

My first snow experience!

One of the best things about going around Adelaide is that you can easily feel like you have transported yourself to a whole new different world - if only for an hour. For today's post, we travel to one of Australia's best geological and archaeological sites. But don't take it from me, I'm no expert and surely can't explain how over a history of millions of years, nature took its toll and resulted into this beauty (check out official South Australia websites for more on the history). And geologists and archaeologists might be able to explain their different scientific theories and histories, but really, we cannot even begin to grasp the wonder of God's marvelous creations. How beautiful are the works of your hands, oh Lord?

For our first wedding anniversary, K and I drove down south of Adelaide to McLaren Vale for a holiday. Because our anniversary fell on a weekday, the internet wasn't too helpful when I googled "what to do in McLaren Vale" since all the events were held during the weekend. But since we had already booked our stay and we would be happy exploring on our own anyway, we pushed through. So if you're looking for a guide of where to stay, what to do (on weekdays and other days), and how much you can expect to spend, read on.

First of all, let me tell you about my hair. It's natural, untreated, "virgin hair". It's very black, very thick and very straight. In other words, very stubborn. Don't get me wrong, I love my hair but it definitely takes forever to style in curls and more than twice the amount of product to keep it from straightening itself out. In fact, running a hand through the curls will be enough to straighten my hair out if you don't put enough product. So if you want to know how this flat iron fared, read on!

When Scoopon offered a deal for a "magical 2 hour dolphin cruise with lunch and a drink on Port River" at a very affordable price, who was I to resist? At only $49 for 4 people, it was a perfect idea for a double date.

I was so stoked when my Dresslink items arrived in the mail. Ever since co-ords became a trend, I've always wanted a pair with a white-and-blue print and this one reminded me of porcelain designs. I just couldn't find a set that I loved in shops. Plus, with my petite size, rompers and the like sold in Adelaide just didn't fit me right. Fortunately, I've found the perfect pair.

When I saw this pair of sunnies on Firmoo's website, I immediately knew that I would be taking them with me to the beach. Firmoo is a global online optical store with a great selection of prescription and non-prescription glasses and they've got an awesome range of sunglasses as well. Personally, I was lusting after their aviator sunglasses so imagine how excited I was when I received my sunnies here in Australia only 1 week after I placed my order (fast shipping!).

Did you know that the cherries found in cocktails, canned fruit cocktail, or on top of your ice cream aren't "real cherries"? To be perfectly honest, I had no idea until I arrived in Australia and tasted real and natural cherries. Apparently, maraschino cherries or decorative cherries undergo a process of bleaching and preservation with sulfur dioxide and calcium chloride and then soaked in food coloring, corn syrup and others. Real cherries taste nothing like it! In fact, here's a beautiful pair, freshly picked by myself.