When you are living a fast-paced life, you tend to enjoy slowdowns little bit more. No waiting on the washing machine to finish, not thinking about the pile of fresh laundry that needs to be fold, and certainly no screaming and running toddlers.
Just you, your MacBook, and a plate of enchiladas at 2 am. The peace and quiet are a privilege to me these days. Sometimes when it gets too quiet I get a little bit awkward because I have been so used to stimulations and I can never really relax as my kids can wake up for milk anytime.
I don’t remember the last time I got to really unwind and just relax and not have a care in the world. I like myself as a wife and as a mum and I certainly like myself even more now that I’m working, but it can get overwhelming having to juggle family and work. You tend to forget to care for yourself sometimes so taking an hour or two in a day just for you is downright a must.
A cup of green tea is a great companion to my slow moments. There are nights where I long for chamomile and it works wonders to boost my quality of sleep. I want time to slow down and let me breathe. I want to put myself first. Nobody would benefit from an unhappy wife and mum – that is exactly what I don’t want to be.
At the comfort of my own home with a cup of Frenché Roast salted caramel latte knowing full well that I will be awake until at least 3 am. What’s worse is I cannot be sleeping in as I have a family wedding to go to in the morning. Great. But nothing another cup of coffee cannot solve, right? The rain starts pouring, I’m all cosy and happy and my kids are asleep and my husband is watching football on TV. For some, it isn’t something worth noting, but for me, it’s pure state of bliss.
currently…
Reading.
Delirium by Lauren Oliver. Surprise, surprise. I opted for physical book this time. E-book isn’t working for me at all. I end up on TikTok in mere five minutes. Yikes.
Watching.
I have Manchester City vs Leeds United football match airing on my TV but series wise, I am hooked on 9-1-1.
Thinking.
When is my sofa going to be delivered? And my carpets. I’m in the mood for some changes around the house so I’m buying some furnitures here and there.
Wishing.
That I am still on leave from work next week. I took a one week leave and it’s so hard to get back into working when you’ve enjoyed spring cleaning the whole house and weekend soirées.
Wearing.
Just a pair of shorts and tank top. The usual glasses, scrunchies, and AirPods.
Wanting.
I am lusting for a new bag. A medium sized bag that can fit my iPad or ana tomy planner. Something I wouldn’t mind get dirt on. Something durable.
Feeling.
I look and feel like I need to sleep for 3 days straight to recuperate and regain whatever energy I have lost.
Writing.
A makeup wish list post. I did not keep up with the latest products on the market for as long as pandemic went but recently I purchased a lot of products online on impulse and everything went downhill from there.
Listening.
Taylor Swift – Getaway Car. It has come to the point where the number of plays is unhealthy and I need to find new songs asap. Niall Horan’s Heaven is absolute chef’s kiss, too.
Smelling.
The rain and the cold air. I love rainy nights.
Hoping.
For a lot of things but mainly bonus and increment from work, fingers crossed.
Loving.
I am falling in love again with my MacBook. Now – hear me out. I don’t have time to spare on it when I’ve been working the whole day and taking care of my children after. When they sleep, I sleep. Nowadays I have a bit more time to spare and it feels good to be back typing and spending time on my blog.
Needing.
A weekend getaway to a 5 star hotel, just me and my husband. Will be arranged the soonest.
Hello! It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these posts so I thought I would make a disclaimer that the faves included in this post might be something that I got months ago (if you’ve been following me on Instagram, you’d know!) and am only inserting them now for obvious reasons.
ana tomy x lilin & co trio book planner
Before you go, “Erin, what happened to your digital planner obsession?” Well, it’s still here, I still love my digital planner, but I cannot help but to get the planner from ana tomy because it’s so pretty. The colour is lilac and it’s scented – what else do I need? This time around, I got the trio book instead as I already had one in wirebound which I got 3 years ago. Now, instead of lugging around just my iPad everywhere I go, I lug around an iPad AND a physical planner as well. Great.
bath & body works dark kiss fragrance mist
I work in an international school so a few weeks ago a parent of one of the students gifted me the mini set of shower gel, body lotion, and fragrance mist in Dark Kiss. It smells heavenly and it’s what I’ve been wearing every day. If I ran out of it which I probably will considering I wear it all the time, I will purchase the full size. The smell is delicious!
dr jart+ tiger grass color correcting treatment
This has been an old favourite of mine but it deserves a spot in my Friday Favourites. I knew about this product from TikTok and it is one of my best skincare purchases ever. It’s a green cream that changes into beige when you warm it up with your fingers. It covers redness and it has SPF as well although I do use sunscreen before this cream. It’s perfect for no makeup day when you just want to look presentable and not like you just got out of sauna #fairskinproblem.
9-1-1 (TV series)
Nothing like a TV series that made me binge watch 4 seasons in a month. It is that good. I love fast-paced dramas with a sprinkle of friendships and family love. The storyline itself isn’t complicated so I really enjoy watching it.
ceradan skin barrier repair cream
Oily skin pals would not appreciate this thick and heavy texture of cream, but my oh my, my skin loves it. I used it a while back and my skin was flawless during that period of time. And then I changed to other moisturisers and as a result they were just not up to par with this one. If you have dry skin (or any type of skin at all, you can just use it at nighttime) or if you want to fix your skin barrier, this is the cream for you.
new coffee/tea cup
My son loves using my cup during mealtime so one day, during one of our meals, he accidentally dropped my cup and it shattered. Here’s a blog post where I featured the cup in case you’re wondering. So I got a new one – two cups, just in case he drops another one LOL. It’s bigger than the old cup and its not double layer but it’s transparent and I’m a sucker for transparent cups.
My one issue with reapplying sunscreen throughout the day is adding more liquid product to my already oily skin is a no-no from me. Same goes to sunscreen stick, I just feel like it’s not hygienic for anything else to be touching my skin especially when I have makeup on.
The best thing to use in my opinion is sunscreen mist and the one I’m using is the Skintific All Day Light Sunscreen Mist. It’s SO easy to apply and I can just tuck it in my bag for when I’m at the office or when I’m out and about. It has that slight minty feeling, just for a few second, nothing too sensational.
What I like most about it is it literally feels like nothing on the skin so the lightweight claim is a huge yes. It is non-greasy, makeup mess-free which I think is what you need for heavy makeup day. Perfect. And it contains 5X ceramide! What’s not to love?
It comes in 50 ml and 120 ml spray bottle, at RM27 and RM35 respectively. You can get it on Shopee.
To be financially stable and in control of your finance would be everyone’s dream. However, financial literacy is not something that one acquires arbitrary. All those years spent in school and university did not, even once, taught you how to manage your money. What is 70/30/20 method? What about investment? Unit trust? Fixed deposit? Blows my mind every time that there are, in fact, people out there who haven’t got a clue. And I am no exception.
To say that I have absolute self-control when it comes to managing my money and making wise decisions would be an outright lie. At almost 28, I am still struggling to not overspend every month as I always reason my purchases with “this is a self-reward – and I deserve it” Self-reward for what? I don’t even know. This month, I blew through my salary in just 4 days. Crazy! If it wasn’t for my extra income, I’d be living under my husband’s grace (and money 🥲)
To have a better relationship with my money, I need to keep track of my finances better. I tried countless finance apps and I even tried the old school style which was recording with pen and paper but I found those very restricted and it didn’t tell me more than what I already knew. So I went and got myself an annual budget spreadsheets that keeps track of everything and gives me percentage and pie charts and tells me how much money I have left for the month. I try updating my spreadsheets every end of the day but there are days where I just forgot so I’m keeping all those purchase receipts until I have the spare time to update my spreadsheets.
My hope for this year is to steadily save some money every month and put them in a low risk investment. I’m also planning to put my side income into investment as well because if not I wouldn’t see the money at the end of the day. All would be spent on retail therapy which I already had a lotttt of. Yikes.
I feel like I do this type of post often – where I go MIA for an indefinite amount of time and come back with a brand new blog name and no attachment towards my old one.
Hi, if you’ve managed to read this, then that means you have recently viewed my Twitter account as that is the only one of my social media where I put this brand new blog link. I didn’t even reconnect old domain to the new one, so to everyone who’s trying to find me through littlesipsoftea.com, I am sorry for leaving just like that. I didn’t mean to. I just wanted a change.
I have no reason for changing my blog domain other than I wanted a new blog name. I didn’t even know what blog name I wanted at first so I googled lists of blog names and I put two and two together so voila! That Coffee Chic is born.
I have definitely lost my blogging mojo a long time ago. I feel overexposed and over the time I kinda disappear from social media a day or two and come back with a few IG stories here and there. Being a working mom, my work hours doesn’t end at 5. I switch back to being a mom, taking care of two little toddlers and pray to god they go to bed early because I want some me time. I lost my temper a lot of times – that, I am not proud of – and I always feel guilt after scolding my kids. But then again, everyone has their limit and I must be at my breaking point to have the heart to do that. Nevertheless, life goes on…
How are you guys doing? I am doing good. It’s been 3 months since my dad passed away and I still feel and have that hole in my heart. My friends who have lost a parent, you know what I mean, right? I can’t help but reminisce my past. It felt like a lifetime ago. It felt like I have a memory of a different person living a different life than my life now. It breaks my heart to comprehend that that life I will never have again no matter what I do. Because in that life, I was young and free and he was healthy and alive. Now I’m in my late 20s and independent, and he was gone. No one will ever be ready for this. I wasn’t and I still am not.
As for my blog, well, I’m gonna give it another year before I retire this blog for good. I am going to try my best scheduling and brainstorming posts in 2023 and if I couldn’t get it back to where it was before, then I will have to bid goodbye to this little blog of mine and continue on with my life without this piece of myself on the internet.
On this blessed Thursday of December 1st, we are saying hello to a brand new That Coffee Chic.
