Happy New Year 2015

Posted on January 5, 2015 | 10 comments

Dear friends, readers, commenters, likers, followers and others,

Thank you everyone for an awesome 2014. Thanks for your interactions on this blog. Your readership makes this blog worth keeping up and I can’t express my gratitude warmly enough for engaging with me and my posts and helping me reflect continually.

I think the end of the year is always so busy for everyone that it is hard to keep up with the blog. Nevertheless, Happy New Year everyone, hope you had a great one.

May your New Year be

A new year that brings luck and prosperity

A New Year that brings happiness and joy

Happy New Year 2015

I had two weeks off from work to spend with my in laws and boy it was the one of the busiest times of my life. Most of the days we were out and about in touristic places making sure we ticked off the boxes and places to take them. I am glad to report that, we did manage to go to many places and had a great time along the ways.

My New Year definitely started with a big bang. This year we went to watch the famous Sydney’s New Year Eve fireworks.

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People were arriving early in different parts around Sydney Harbour to see the fireworks to try and get the best vantage points. We also went to city after midday and were lucky enough to get a really good spot near Luna Park.

There were long line ups at most of the places starting lining up 14 hours before the fireworks were to begin. Not a boring wait though as there were plane Aerobatics, boats of all sizes and shapes in the harbour, plenty of buskers around.new year fireworks (1)new year fireworks (8) new year fireworks (7)

We were well prepared with mats, pillows and lots of food and drink. The weather was perfect and we had a great time watching the 9pm, 10:40pm and midnight fireworks while making friends with people who were waiting near us as well.

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Here is the video I captured of the midnight fireworks.

Also sharing 2014 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

The Louvre Museum has 8.5 million visitors per year. This blog was viewed about 380,000 times in 2014. If it were an exhibit at the Louvre Museum, it would take about 16 days for that many people to see it.

The busiest day of the year was February 15th with 2,613 views. The most popular post that day was Happy Anniversary my darling husband.

In 2014, there were 223 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 778 posts.

I just would like to thank each of you for your great support and appreciation which has constantly served as motivation for me and I hope that you will continue supporting me the same way in future also.

Bring it on 2015!!!

Take care,

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to vote your favorite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2014

10 Comments

Posted in Australia, Holidays

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Merry Christmas!!!

Posted on December 25, 2014 | 2 comments

Time is really flying this year and it is almost the end of the year.

I have been quite busy the last few weeks as my in laws are here and we are making use of every free time to travel and show them around. I will be blogging about it soon.

Today is Christmas and it is the time of the year again to spend time with friends and family. As we reflect on this wonderful holiday, let’s share the goodness of our heart with others, express with words and gifts what someone means to us.

Merry Christmas (4)

I wish you a blessed holiday season. May this Christmas bring you comfort, joy, peace and happiness to last throughout the coming year.

Merry Christmas (1)

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!

Santa stopped at my place today , hope he did at yours too 🙂 🙂 🙂

Merry Christmas (3) Merry Christmas (2)

Take care,

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to vote your favorite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2014

2 Comments

Posted in Australia, Holidays

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Chana curry (Chick peas curry)

Posted on December 19, 2014 | 8 comments

“Chana” means chickpeas in Nepali. It is one of the easiest, healthiest and tastiest recipes that I loved to make occasionally. It goes well with rice or roti.

Ingredients

  • 500gm cooked chickpeas can
  • 1 large onion thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 Large tomato diced (I used 250 gm diced from a can)
  • 1 table spoon of garlic and ginger paste
  • A few bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 2 teaspoons cumin powder
  • 2 teaspoons coriander powder
  • 2 teaspoons chilli powder
  • ½ cup of chicken stock (use water if you don’t have stock)
  • Salt to taste
  • Fresh coriander to garnish

 Method

  • In a wok, heat the oil; add turmeric powder and bay leaves.

Aloo dum (2)

  • Add the sliced onions and fry for 15 minutes or until golden brown, stirring regularly.

Aloo dum (3)

  • Add all the other spices, garlic ginger paste and fry some more.
  • Once onion is cooked, pour diced tomato and let it cook for 5 minutes stirring occasionally.

chu la (1)

  • Mix well and add the chickpeas and fry for few minutes.
  • Add the chicken stock and Bring to a boil then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 5 minutes, or until most of the stock dries out.

chana (1)

  • Garnish the chick peas with fresh coriander.

chana (2)

  • Delicious curry is ready and it can be served with rice or roti.
  • Enjoy!!!

Take care,

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to vote your favorite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2014

8 Comments

Posted in Foodie, Recipe

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What is the purpose of my life?

Posted on December 17, 2014 | 2 comments

This article was published in +977 (a Nepalese Lifestyle Magazine in Australia) in  Nov/Dec 2014 issue.

977 Purpose of my life

When I was young, I believed that we were all sent to earth for a reason and that we all have significance in the world. I also believed that I would find my true purpose one day but as I grow older, I am not too sure how to find the purpose of my life.

I am sure when we were created, we were not meant to be just be born, grow up, get married, reproduce and simply die. There must be a higher purpose in life for all human beings making us different from animals. However, at the same time, living every day for so long, I haven’t discovered my purpose. Does such a thing really exist? Why don’t I know my purpose in life yet?

Like many of you, my day starts with waking up early in the morning, getting ready to go to work, breakfast , work whole day, back home, cook dinner, eat , go back to bed and the next morning the whole cycle starts all over again. Weekends are spent cleaning the house, grocery shopping, sorting the bills and fulfilling the social aspect of our life. In fact, nothing much has changed since I was a baby and looks like nothing much will change until my last day in life.

My life is so ordinary and boring if I stand back and look at it. It’s not that I don’t have fun in life, I do. I manage to take holidays, meet new people, explore beautiful places, enjoy new foods and explore the unknown but these are things everyone is doing and everyone can do. Therefore, I feel I lack a specific purpose in life.

I know I am grateful that I am healthy and happy in my simple life. Life could be worse if you don’t have your health by your side but I am sure life is not meant to be just this. Every time I read about achievers, people who excel in sports, science, music, acting or any other field, I feel lost because I know I am not one of those brilliant human beings, I am just another ordinary person.

It makes me sad to think one day when I die, I will not leave behind anything that people will remember me by.

I am sure there are many self-help gurus and books that say they can help to guide us but how easy is it really to find the purpose in life.

Gautama Buddha said “Your purpose in life is to find your purpose and give your whole heart and soul to it” and that is exactly what I am searching for. I am not too sure how long it takes but hopefully one day I will know the answer and from that day I will dedicate my life to my purpose but until that day comes I have decided to be satisfied with what I have.

It is possible that I might die without knowing the purpose of my life so I have to live every day as if it can be the last day. Until my purpose catches up with me, I have decided to be happy because if I am happy, then I can make others happy.

I am definitely thankful for what I have, my health, my family and my ordinary life without problems. Happiness doesn’t require me to know the purpose of my life. Just appreciating what I have, being content doing the right thing and thanking everyone who made my life better will make me happy and thus everyone around me.

Even though I may not be the extra ordinary human being, I want to be, I could be ordinary one with happiness surrounding me every day and it will be the purpose of my life until I find another one.

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Posted in Published

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Reaction of our pregnancy news

Posted on December 15, 2014 | 16 comments

We decided the first people who needed to know about our pregnancy were our family so we picked a day and decided to tell them.

We call AS’s home as normal and during the conversation, he dropped the news that we are having a baby. They were happy for us and themselves as it was going to be their first grandchild. We also told his brothers about it. Everything went smoothly as planned. They just asked how far along I was and if everything was fine with me.

It was with my parents, the news didn’t go as we planned. We were in the middle of the conversation when I told my parents.

Me: “Mum, now start packing your bags to come here as I am pregnant so you will have to come and look after me.”

Mum: “Hahahaha, (laughing hard) Stop joking about it and have a baby soon. It is about time.” (My dad was laughing now as well.)

I need to tell you why mum thought I was joking. I always wanted my parent to visit us but they keep on postponing and it was been a while since they have been to Sydney. They have always told me to have a baby so they can come here. I always keep telling them I will, soon and that soon has been dragging on for more than 3 years now. I have never joked about being pregnant before but I always told them that we need to have a contract drafted so they can’t back out from coming to Sydney once I am really pregnant. I have a very close relationship with my parents so I always joke about anything and everything.

pregnancy

Anyway coming back to the day, the conversation continued as below.

Me: “I am serious mum, I am pregnant and it is around 10 weeks now. I even went for a scan already.”

Mum: “Stop making fun about pregnancy.” (Still laughing)

At this stage AS decided that my parents thought we were still joking so jumped in.

AS: “Yap, M is not joking, we are having a baby and so far things are going great.”

Finally, they stopped laughing and finally got the idea that I was not joking at all.

Mum: “Ohoo that is great news, I really thought you were joking. How are you feeling?” (Add millions of question after that.)

Yap, that is how we told our parents.

After that we called my brother and told him. Everyone was very happy for us.

We waited another 2 weeks before telling our friends and at work.

I called all my close friends and family and told them the good news. Everyone was very happy about it and it was one of the most amazing conversations I had with everyone.

When we were planning for a baby, there were a few friends around us who were also trying for a baby around the same time or long before us. It was a bit hard for me to tell them because I knew they want the same news too. However, to my surprise, they were very happy for us and there was no discomfort at all. All I want now is for them to be blessed the with same good news soon.

my pregnancyAfter, I passed week 12; I also told my boss at work and my colleagues and AS did the same. Everyone was very happy for us and after that, they are making sure that I am all right. All the mums and dads are always telling me what to expect and how things are going to be.

Finally, it was a great relief to be able to talk about the pregnancy and baby with everyone. It was just amazing how one pregnancy can bring so much happiness and joy not just to the new parents-to- be but everyone around them. Instantly, I have a big support network.

I am eagerly looking forward to our baby and I know it is going to be one of the most exciting and memorable days for us.

I will be writing about my pregnancy journey in the coming days. Also hoping to get all the tips and tricks that you used with your pregnancy and kids to help me and keep me sane :).

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to vote your favorite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2014

16 Comments

Posted in My pregnancy

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