LES OREILLES BALADEUSES

Last night, I had the privilege to meet 2 young french people who are on a trip (almost) around the world. Their goal was to go from France to Indonesia, but along their way, they managed to spend more than a year visiting countries like: Germany, Austria, Hungaria, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, China, Vietnam, Laos, just to name a few... Oh and by the way, they've been doing the whole trip by bicycle!! :)) 

You always hear about people who do these kinds of extraordinary voyages, but to actually meet them and hear their stories is something pretty special. They seemed like very open-minded, energetic people and one of their aims is to share their stories and the sounds and music of their travels to people back home. So they've created a blog, in French but you can certainly Google Translate it. I can imagine them looking back 20-30 years from now and have a huge smile on their face thinking about this wonderful journey :)

Here's their blog is you're interested to check it out: http://lesoreillesbaladeuses.blogspot.com/

INSPIRATION # 9

I'm going to be very random and just post some things that I've been pinning on my Pinterest page. Somehow, running between my job at YUM, tutoring kids, gym and being home before Amal goes to sleep has not given me time to relax and update my blog. But that's fine; that's life and this is what I'll see when I look back on these past few months: a very hectic busy yet satisfying schedule :)

I thought this cat shaped pre-school in Germany was really, really cool...The kids must be ecstatic to be in a school like this.

My eyes keep coming back to this outfit on my Pinterest page.... love the orange skirt paired with that flowy grey top..

I wish Amal were still at an age where I could dress him up.... This is an outfit that would totally fit him!

What can I say more than what the quote says? :)

HALLOWEEN ARTIST KIDS COSTUMES

Jordan Ferney from Oh Happy Day has done it again... I can't believe she thought about these costumes and made them happen! These are really cute :)

I doubt Amal would want to dress as Andy Warhol for Halloween (actually, he said he wanted to be a box! Seriously...) but these could maybe inspire other moms out there...

A LETTER FROM ERIN

I HAVE to share this letter with you which really touched me, and I feel goosebumps each time I read it. It's written by an 18-year old girl named Erin who lived in the Cipanas YUM Village for the past 6 years, and recently she got accepted to a top Indonesian university free of charge. Unfortunately, her monthly costs of living (accommodations, food, clothing, etc) were not free of charge so at YUM we tried to find her some funding via GlobalGiving. We successfully, in a matter of 2 weeks, with the help of many friends, found funding for her first year of living costs. And here is a letter I received from her, that she wrote to all the people who donated *snif snif* :)

Erin at university

Dear Donors,

I hope this letter finds you well.  I am Erin and in this opportunity, I would like to thank you and everybody who help me through “Help Erin Get a University Education in Bandung” project, so I can continue my education at University. I wish God will bless you with lots of happiness and fortune.

I was born in Pemalang, Central Java on March 3^rd, 1994.  I remember that when I was a little kid and studied at elementary school, my father did not have a fixed job.  He only worked when someone asked him for helps, so it was my mother who had to work hard to support our life.   I am very proud of her and I have a dream to change my family life condition and make my parents proud of me.  I am the fifth child with four sisters and two brothers.  Due to our financial condition all of my older siblings were only able to finish their education until Junior High School level.   

In this opportunity, I also would like to share with you about how I decided to move to Yayasan Usaha Mulia (YUM) in Cipanas, West Java. It was in 2006 when I just graduated from elementary school, my mother came to me and asked me if I would like to move to Cipanas to continue my study.  It is hard for me to decide but she convinced me that it would be the best way for me and my family.  She had great expectation that I could continue my education as high as possible.  So, I decided to leave my family and promised to myself that I would not disappoint my mother.  At the beginning, it was hard for me to live in Cipanas; I often missed my family back home.  I wanted to return to my family but I reconsidered again and thought that I had to do this for my family.  Here in Cipanas I was offered better education and facilities and one day I can improve my family life. 

In cipanas, YUM gave me an oppurtunity to go to study at the best Junior High School in that area called SMPNi 1 Sukaresmi.  Everyday I tried to adjust myself to local culture, language and new people. My grade for Sundanesse subject in first semester was not really good, since my hometown is in Pemalang, Central Java and YUM is in Cipanas, West Java, these two locations have different language. However, fortunately I got the first rank in my class! I was very happy with the result J.  At second class of junior high scholl, I was selected to represent my school in math competition among Junior High School students in District level and I got the third place. I graduated from Junior High School in 2009 and continue to Senior High School at my favorite school, SMAN 1 Sukaresmi.  At that time, like other students, I never thought that I would study at university since it would cost a lot and my family didn’t have a lot of money.  Finishing my high school was already a fortune for me and my family. However, I didn’t want to be hopeless and pry for a miracle.

Although, I didn’t know who would pay my expenses in university, when I graduated from Senior High School, I tried to enter university thru an invitation. But i failed, so I tried again thru national selection.   I was accepted in Animal Science Faculty of Padjdjaran University.   I  think it will be easier for me to get a  job after I graduate.  I learn that there are many people graduated from animal science faculty become a success person.  Sometimes I feel upset when people don’t understand about this faculty.  They think that after graduation, I only can work as an animal shepherd.  It encourages me to prove it that what they say is not true and I will be success. 

After graduate from university, I want to work in a company to earn money, so when I have a lot of money, I will use it to establish a restaurant providing all animal products.  The money will also give me an opportunity to continue my study to master degree so I can become a lecturer in university.  However, my first goal is to run a restaurant business.

Since I study at university, I gain a lot of benefits and my parents are very proud of myself.  I also can motivate my younger brother and sister to keep stay at school and study as high as possible.  

That is all I can tell about myself and all I can do now is to thank you and your friends for your help. 

Thank you!!!

I'm so happy for Erin and so proud of her achievements. Not only that, but she is showing all those who know her back home that if you work hard, no dream is too big! :)

EVERYTHING RAINBOW

Browsing through my Pinterest, I realized I had a few pics of various items with the rainbow theme so I thought I'd share with you:

This is a DIY of a simple white side table transformed by coloured japanese washi masking tape into a colourful one, made by Lady Croissant.

These kitchen utensils were given a new life by using different colours of non-toxic craft paint, made by Little Bit Funky.

I so want to sleep in these sheets (via The Company Store)

This is actually something I've always wanted to do in my own house, but it'll have to wait. When I browsed the blog of the one who posted this, I found it really cute and fun... check it out!

And of course.... the ultimate rainbow cake... though I've never actually tasted one that I really like (I did hear though that Convivium makes an awesome one!), this pic is mouth-watering!

INSPIRATION #8

A few latest discoveries via Pinterest:

Bright and homey house

A DIY home deodorizer - lemon, rosemary and vanilla

Gives me ideas for an upcoming class photo, via this website

It's so much easier to spoil your kids, let them do whatever they want... but when life bites them in the butt and they won't know how to handle difficulties, then it'll be your fault... so follow what the quote above says

SO INSPIRATIONAL

There's something about this video which completely left me speechless... I definitely wish I were in her shoes, not literally but her life seems so simple and classy. I especially love the scenes at the market and the breakfast table (of course!)... Enjoy!

THE BAREFOOT MOVEMENT

This TED talk is one of the most inspiring I've heard.

As explained by Roy Bunker about the Barefoot College: 

"So it's the only college in India where, if you should have a Ph.D. or a Master's, you are disqualified to come. You have to be a cop-out or a wash-out or a dropout to come to our college. You have to work with your hands. You have to have a dignity of labor. You have to show that you have a skill that you can offer to the community and provide a service to the community. So we started the Barefoot College, and we redefined professionalism."

"Who is a professional? A professional is someonewho has a combination of competence, confidence and belief. A water diviner is a professional. A traditional midwife is a professional. A traditional bowl setter is a professional."

This makes me think of YUM's plan to build a Vocation Technical & Training Center (VTTC) in Central Kalimantan, where nearly all the population in our working area have no education nor skill. If this succeeds, we'll be helping not only those who will be going to the VTTC but also their families and communities.

He ended with a quote by Mahatma Gandhi: 

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, and then you win."

IBU ROBIN

A week ago, I found out that among the 10 nominees for CNN Hero of 2011 was an American lady who lived in Bali and worked in helping poor mothers get the best possible healthcare service when it came to prenatal, birth and postnatal care. Then several days later, I hear that she actually won the award! And you can definitely see why when you view the videos below. What a caring, gentle, compassionate person! Congratulations Ibu Robin and may you and your clinic Bumi Sehat continue to prosper and help many more women and mothers!

Portrait of a Hero: Robin Lim by CNN_International


"Every baby's first breath on Earth could be one of peace and love. Every mother should be healthy and strong. Every birth could be safe and loving. But our world is not there yet." ~ Ibu Robin Lim

INSPIRATION #7

This outfit is so 1990s but somehow I like it a lot: simple, cozy and stylish. Photo found via The Sartorialist

Stephmodo just did a blog post about this new French magazine called Doolittle and seriously, it's too cute... Love the t-shirt with the face!

Amal's a big fan of making cookies and when I saw these from this blog, I knew I'll be doing them for Christmas :)

INSPIRATION #6

Beautiful bedroom design found on Apartment Therapy. Looks so cozy!

Super cute DIY felt monsters.... totally inspired to do this with Amal (found on Pinterest)

Been thinking a lot lately about having quotes around the house and I would definitely use this as one of them (found also via Pinterest)

BEING ELMO

This is one amazing documentary that I hope will hit theatres in Indonesia. This was featured on E! News yesterday (yes, a woman deserves a bit of celebrity news once in a while). I love the story of Kevin Clash, the puppeteer behind Elmo - how he had a calling for puppeteering from an early age, and got teased by his friends because of it, yet he continued to fight for his passion and finally landed a job with Sesame Street. That just gives hope to so many kids out there who have a passion which might not be mainstream but if it's a passion, they should stick with it and their parents should support them as much as possible.

Take a look at this and tell me if it's not heartwarming :)

HALLOWEEN INSPIRATIONS

Halloween is coming up and The Cooking Playdate girls & I are planning to have a Halloween-themed gathering very soon. So of course, with a bit of time on my plate, I went through my fave site pinterest and found a couple of amazing halloween inspired decorations & ideas for a party. Have a look and you might be inspired to make a party too!

I also found 2 sites with great halloween costume ideas: go here and here if you're curious :)

Liz from Say Yes to Hoboken shared a great idea to decorate your pumpkin and also some free Halloween printables

INSPIRATION #5

I have just spent the last hour looking at Pinterest, a site that has thousands of very cool images and for someone who collects images, I went completely gaga looking at this site. I had already seen PInterest a couple of months ago but wasn't hooked but tonight for some reason, I really got into it and found some really interesting, inspirational images:

Isn't this DIY kids' market place just the coolest thing ever?! I think I actually want to build this for when I do my farmer's market....

Sorry for the image of a toilet, but really, isn't this cute? A powder room below the staircase; a real efficient use of space...

I put this quote up here just because I really want to believe in it :)

I miss snow, I miss Europe, I miss clean air, I miss old buildings...

INSPIRATION #4

It's been a while since I've posted some inspirational photos on this blog...

All the above make me feel girly (which also means I want to buy all of them!). The color of the nail polish is called "Gris Montaigne" and I think it looks sexy!

[photo found on Cherry Blossom Girl]

I'm in the mood to cook and have friends over so this table looks perfect to put some nibbles.

[photo found on Sunday Suppers]

Ok I'm not planning to make a tattoo any day soon but if I do, it might be something like this :)

[forgot where I found this]

Have a great long weekend everyone!

INSPIRATION #3

I'm finally taking a few days off with my son and heading towards Kuala Lumpur to visit some family. I can't wait to get away from my daily routine and find some open space to walk and gather with family. I think holidays are essential (my French side is talking here!) and my family has always taken the time to get away together so I'm continuing this tradition with Amal :)

Before I leave, here are a few posts I found on Say Yes to Hoboken that are really cute and inspirational:

#1: Felt Animal Puppets

They are gorgeous! I'm so doing this project when I get back from my holidays.

For the instructions, go here.

#2: Blown Up Family Photos

I just love a great family portrait, especially when it's unusual like this one.

[found via poppytalk)

Happy Monday! Enjoy your week!

INSPIRATION #2

Blackboards, flowers and black-and-white postcards are individually inspiring

I love blue doors and windows (these photos were taken on an island called "Belle-Ile-en-Mer") - photos by La Tartine Gourmande

Love the design but especially love the words

[I'm so bad, I forgot where I got images 1 & 3. So if anyone knows, please let me know]

HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS

I feel so inspired by these photos... Oh, what I wouldn't do to have a house with a white fence, lots of flowers and an interior with splashes of color :)

I'll keep these images in my head because they say if you imagine and want it hard enough, it might come true..

[images seen via House Beautiful]

INSPIRATION #1

I like browsing and collecting pictures for inspiration and ideas. It makes me feel happy :)

I, unfortunately, can't remember where I got photo #1 and #2, but the last photo was taken by The Sartorialist, a blog about everyday fashion.

I love the bike because it makes me think of traveling around a city, enjoying sights + it's a really cool bike.

I love the colors of the vegetables because I feel in the mood to eat healthy and this looks super healthy.

And, in the last photo, I love the big clutch. I should try to find myself one :)