Hot Chocolate

PQ Hot Chocolate

I have given up my daily Lattes for a while now, and in my case it made a huge difference with my weight loss. However, I still indulge, at least once a week, in a cup of hot chocolate as a treat to myself for being a good girl.



My top five hot chocolates :


Gelato Italiano Hot Chocolate
 Paul's Hot chocolate


Second Cup Hot chocolate


Pain Quotidian Hot chocolate


Chocolate Bar Dark hot chocolate

Paul's Hot Chocolate

I picked this at Duabi's air port thinking I was in for a treat.

It wasn't as good as it seemed and had to double the amount indicated by the instructions to get the required results.

Wake Up Everybody

This song is soo inspiring.
Talk with your kids, listen to them and set good example.
My favorite time with my kids is reading time. I read them stories from whatever book I'm reading and they love it especially if I let them play act it :)

Dinner at the Diwaniya

Every Friday is our gathering, as I like to call it "Our Diwaniya", just to annoy Fahad. I decided to make dinner that night. Nothing elegant on the menu, but very delicious Kuwaiti comfort food!

So what's on the menu?


Balalee6 (sweet saffron vermicelli topped with herbed eggs)


Baith Tomat (Scrambled eggs with tomato and onions topped with parsley)


Falfel with a my special Tahina sauce (not pictured)


Chili Hommus (Not too spicy but it makes you to eat more of it)


Ratia (Cucumber with yogurt and herbs)


Um3azoz's Foul! (my own secret recipe of mixed spices)


Roca salad with parmesan, cherry tomatoes, sundried tomatoes and a simple balsamic dressing.


Iranian Bread with sesame (not pictured)

Chai 7aleeb (Milk with Tea...no not the watered down kind, I heat the milk with a mix of my spices, then I let it rest. Before serving I heat it again this time adding tea bags depending on the amount of milk, then I strain it in the serving thermostat. Unfortunately it isn't pictured here.) All in all the food was very very good! And the girls enjoyed it very much. Inshallah after the vacation, with this weather at it's best, I want to barbecue :)

Our Diwaniya...it is at my friend Noonoo's house. The space was made for our gatherings. It is opened every day for whoever wants to pass by but all of us gather once a week :)

Antipasti: Cheddar & Emental Cheese, Calamata Olives,

Pesto,Green Olives stuffed with Sundried Tomatoes,

Mushrooms in vinegar and spices,

Peppers stuffed with Cheese (my favorite).

All from TSC.

 Falfel & Chili Hommus.

 I mix the green chili with the Hommus to give it that Zing!

The Falfel was store bought, but the Hommus was made

by yours truely :)

The Tahina Sauce wasn't pictured.

 Ratia. Yogurt & Cucumber...

best to help digest all this yummy food :p

Baith Tomat. It is delicious! Best ever!

Foul. My presentation sucks but the taste is amazing!

It impressed Noonoo, who is a picky eater!!!

Balaalee6... I think I will make it for the picnic...

What do you think? Yes?

Simple Roca Salad

And of course my Chocolate bread pudding.

I had something else I wanted to make,

unfortunately I was running out of time and

had to whip up something fast.

Bring Gelato is always a welcome to my friends,

however I wanted soemthing different this time.

New Menu at Life With CoCao

Last Wednesday I was invited by Ansam as Pink Coffee for Life with Cocao Marketing PR, to try new items on their menu, and I had to bring a friend!



Unfortunately I misunderstood and I thought we were just there to try their desserts. So after a long day I had a late lunch at home and got ready to head to 360 Mall. I was really sorry to find out that the sampling included their savory dishes. I'll need another visit inshallah and try other dishes.


However, my friend and I have really enjoyed their desserts. They were superb!!! And we had a good chat with Chef Marcus. He explained to us what his philosophy in preparing these dishes, everything fresh and made from scratch! Yep I'm definitely going to go back, taking my monkeys with me, to try their salads, pastas and sandwiches.

It was also nice to see my fellow bloggerettes. It has been a while gals!

We ordered several desserts and shared them. And here they are :)

  Hazelnut Cake...  I loved digging into this cake every layer is different from the other. I loved the final layer of hazelnuts and caramel sauce. It was so yummy!!!

 The Dome

I loved the presentation!

It was absolutely elegant.

 It was a chocolate mousse with a center of mango mousse. The flavor combination took me back to my childhood. Now tell who didn't have mangoa and chocolate boutha in their life???

I loved the opend chocolate shells filled with different flavored centers. We actually argued on who will try what ;p

The White Square.  It is a mascarpone cheese cake withe chocolate cakeand filled with chocolate sauce...

It was very light and delicious.

I also liked their ice cream.

Since I forgot to bring my "Handy Dandy" note book,

I had to make my notes on a napkin. My handwriting isn't that

good but not as bad as this ;p

I  ordered a double Espresso...

and Yep I stayed awake half the night ;p

And of course their fabolous staff! They were super friendly!

And here they were making funny faces when Dudette from HajiDude.com asked them to do something funny for the camera ;p

No More Shoes

YEAH! AS IF!!!

I'm practically salivating whenever I look at these two heels even when I swore no more Loubies for me because they kill my feet!!!

But I might give these two a try and I hope they are available at Salhiya. I don't want to order them and then they'd join their brethrens in my shoe closet without being worn :s

Lately I've been buying more platforms because I feel they are more comfortable when I wear and walk in them, but not when I have to walk on uneven ground and take a tumble

which I've done on several occasions ;p

Eid Mubarak!

Movies We Watched

One of the reasons I enjoy going to the movies in Dubai it isn't because the movies are uncensored…it's because wherever Cineplex I go to they have very clean bathrooms! (3azkom allah)

Whenever there is a group of blockbusters are being played on the same week, we fly there for a couple of days just to enjoy them,

un-slaughtered by censorship.

I love the selection of sweets, chocolate, drinks and popcorns at the counter; they even have ice creams, fries, hotdogs nachos and crepes in savory and sweet flavors. I know we have something similar here but there it is tastier! Maybe because they have a bigger selection to choose from.

There were times on past trips, when we stayed there for a whole day, watching four movies in a day!

We spent time at Festival City Cinema and Grand Megaplex

(Ibn Battuta Mall)

 Who doesn't love Wonka Candy??!!!

 Giant M&M's it lasted 3 days with me :)

 Popcorn flavored salts...I know TSC brings them and I bought them few times...but it was a surprise to find them at the cinema :)

 Some wipes to clean up after having a greasy hotdog

or a mix of sweet and salty popcorn ;p

 Yummy Fries!

However you like them...I had the twisters

Oh yes..your own 3D glasses... new, clean and unworn,

but you have to pay for them..

I took them back for the boys ;p

Now the movies we watched:

I was really looking forward to watch this movie.

It was entertaining and I liked the action but

highly exaggerated and unrealistic.

Very entertaining. I loved the Rocky meets Robetech theme!

Waiting to get a copy on DVD for the boys to watch it

on our family movie night.

It was ok and had it's funny moments...

Fahad didn't like it.

 Cowboys and Aliens??? It was a very fun movie to watch!!!

I loved it actually and there were some scenes

when I jumped out of my seat!

We both loved the movie.

The plot has been exhausted in several movies,

 nevertheless, it was very funny!

For those who didn't watch the movie

wait until it comes out on DVD.

Well that was it...

Trip to Dubai

I'm back! I spent a whole week in Dubai doing…. Nothing!

Before we left, I told Fahad that I wanted to sleep late and take everything very slowly! And I warned him if he wakes me up at 5 am, I'll book myself another room! I can't remember when was the last time I really slept late.


Another thing…I didn't want to worry about the boys. As it happens I left during a time when Abdulaziz was having his exams, and I trusted my sisters to help him study. They did a great job with him, and I kept repeating to myself on the way to Dubai "I don't want to worry about him!"


We stayed at The Address Dubai Mall. I was a bit apprehensive because a lot didn't encourage us to stay there, even the travel agent who we deal with, she was a bit hesitant when I asked her about it. The rooms weren't that big, but they were clean and I loved the bed! It was one of the most comfortable beds I slept in at hotels. Loved it! And the service was good too.


We woke up late and left at our leisure for breakfast or brunch. Then we'd go for a walk around the mall and then cozy up in one of the many coffee shops and read our books. A couple of nights we met with friends who were there for dinner and movies, but most of the time we just zoned out!


I did a little shopping but nothing with the "WOW" factor attached to it. I guess the highlight of this trip was Book World by KinoKuniya. Yes! I was practically jumping with excitement by the amount of books they had there. We spent half a day there browsing through books from every genre and subject. I know! I'm a geek! So is Fahad! And I'm already making plans to fly there for a day sometime very soon for more books I've been adding to the list of books I wanted to read. It is just a shame we don't have book shops like this in K-Town.


All in all our trip was super! Even when I got back I was still zoned out until my kids came back to me. (No they didn't want to get back, they wanted to stay with their aunties)


Here are some pics I took whenever I remembered while I was there. Yes I know lots of food ;p

 Who Loves Rugby?

 I didn't have anything to eat the evening before and while finishing packing in the morning I didn't eat anything...so this breakfast on the plane was super yummy!

 The lobby at the Adress Dubai Mall

 Oh yes!!! Our room 518!!!

 Inside the room. It was really nice.

I love the bed so comfy!!

 A pic of the bathroom

 Mini Bar. I really loved the Green Tea brand

they use. There is no bitterness to it.

Lunch at Joe's Cafe.

 I loved the pictuers hanging on the wall and

our table was under a pic of Jeremy Irons

 Lately I've been ordering Iced Tea without syrup of course. It is my new Haba! This one an Arnold Palmer was yummy
and I used stevia to sweeten it :)

 I was really hungry so I ordered their signature dish, risotto with a creamy pink sauce and chicken. It was suprisingly light!
I want to replicate this in my kitchen ;)

 Fahad had the grilled chicken with steamed veggie... mmmm you think he is going healthy??? NOT! He ordered a side dish of fries (not pictures)

 This is my Disney World!!

rows and rows of shelves filled with books!

I don't mind living there!

 *sigh* Yes I'm already making plans to go there again inshallah!

 Some  of our evenings we spent it at the movies.

 Breakfast at D&D with a wonderful view of the fountain.

 It is such a beautiful view and in the evenings even better!

 One of the best Almond criossants I ever had.

 Fahad and I also shared this cheesy omlete

with mushrooms and grilled tomatoe.

Very yummy!

 Afternoon Tea at Karat lounge at the hotel. I liked the lounge because thier chairs were so relaxing and we cozied with out books until it was time we had to meet our friends.

 White tea. I loved the set. I want to have a

an afternoon tea gathering some day.

 Mini Yummy finger food. I twas good but

I didn't like their macaroons.

 I liked the scones and mini brioche and the spreads.

 One evening while browsing through the shops I saw this Organic Food & Cafe Store. It is similar to D&D except it's done in an organicky way ;p Of course I had to brows inside the store and I got amazing soaps in different frangrance and Organic teas for myself and my sisters.

 Of course no stay or a visit at Dubai Mall without a stop at Magnolia Bakery...right?

 Although I wanted to try everything but I'm trying my best to not lose it during the trip and we were already feeling full, so I took these for cupcakes for a late evening snack ;)

The only one I didn't like was the Red Velvet ;p

 Because I've been shopping for a dinning table this one has

caught my attention even though it isn't what I'm looking for.

It is pretty and I loved the table set.

I liked the black and white table set of New York,

and they had other amazing stuff.

All in all, Al7amdullah, it was a wonderful trip.

We really took things slow and enjoyed ourselves.

Yes there isn't many pictures, because I didn't

do anything!