Buddy

I'd like for you to meet my new special someone.

This little fawn-colored pompom with legs is Buddy and he is the newest recruit in our household.

He was sold to us as a Maltipoo, the same breed as our sweet girl Millie who we sadly lost after only a week. However the vet seems to think he is half Maltese and half Shitzu. So what does that make him~ a Maltishit?? 

Oh dear! Well, whatever he is, we are smitten with him. 

My Dad wanted to name him Walter, so we would have Walter and Jessie like the two main characters in Breaking Bad, but my Mom vetoed it and we all settled on Buddy.

Jess is 5 months old now and a lot more sensible so she is being very good at tolerating this sassy little guy all up in her personal space. Buddy has a mean case of 'bite worse than his bark'~ he has the girliest little scream/bark but watch out for those piranha teeth- oosh!

I remember Jess was the same at is age, we all loved her best when she was sleepy because that's when you can sneak in a few cuddles before they get all squirmy and want to get to the toys on the floor.

He's proving much easier to train though and homeboy already has a good handle on peeing on the paper.

Does that really justify me making him dance for his supper though??

hee hee!

Buddy says "Happy Friday Loves!"

⋙⋙⋙currently⋙⋙⋙

⋙⋙⋙ planning⋙⋙⋙

Tired eyes and bed head~ I'm planning to sleep for the next 10 hours.

 We drove 8 and a half hours in the rain to collect this little sass-mouth today.

Folks, meet Buddy. The new man in my life.

 Just look at that belly.

Blurry photo c/o my equally exhausted mom.

Buddy post coming soon!

⋙⋙⋙ reading⋙⋙⋙

Currently reading this quirky little illustrated travel diary on my kindle.

 This is such a lovely little book, and proof that sometimes it pays off to judge a book by it's cover! 

⋙⋙⋙ watching⋙⋙⋙

Have you ever seen a wild rose? They are growing in abundance by our house.
They smell like beautifully clean sheets on a freshly made bed. 
I must pick a few to make some rose petal ice cubes.

⋙⋙⋙ eating⋙⋙⋙

I've been treating my sweet tooth here lately. In a clean way.

This week I made Almond Milk for the first time, with a few yummy flavourings thrown in. Perfect for making chai tea and pouring over muesli in the mornings.

The creamiest peach strawberry smoothie, I know it's twee but it's definitely more fun drinking them from a mason jar with a pretty straw ^.^

These ice pops were so yummy and easy to make~ just blend coconut milk, peanut butter, unsweetened cocoa powder and 1 banana and pour liquid into ice pop moulds.

⋙⋙⋙ writing⋙⋙⋙

I've been catching up on my letter writing this week. If your waiting for post from me, it's being sent this Monday I promise!

⋙⋙⋙ listening⋙⋙⋙

So excited about Fleetwood Mac's new single. It's all over the radio at the moment and I turn it all the way up every time.

⋙⋙⋙ learning⋙⋙⋙

⋙⋙⋙currently⋙⋙⋙

⋙⋙⋙ reading⋙⋙⋙

I picked up my Dad's copy of Willie Nelson's 'Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die" and have started  thumbing through it... my old man managed to find a copy signed and doodled by the bandanna man himself which is pretty cool!

The book is full of hilarious anecdotes... my favorite so far is on the art of farting:

"My grandmother slapped a fart out of me one time that whistled like a freight train. It scared both of us really bad.

 She never hit me again."

⋙⋙⋙ planning⋙⋙⋙

Next week I'll be heading back to Gweedore in Donegal for a few days of beach combing~ I plan on filling the car trunk with rocks, shells and driftwood which I can bring home and paint.

⋙⋙⋙ watching⋙⋙⋙

Jess curled up by my feet, asleep.

⋙⋙⋙ eating⋙⋙⋙

Tomato and basil soup with pesto and sun dried tomato wholemeal bread rolls.

I've also just discovered Sage tea~ it has anxiolytic properties which are of great benefit to me as I'm weaning of anti-anxiety medication right now.

⋙⋙⋙ writing⋙⋙⋙

I love to write my blog posts in the twilight of the day...when the sun has kicked it's boots off 'till the morrow and I can hear the birds shooting the breeze through the open window, ringing and chiming from the trees like little bells.

⋙⋙⋙ listening⋙⋙⋙

Lots of Patti Smith, Willie and Tom Waits, also I discovered Camel Heads through the penabranca tumblr which describes it perfectly and thusly:

"Influenced by Dead Man and North African desert blues, these long-form kraut jams will leave your brains baking on a rock in the Global South, drenched in cosmic sweat. Like waves crashing into the shoreline, the ebb and flow of Anoluz will free your mind, bury your toes in pink sand, and orient your lawn chair towards the sunset." 

Listening to this I kind of feel like I've walked into a bar in one of those Western films and I got a tinglin' in my trigger finger.

⋙⋙⋙ learning⋙⋙⋙

I can always learn a little something from John.

may flower

Hallo again friends!

I'm back from adventuring through my old haunts in London these past six days... and my Thirtieth birthday turned out to be my best yet! 

I have tons of photos of my trip to sift through before I start posting my escapades, but I can say that after such a long period away from my home city I kind of saw it anew, as if for the first time... and it sure made me swoon.

The weather was flirting with Spring, April cherry blossoms were putting on a show, the Tube smelt the same and there were plenty of fly by the wind opportunities for doing something completely random...like going to the circus!

The trip was a great salve for my ache for a change in scenery, and not only that, I feel a move back to the big smoke coming on!

But more on that later ^.~

I have returned to Ireland to welcome a fresh new month, sun spots on my bedroom wall, a half-grown pup, birthday card making and lots and lots of planning and scheming for my future....

{craft feather c/o Wholeport}

Oh how short, sweet escapes can do wonders for ones soul!

puppy breath

{Jess}

Our country house is officially a home.

Two bonnie baby puppies are currently tug tug tugging at our heart-strings, chewing our bare toes and giving us puppy-tongue kisses with a side of puppy breath right in the smacker!

{Millie}

I got a bad case of puppy love!!

First we collected Jess, our baby West Highland Terrier, and yesterday little Millie was introduced to the house of fun. Millie is a two month old cross between a Maltese and a Poodle, a breed known as a 'Maltipoo'.

Both are ridiculously cute and soaking up the newness of our home and family .

Little Jessie has had full run of the house to herself for three days so her nose is still fairly put out of joint at her little fluffy rival, but slowly, slowly the growls and nips are giving way to waggy tails and bottom sniffing (the doggy equivalent of "hello"~~, sorry, I don't make up the doggy rules!!)

It will take a few weeks to get them properly acquainted, Jess is definitely behaving like the more dominant dog because Millie is so timid and submissive, but until then we are making sure to give both lots and lots of love and play.

These are the best shots I could get of them as they are on the move so much that it's hard to capture them in a still position unless they are very sleepy or asleep~~

 but I will keep posting more puppy pics (try and stop me!) ^.^

I can't wait til they bond and become sisters, to each other and to little ol' only child me!

Three cheers for smelly puppy breath!

pen + paper

It makes my heart so happy to know so many of my readers share my adoration for pretty handritten letter swaps and I've had such a wonderful time creating individual little pen and paper creations for everyone who has contacted me for mail and package swaps.

Since I will be relocating very soon to Ireland my return address for all those who I am currently pen-palling with will be different.

I have emailed everyone who I am actively involved in exchanges with right now to let them know my new mailing address but in case I have overlooked anyone and you haven't heard from me please email me at tremblingstarz {at} gmail {dot} com for my new address.

I don't want this move to affect any standing pen-pals I've already made, I'm forever happy when I'm sitting down surrounded by paper and pen and handmade envelopes connecting with mysterious people from faraway places.

If you want to become a pen-pal don't hesitate to email me.

I'd love to connect with you via mailbox!

mail swaps

My love for all things sealed inside an envelope and found hidden inside letterboxes is no secret around these parts and today I wanted to give you a little peek inside one of my received envelopes ^^

I had the sweetest gift waiting for me in my mail box last week... a package swap from the beautiful Nicole from Gypsy in Jasper.

Nicole is from the Canadian Rockies and she put together the loveliest little treasures for me to discover in her package including stickers, cute woven bracelets, a scarf, wooden beads and this adorable crochet envelope that she hand-made herself.

Everything was so thoughtful and put together with love and attention, right down to the sweet message inside the card.

Thank you so much Nicole, I was delighted with every last thing and can't wait to send a treasure or two over to your part of the world!

If you are interested in taking part in snail mail or package swaps with me see this post for how to get in touch.

I love connecting with people the world over through this little internet pocket I have or through all things handwritten and lovely!

Also, why don't you pop over to Abhaya today where I am guest posting for Sondra while she gypsy steps her way around India (lucky thing). 

You can discover my second Korean love beside the paper goods...cute cosmetics!

3 little things

One week, three tiny joys.

1. Free shoes!!

When Blowfish offered to send me a free pair of their new Spring season shoes to showcase on my blog I said "HELL YEAH!"

They arrived last week and they are beautiful.

Keep your eyes peeled for my first ever style post next week. 

 (not a direction I ever thought of taking on this blog but what girl can turn down a  free pair of shoes? 

"Not I", said the cat.)

2. Breakfast of champions

Lately this chilly season has me reaching for the kind of tasty comfort foods that are usually bad but oh... so good!

I've been treating myself these cold winter mornings to a breakfast of creamy chocolate milk and tuna and mayonnaise samgak kimbap, or triangle kimbap, which is basically rice wrapped in dried seaweed with a tuna and mayonnaise centre.

I know everything about this breakfast sounds wrong, but trust me, it's delicious!

3. Baby Wig Wams for my baby matryoshkas

I found the template for these adorable paper craft teepees on the same site I found the printable feathers for my cupid's arrow diy post.

Just so happens they are the perfect size to house my ceramic matryoshka beads.

Tiny joys, friends, tiny joys.

~.^ 

a sponsored post: DIY cupid's arrows

The happiest of Valentine's Days to all of you gorgeous people ♥ 

The old lady who lives inside me who loves to stitch and sew and make things with little glass beads rocked a little faster back n forth in her rocking chair when the lovely people at online craft supply store Wholeport offered to send me a parcel of goodies to craft with ^^

Among other pretty little doo-dads they sent me this lovely packet of masking stickers~ this is basically the sticker version of the Japanese washi tape that has been taking the crafting world by storm.

I've been wanting to use washi tape in a DIY post for a while now and the love-heart decoration on these gave me the inspiration to make these sweet-as-can-be Valentine's cupid arrows to give to your sweetheart on Valentine's day.

Behold the materials:
~ feathers (I searched high and low for craft feathers but they are apparently a rarity in Korea , so I made do with this feather printable)
~ washi tape/decorative sticker strips from Wholeport
~ bamboo sticks
~ craft wood chips (I sifted through untill I found some that resembled the shape of arrow heads)

Step 1:

Take a strip of decorative tape and carefully wrap it around one end of your bamboo stick. Repeat until you have an assortment of decorated sticks.

Step 2:

Gather together a sprig of  3 or 4 feathers.

Or in my case if you are using the feather printable, cut out a bunch of feathers.

Step 3:

Use invisible tape to attach your feathers to the decorated end of your bamboo stick.

Step 4:

Using a glue gun apply a small amount of hot glue to the bare end of your bamboo stick and attach your wood chip.

And you are DONE!

You can give your Valentine an arrow along with their card or, like me, use them as a wall decoration!

Lemon squeezy.

A special thank you to the wonderful folks at Wholeport craft suppliers for sponsoring this post. 

Check their site out for cute and extremely affordable crafting treats~ I have my eye on their beautiful selection of beads and feathers ^^

group giveaway//cute korean stationary

It's no secret around here that I am a certified stationary junkie and it just so happens I am living in the creme de la creme of paper slinging countries.

Korea has the cutest, most decorative and affordable paper goods for all of your journaling, snail mailin' and crafty needs.

If you would like to get your hands on ALL of the hand-selected Korean stationary items shown above then please take part in this super group giveaway I am taking part in hosted by the cutest (and, incidentally Korean-American) gal Sarah over at Love Sarah K.

She is hosting a huge giveaway featuring myself and 6 other contributing bloggers with prizes including free premium ad space for your blog, a Stila palette, Hobby Lobby goodies and Amazon vouchers.

You can choose if you want to enter for one or all of the giveaways in the Rafflecopter on her blog post.

My Dad always says if you ain't in you can't win, so why not? ~.^

Scroll down for more details on my Korean cuties waiting for a new home...

~ flower stamp

~animal book marks

~ 2 sets of decorative washi tape

~ pencil set

~ 2 ink pens

~ recyclable bottle caps

 ~ mini hug cat cards

~ matryoshka doll card

~ vintage stamp stickers

~ scandinavian index label stickers

~ day planner

~ geometric notebook

If you win, ALL of these items will be sent to you!

For entries all you have to so is follow my blog through GFC, follow me on Bloglovin or on Pinterest.

Each follow will gain you one entry.

Head over and get you entries in now...x

kindie teacher moment of the week

Check this pair out.

Bambini Kindergarten's resident lovebirds, Jessica and Johny, wearing their finest hanbok (korean traditional dress) to wish you all a "Happy Lunar New Year' in Korean.

This was because Koreans celebrated their traditional holiday Seollal (Lunar New year) this weekend..

I was invited by my lovely co-worker to observe the holiday with her and her family at her Grandmother's home but unfortunately this cold I can't seem to shake kept me in bed most of the weekend.
Otherwise I could have spent two days helping her family make traditional Korean foods, play folk games and perform ancestral rites at the graves of their dead relatives.

I'm sorry to have missed out on being a part of this very closely guarded part of the Korean culture~ the fact that they still observe their holiday traditions so fervently is why the sense of tradition and culture has been preserved in this country so successfully.

According to the Zodiac, Asians believe we are entering the Year of the Snake...in the Chinese Zodiac the snake symbolizes mystery and malevolence. 
Previous Snake Year's have included the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941, the Tienanmen Square protests in 1989 and the 2011 terror attacks in New York.

What do you think?
Is this a year of bad omen or is it all a bunch of smoke and mirrors?