Tag Archives: kuwait blogs

Aug31

Personalize it!

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Personalize it!

Some of the best gifts are those that are personalized. I love having things made specifically for myself or my children.

As much as I love making things myself I sometimes resort to online shopping (AKA online Therapy) It gives me more choices and great value for money.

Tiny Prints is one of those one stop shop that you can get anything from labels to weekly planners, mugs and more that are completely personalized to you.

In our busy schedule it’s sometimes a perfect idea to buy birthday gifts in advance and have them on hand once the birthday rolls in… A real no fuss meaningful gift.

Oh!! Don’t forget to check out their Back to school collection. So much to choose from and will surely play a big role in Making Life Memorable for your kids.

Aug28

Brunch Frittata

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Brunch Frittata

I am no chef or culinary expert but I cook from the heart and have been fortunate that it turns out good.

My technique is probably like thousands of other moms around the world… See what we have on hand and make! Luckily with our Middle Eastern habits we tend to have lots of fresh veggies always on hand. So it makes it easy to whip something healthy.

Another habit of all moms is that we don’t have the luxury of time to spend hours in the kitchen. So I came up with a quick Frittata that can be prepared in advance and heated as needed. It’s also perfect for brunch.

Frittata

Heat Oven to 180 Degrees C (about 350F)

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup shredded Squash
1 cup shredded Carrots
1/4 Cup chopped Parsley
1/4 Cup shredded Parmesan
2 Tablespoons Flour
1/4 cup Milk
3 Eggs

DIRECTIONS:
1. Beat Eggs and Milk Together in a bowl.
2. In a larger Bowl mix all the other ingredients.
3.Add the Egg mixture and whisk all ingredients until mixed well.
4. Spray a baking Pan with cooking owl
5. Pour batter into baking pan. Bake for 25 minutes.
 

Here’s to Making Life Memorable in the Kitchen!

Aug27

Back to school Countdown

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Back to school Countdown

To say that I’m excited that we have less than 2 weeks away for the girls to go back to school is an understatement.

Even though I have managed to keep a very good routine between the 2 hour homework morning sessions, free play, going out, crafts, seeing friends and swimming lessons it’s a lot of effort. Doesn’t leave much time for me and work.

With the girls back to school I think I’m most excited that I get MY routine back a good stretch of time in the morning to go to work and dedicate time to the things I love.

So because of that my excitement I was inspired to do a School countdown craft.

Back
 
 
The first thing I did was make print out cut outs for the girls to color.

I decided to do a 10 day countdown to “Blast off”

I then cut them out using a ZigZag scissors for fun…

Girls Coloring

The girls then colored each day and the big “Back To School”

 

After organizing them in order we found a nice place on the wall to hang it in (it was a challenge finding an empty wall in the playroom). We used a ribbon and hung the paper with mini clothespins I had in my magical craft cabinet of “I’m going to need this one day”

countdown

And Now we have a countdown that at the end of each day we take down one paper in anticipation of School.

I hope that this gives you inspiration to do something in Making Life Memorable

Aug25

Fish Market

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Fish Market

One of the things I remember doing with my father (May he rest in Peace) other than actually fishing is going to the fish market.

The stink the wet floors and seafood galore….It was a mix of stinky and fun all put together. Quality time that I truly cherished. Only now does it hold great value in my heart…..didn’t realize it at the time.

The nice thing is that these days it’s been upgraded. The Fish Market next to Souq Sharq is somewhat cleaner than the one I remember going too. So it was time to pass on the tradition to the girls and take them to the Fish Market.

I let them wear their rain boots for fun to make sure there were not complaints about dirtier their shoes. All the people there were extra friendly, I’m pretty sure they love seeing kids there and showing of their fish knowledge to the little ones.

Fish Market
 
 
 

Off course there’s always that one guy that lets them touch all sorts of things on the counter…. The girls chose to pose holding the jumbo shrimps and so shine their personalities:)

They may not realize it now but this day really helped in transferring my experience with my dad into Making Life Memorable for them.

Aug23

Recipe Binder

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Recipe Binder

One of the hardest things as we grow older is buying a meaningful birthday gift. I was recently challenged with that with one of my friend’s birthdays.

I had no idea what I could possibly get her that was worth her friendship and wouldn’t dent my budget… We are very similar in some of our hobbies and one thing she always came back to me about was some of my recipes.

So I came up with making her a personalized Recipe Binder. Thankfully there were so many samples that I found on pinetrest to help me get my creative juices flowing. I wanted to go simple and meaningful and my design had to be just that.

The first thing I did was buy a regular Binder and separators from the bookstore.
 

BinderLabel
 

I Chose to go with a chevron design for the labels so I made those for the cover, the separators and separator sides.

Then printed out a few of my favorite recipes to put inside the binder as a quick start.

 

Binder1
 
 
 
Viola a meaningful, personalized birthday gift.

I was actually very please and the objective of meaningful was spot on when I saw my friend’s reaction when she unwrapped her gift. It left the exact impression I had intended and that Making Life Memorable!

Aug22

ReShuffle & ReOrganize

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ReShuffle & ReOrganize

In every household there comes a time when things just start to get jumbled up and it’s high time to do some de-cluttering and organizing. We just get so busy in our lives that we may not have the chance to do it as often as we would like.

The turn of a New year is always a good time because your mind set is that you’re starting fresh and New… well at least that’s how I initially felt. 8 months later I look at my To-Do list of organization and I haven’t even scraped the surface.

I wonder what happened??? Oh LIFE that’s what happened!

Between my newly relocated store (The original Basket Boutique), running around with my girls, a social life that I try to maintain I hardly have time to do those extra things that make me happy.

CraftRoom
 

My crafting room has therefore suffered immensely!! I started to just pile and pile things over each other. Not only MY things but somehow boxes and boxes of random things from clothes to give away, toys…etc etc.

Needless to say day in day out I would stand in front of the mess for a good five minutes while my husband works on his tidy side of the office. Frustrated and repeating “I need to organize” as though I was chanting and calling for some mysterious organizing elf to come in the middle of the night and solve all my problems….

Then I decided I must take it step-by- step… Like I didn’t know that 8 months ago!!!

Well my first step I took was to go through all this stuff and giveaway what I’m never going to use (including kids toys they didn’t know where gone)
 

boxes

The second thing (which was my last until I find some more time) I went through ALL the papers stashed all over the place and organize them into nice matching boxes and Magazine folders that I got at Ikea. You can check out their small storage systems online in their Paper & Media Organizers.
 
 
 

So until I figure everything else out in my head I’m off to Making Life Memorable while the chaos remains.

Aug21

Outings around Kuwait

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Outings around Kuwait

Spending a long hot summer in Kuwait is a challenge when you want to make sure your kids are entertained…. As much as you are creative in the home they really do need a change of scenery before driving you crazy.

The next challenge is the budget….there’s always the battle of doing things free vs. paying and also things that are meaningful.

So in this list you’re going to find Free options, cost effective & frugal suggestions and off course those that add up to a “budget”

1. Discovery Mall Play Area
2. Go out for lunch (My girls choices are wither Chillis or Red Lobster and for a pricier choice Sushi at Genki in Alrayya)
3. Go to Fantasy world or Toys R Us for fun (No purchase necessary)
4. Go to Ikea and let the kids play for free in their play area
5. Go out for Breakfast or Brunch (our personal favorites are Cocoa Room or Bredz)
6. Baroue Play area
7. Kidzania
8. Color Me Mine
9. Go have dessert
10. Go to Al-Othman Museum
11. Go to the movies.
12. Magic Planet
13. Go to 100 fils store and give your child KD 1.000 (that adds up to 10 items of their choice)
14. Go out for Ice Cream (our choices are either Marble Slab in Jabriya or Scoop a cone in Dasma)
15. Go to Q8 Bookstore for a fun reading experience. (located in Bayt lothan Instagram @Q8bookstore)
16. Go grocery shopping… Make it fun by letting the kids push the cart, read the list and collect the items.
17. Go to Fun Quest (upstairs in Sultan Center Hawalli)
18. Go Bowling
19. Go play mini Golf (Discovery Mall)
20. Get a Day pass at one of the “clubs” (cornice, Palms….etc)
21. Go to the scientific center
22. Go on a fashion trying outfits (no purchase necessary)
23. Attend one of the workshops at Art Space Café (Instagram @ARTSPACEQ8)
24. Go to Jareer Bookstore
25. Go Ice Skating
26. Go to friend’s house
27. Go to KDD factory
28. Go to a photographer and have a photo shoot
29. Go to Tariq Rajab Museum
30. Go to Early Learning Center
31. Go to the Avenues and do some window shopping
32. Go to Kuwait Towers
33. Go to Aqua Park or Messila water Park
34. Go to the Salon and get Mani, Pedi, Haircut….etc
35. Go to the Fish Market
36. Take the Ferry to Failaka Island
37. Go to Infunity
38. Go to National Museum
39. Go to a department store and smell perfumes for fun
40. Go to Kuwait National Library
41. If the Weather permits some real “outdoor” Suggestions are
42. Shaab Entertainment Park
43. Entertainment City
44. Area parks
45. Duck Pond park in Al-Shaab
46. Have a picnic
47. Outside play area at the Marina Crescent
48. Go rock climbing in Marina Waves
49. Outside play area at Souq Sharq
50. Go for a walk on the beach
51. Go to Shuwaikh Beach

Hope you found this list helpful and assisted in Making Life Memorable

Aug20

How we spent our Summer in Kuwait

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How we spent our Summer in Kuwait

I can’t believe there’s just 2 weeks left for my girls to go back to school. I feel like it was just yesterday that it was their last day and I was beginning to hyperventilate thinking how will I keep them occupied.

Well In my frenzy I looked up many online resources to make sure I never ran out of ideas. Amazingly we always had something to do!!

Our days were kept at a routine basis. First thing breakfast…. Lots of times the girls helped out in the kitchen which was an event on it’s own!!!

Then there’s always the list of “Summer Homework” assigned to them. Throughout the year I buy workbooks as soon as I see them because I never know if I’ll find them when I need them. I usually have the girls do 2 pages in addition to reading and a small writing assignment for Jennah…

We then move on to free play…..this usually involves a big mess which they know they will have to clean (thankfully that takes a while so it’s also in the category of something to do) Or we have a suggestion and negotiation of what they can or can’t play/do. Check out my list of Things to do Indoors with Kids.

Off course there’s always the outing possibility…. Unfortunately that most of what we’ve done is always indoors (with the exception of swimming) because it’s just toooooo Hot in Kuwait. I’ll also have another list for you to check of Outings in Kuwait with Kids soon.

Hope this has inspired you in making your own lists for those future holidays coming up!

So go ahead and spend time with your kids while Making Life Memorable…

Feb23

It’s BLOGYWOOD

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It’s BLOGYWOOD

I sometimes sit and wonder about how many hats I play in a day. Being a mom is really under-rated. The multitasking that we have to do is mind boggling. All while trying to look your best or at least presentable, control your temper and stay focused with a plastered smile. Oh and we won’t even touch on the fact if you had to go to a full time job, or own a business or those good old days of volunteering!

Life must have meaning… REAL meaning. I choose to blog because I want to share my knowledge, crafts, experiences and things I find useful as a mom. A real down to earth (can I say that about myself without sounding pretentious?) content based blog. You will never find me in 100inch red soled heels, I am most likely going to have more ponytail and casual days, and the only entourage I will EVER be walking around with are my little girls.
BLOGYWOOD

Yes people do not take offence if you belong to the “BLOGYWOOD” arena this is all based on facts not opinion. No I do not want to be you…it’s just too exhausting to witness. No I do not envy the crowds that hoard you. No I do not want to be oogled over while in public trying to spend time with my family. And No No No for so many other reasons.

It is so apparent that unfortunately there is a hunger in Kuwait for the “Hollywood” lifestyle. Since that’s never gonna happen BLOGYWOOD has been created. An arena of fashionistas and “IT” people to follow, mimic and drool over.

Don’t get me wrong, not all of them are like that I’m talking about those specific people that all of a sudden came out of the woodwork and think that they are trend setters and the best thing that’s walked this earth.

Be careful what you’re doing… there is so much more to life. What mark are you leaving behind? What is your contribution to this world? and more importantly WHAT are you going to do when this craze is over??

Advice from me to you… wise up!

Make your life memorable because in a few years when there’s a new Fad in Kuwait you’re only going to be left with just YOU.

(Post inspired by a few people that I used to know and now actually don’t say hello if they see me because they’re in the “IN” crowd)