New Year's Eve Fruit Salad

My sister-in-law sent us an SMS asking what we’re bringing to the New Year’s Eve potluck, another in-law's family tradition. I replied “our beautiful selves.” Her answer: “your beauty is good, but we need food.” LOL. Told her we will bring fruit salad. And here’s how I do it:

2 largest can of Del Monte Fruit Cocktail (I'm sure fresh fruits' yummier)
6 – 8 tetra pack of Nestle Cream, chilled
1 medium-sized can of Diamond Shelled Walnuts, chopped coarsely
1 – 2 biggest pack of marshmallows (I usually get the flower-shaped ones from Makati Supermart, I forget the brand)
2 pack Kraft Philadelphia Cream Cheese (just sliced into small, thin cubes
1 medium-sized can Carnation Condensed Milk
Confectioner's Sugar

Open cans of fruit cocktail and put on colander, 6 – 8 hours (the longer the better).I usually do it overnight so it will be well-drained.

In another bowl, put in chilled cream, mix together with condensed milk. If it’s not sweet enough for you, just sprinkle in some Confectioners sugar, until it reaches the desired sweetness.

Place the drained fruit cocktail in a big container bowl, fold cream on top, mix gently, so you won’t crush the fruits. Add the cream cheese, marshmallow and walnuts (don’t put everything in, leave some for topping). For presentation purposes, put in nice serving dish, sprinkle some marshmallows and walnuts on top.

If you don’t’ plan to finish everything right away, better store in the freezer first.

Twilight

When I first heard about the Twilight novels, with the young ones and young once going gaga over it, I was busy reading babycare and toddler discipline books. Now there's the movie adaptation. Our niece sent me a SMS asking if I'd like to watch the movie with her (for bandwagon effect), I said yes, but she's been pretty preoccupied with work lately so we haven't gone to see it yet. Last Saturday, our 11-year old niece, dropped by the house to play and watch High School Musical 3 with the cuddle pup. She asked me if I'd like to watch Twilight with her and I said sure, if she's allowed by her parents to watch it, why not? She went home to get their Twilight DVD and we spent the late afternoon watching it. It wasn't bad. It's something tweens and teenagers would appreciate. It was like Buffy the Vampire Slayer-meets-Underworld. My nieces think Edward Cullen's hot... well, me thinks Dr. Carlisle Cullen (the dad) is sooo hot! But of course, my hubby's hotter! LOL

Photo from MTV.com

Bea's School Christmas Party

Last December 17, Rosemont School students celebrated Jesus' birthday. Nursery was scheduled at 8:00 in the morning. It was a potluck party, and the daughter was assigned to bring pizza good for 5 kids. Good thing there's a Yellow Cab Pizza just right outside the village and they are open 24 hours. Called them up at 5 a.m. for 7 a.m. pick-up and ordered a 10" Pepperoni pizza, requested for criss-cut so the kids won't have a hard time eating it. Wanted to get to school early so she can still distribute gifts to Rosemont staff and bring her with me to office right after. When we got to Rosemont, some of her classmates were there already. Party started at 8 a.m. and ended at 9. I was just outside her classroom with other mommies waiting for them to finish. There was so much food and some mommies joined in the party. The little one got a Fun Factory Play Doh set from their exchange gift and more presents from the classmates.

When we got to the office she asked her lola to bring her to Mall of Asia for lunch, so off to MOA we went. Her granny asked her what she'd like to get for Christmas and she replied "Barbie doll house and candies!" The doting grandma got her a Barbie Doll House from Toy Kingdom but didn't tell her yet. She thought it was something else for another cousin. We just told her grandma forgot to bring her big wallet and will just come back for it, she was a little down at first, but snapped out of it when lola got her a colorful lollipop. I'm sure she'd be ecstatic when she open her presents on Christmas morning!

Bargain Hunting At Divisoria

As we grow older, the list grows longer and longer. Now it's not just family, friends and godchildren... included on the list now are household staff,officemates, neighbors, village personnel, construction workers, your kid's friends, classmates, teachers and school personnel etc. I was pretty much decided on cutting the list short this year, but changed my mind the last minute. It's Christmas! Time for sharing. Just a little something for everyone.

My sister-in-law and I have been planning to go to Divisoria for weeks. Since the  preschooler's on vacation starting yesterday, we finally had our geographically-challenged driver drive us to Divisoria. As I would normally do when I go there, we parked at the secured parking area of Tutuban Center Mall, they also have clean toilets by the way (as compared to other public toilets in the area), and walked to Divisoria Mall. Got there at 8:00 a.m., and finished at around 2:00 p.m. It was a battleground for bargain hunters! It's not as nice as Greenhills but prices are 50% cheaper. Armed with sneakers and PhP5000.00, I braved the DV crowd with my sister-in-law. Went home with my loot exhausted and with a splitting headache. But I was happy because the PhP5000.00 I had with me went a longgggg way! We even passed by Binondo for boxes, yes boxes, of fruits. Imagine with just that amount of money, I was able to get presents for 60 people. Like the Kiat Kiat (Mandarin oranges) from Binondo, it's PhP40.00/kilo vs Makati Supermart's PhP84.00 and the Navel Oranges PhP650.00/64 pc box vs PhP165.00/6 pc pack (info courtesy of my sister-in-law), I got three boxes (10 kilos/box). Now that's value for money!

I just have to go back to Binondo later for more fruits, like I said the list is long.

The Way Things Are

I'm here at the office now checking my mailbox and decided to squeeze in this post before I forget about it. The daughter's here with me for our office Christmas party later. Was on my PC when the marketing officer from one of the medical clinics we send workers to dropped by to give their presents for us. When he left, my ever curious and observant daughter asked one of our staff "Is she a boy or a girl?" It's like she couldn't believe her eyes. The staff didn't know how to answer and told her to ask me instead. He's gay actually. But how do you explain that to a three year old girl? It's a touchy topic I believe. I'm no homophobic. And I wouldn't want my kid to grow-up discriminating people because of race, creed, social status, gender...or sexual orientation. I have to be careful not to sound prejudiced, at the same time not come out like a parent with no idea of what's black or white ... or gray. From a very conservative person's view point (which I'm really not), there shouldn't really be a gray area to begin with.

When you a have a little person asking you why a boy has very long hair and why he's clothes are for girls and why he's wearing make-up... you just have to stop and think for a while before trying to explain to her. You can't just say "Hey, that's how things are babe." Her questions must be answered. I just told her that he's really a boy but he likes to wear girl clothes. Her reply "But why, mom? He's a boy! And boys don't wear make-up! Make up for girls!" I then replied that sometimes some boys would want to look like a girl and some girls would want to look like a boy. I was given another "But they're boys! Why, Mom?" Of course, I couldn't really give her a full explanation as she is still too young to really understand stuff such as this one. I just simply told her that when she's older she will understand why and how different we all are from each other. Different strokes for different folks.

One thing struck me though, she was just observing QUIETLY and asked the question AFTER the guy left the office. She didn't just blurt it out right in front of him. I guess at her tender age she's beginning to understand what's proper and what's not. In time her knowledge will grow and her views may (or may not) change. As long as it's within the norm, as dictated by our faith and beliefs, or that which are socially acceptable, then I'm okay with it. If she says boys shouldn't wear make-up and dress like girls... then let's respect that. It's her two cents. We are all entitled to our own opinion.

Tender Lovin' Sunday

The husband, the daughter, the nanny and I went for a little ride around town yesterday. Since we needed to check out something at Ortigas Home Depot, we decided to spend our Sunday in the city. From Alabang, we went straight to Greenhills Shopping Center to go around a bit and have an early lunch. As expected, parking was almost full and shopping area was swarming with Christmas shoppers, good thing we were a little early. The daughter and I waited at Krispy Kreme Doughnuts for the dad to park the car. Grabbed some doughnuts for us while waiting, snowman with red licorice for my chooch, Reese’s peanut butter and chocolate for the big boy, and original glazed for yaya and me. We went around first, checking out the goods, fifteen minutes into it, the dad and daughter started grumbling “we’re hungry, mom” So off to Promenade we went. We wanted to try something new, we saw Tender Bob’s. Well it’s not exactly new, but it was our first time to try it out. Ordered onion rings, baked mussels (you must try this dish of theirs, it's sooo yummy), gambas (not spicy for the little one), beef salpicao (medium-well), rib eye steak (the hubby ordered the 10 oz. “starving” portion, medium-well), mixed veggies, mashed potato with gravy and rice. Meat is local but they were really oh so tender and tasty. We were so stuffed after, we didn’t have anymore room for dessert! Except for the little one, who finished her food and behaved well so she can have her snowman doughnut. Service was good, food’s reasonably-priced and yummy and they even give out balloons for kids. I would go back there anytime.

After our hearty lunch, we went to Ortigas Home Depot for the slates, stayed at my lolo’s house for a while to visit him and my mom (dad and daughter both had Cornetto Ice Cream while daughter was playing on the treadmill), then we went to the Home Depot at the Fort after… just to look around for more construction stuff. So pooped after our little excursion, the little girl was asleep all the way home.

Watching the Krispy Kreme doughnut machine at work.

Broda and Sista

One time, I was brushing my teeth, the little girl came up to me saying “Mom, I want a broda.” I’m like “Huh?” She then continues “And a sista!” Then her imaginary brother started staying with us in the room for a while, and silently slipped out after a few months. Now she’s at it again. We usually have our “pillow talk” before going to sleep at night. Well last night, I was telling her that maybe when we move to the new house she can start sleeping in her own room already. Then she said “And my brother will stay in the other room…and my sister, we’ll play in the attic.” She’s just so eager to have siblings. I think because she wants to be an “ate” (Filipino word for big sister) already. She has her cousins for role models. They really take time out to spend time with her playing, malling or just simply chillin’ at the house.

If only it were that easy. We were just so lucky and blessed to receive that little bundle of joy as a special gift from God. She is our answered prayer. It was all out trying for us from the day we got married. On the 3rd year of our life as a married couple, she came along as a surprise blessing. And we’ve been pretty preoccupied with her since. After the house, we can start looking into trying again. The hubby and I are quite happy with one but it would be great to have more kids, if God willing. Two to three more, perhaps? Twins would be nice, now that’s probably asking for too much. But who knows? With lots of prayers and some medical help, I’ll have a bun baking in the oven soon.

Bea at 2 months with cousin

Bea at 3 months

Christmas Callos

Got a SMS from my sister-in-law last week, asking what we’re bringing to the Christmas get together at their house? It’s the family tradition. So far there’s turkey (I’m guessing from Palm’s Country Club) and lechon (Lydia’s?). Remembering my long ago promise to our our godmother (wedding), I volunteered to bring Callos (Tripe Madrid-Style). Now this is also one of the hubby's many favorites, there was a time he’d ask me to cook callos every week. But we just had to stop, because it’s not really healthy. For an occasional treat, it's okay. And this is how I do it:

1.5 kilos Ox Tripe (I get the packed ones from S and R), sliced bite size
8 pieces Spanish Chorizo (also from S and R), thinly sliced (diagonally)
Green Olives, whole,pitted
Black Olives, whole pitted
Green Peas (I just use the frozen ones from the grocery)
Red Bell Pepper, cut into thin strips
Green Bell Pepper, cut into thin strips
Garbanzos (optional, Chuck doesn’t really eat this so I don’t use it)
6 Heads Garlic, chopped
6 Medium sized Red Onion, chopped
2 largest foil pack of Del Monte Tomato Sauce
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
McCormick Italian Seasoning (mixed dried herbs)
McCormick Black Peppermill
Laurel leaves
Soy Sauce (I like Silver Swan, it’s tastier than the pineapple brand)
Salt
Brown Sugar
Red Wine (I just use any bottle we have available, real wine. Not those cooking kind)

To prepare the Ox tripe and Spanish Chorizo:

Wash very well under running water. Put in a pot with water and some salt, then bring to boil under medium-low heat. Let boil for about 30 minutes. Turn off heat, throw away water, repeat the same steps, this time using one of the greatest cooking invention ever…the pressure cooker! (The chefs out there might be saying hey that’s cheating! Cause traditionally, you cook callos under medium-low fire for hours and hours and hours. But hey, we’re busy people you know, we still need to do other things. So just use the precious pressure cooker.) Wait until the top part starts wiggling then start timing it, 40-45 minutes should do it. Turn off the stove. But NEVER open the pressure cooker or remove the topmost wiggling thingy immediately after. The content will explode right at your kitchen. Just let out the steam first, slowly raising (not removing) the wiggling thingy every now and then, until pressure’s all out. Then put tripe on strainer and slice them in square/rectangular bite size.

Heat a big wok-like pan, or anything big enough to hold everything (you'll be using the same pan later), when it’s hot enough, put a little water and the whole Spanish chorizo. Let it cook. When there’s no more water, add a little Extra Virgin Olive Oil to fry it a bit. Remove chorizos from the pan, slice it thinly, diagonally. Set aside.

Back to cooking callos:

Using the same pan, add a little more Extra Virgin Olive Oil then the garlic, onion and let them cook for a few minutes. Then add in the tripe. Season with pepper, Italian seasoning, laurel leaves, soy sauce, brown sugar and around ¼ cup of water so it won’t dry up. Let it simmer for a few minutes. Add red wine (not too much, the goal is to make it yummy, not to get yourself drunk!). Don't put wine after cooking, you actually add it WHILE cooking. Simmer a bit, then the Spanish chorizo, green and black olives, green peas and tomato sauce. Simmer again for a few minutes. Check the taste. If it’s too salty, just add a little brown sugar and water. A little more wine, perhaps? You know, just adjust to your preference. I never use MSG in my cooking; I just substitute it with a little sugar. Just let it simmer some more, then turn off heat. Immediately put the green and red bell pepper on top, then cover it so it’ll cook a bit.

Again, it serves 18 and more. Big, foodie group. Just let them adjust taste with soy sauce or pepper. But you know what really goes well with this? Balsamic vinegar! Just a few drops to make it sing.

Another tip from Ima: never scrimp on the ingredients and let it cook first before adding the next, to bring out the taste.

Photo courtesy of southbound.ph

Bea's Merry Little Christmas

Most likely because of the world economic crisis we're experiencing now, or maybe it's just me... it doesn't really feel so Christmassy this Yule season. Even Makati's Central Business District (CBD) is not decked out as the years past. Usually after Halloween business offices in the area start rolling out holiday decors... not this year. Save for a handful of buildings, it's just Ayala Avenue that's pretty much into the season, courtesy of Makati City taxpayer's money hee hee (or should I say hmph!?).

My daughter came home from school singing holiday tunes last week. She told me that they watched Hi 5 Christmas Special in school that morning and that she'd like to have a snowman in the house. Told her she has her little tree from last year and we'll just put it up again for this year. Like furnitures, we do not have our family Christmas tree yet since we will be moving to the new house pretty soon. Thinking of just getting some styropore from National Bookstore so we can make her own snowman. The other day my mom called me at my mobile just to say that she talked to her apo (grandchild) and Bea told her lola she didn't have a tree yet. Yesterday morning, my "official" day off, I finally got around to putting up some decor at the house for some Christmas feel and waited for Bea to get home so she can be the one to dress up her little Christmas tree. Getting off the car, she already saw the wreath on the door and her stocking by the window, and I could hear her giggling excitedly from outside, shouting "wow, I love it!" Asked her to wait until after her afternoon ballet to decorate the tree together.

While she was napping, I took the opportunity to go to National Bookstore for some gift tags and an Elmo book for her school exchange gift, and then went to South Supermarket to get some pancit malabon (a noodle dish from Malabon City, Philippines) and fresh lumpia (shredded fresh veggies wrapped in pancake or rice paper wrapper) for the hubby's sister. When I got home my sister-in-law was already there chatting with the little one who was just waiting for the driver to bring her to the club for ballet. SIL and I went to Verdana, she wanted to see the house, and we went house hopping after. The cuddle pup was already home when we got back, eagerly waiting for us.

We decorated her little Christmas tree. After wrapping all her present for her classmates, she then signed her name on the gift tags...all 15 of them! She can now write her name without having to copy from a "pattern" or an adult spelling it out for her. Just wrote a post-it note to her teacher, requesting that she be allowed to personally give out the presents today. Nursery party is on the 17th, after their Quarterly Evaluations. She will start getting presents from Santa Claus on the 16th. A tradition we started last year. Just a little something until the “big” day. Simple stuff like lollypop, jellyace, juices, items less than PhP30.00. Last year it was so funny, Santa “forgot” to get something to put in her stocking… she received a box of Champorado (chocolate rice porridge)! At first she was just staring at it, probably thinking "What's up with this guy?" Then we were all like "Oh, wow! You got champorado from Santa! Wow! That’s so yummy!” And she went “Wow! Champorado! I love champorado!” LOL. Last year, she got a big Play-Doh set. She said this year she’d like to get a “bigggggg” (that’s how she said it) Bratz doll from Santa.

I have not done any shopping yet, the presents for her classmates were supposed to be her giveaways for her 3rd birthday (couldn't find Precious Moments party stuff, so I changed the motif to Disney Princess…after getting those activity books. Hey, they were on sale!). Won’t be doing much shopping this year though. Budget’s pretty tight. Our priority is the house. Just a little something for everyone. Now I’m slowly beginning to feel Christmassy. The little one's excitement rubbing off on me.

Setting up her tree yesterday

This was from last Christmas

Tomato Soup

I just love Cibo’s Pappa Al Pomodoro or simply known as Tomato Soup (Tuscan style). On one of our many potlucks at my in-laws’ home, my brother-in-law, suggested that I just prepare soup as there were other viands already. I’m like, what kind of soup shall I make? I was thinking…then Cibo’s tomato soup came into mind. So I got ingredients from Makati Supermart and cooked my first ever tomato soup. I cooked it the way I like it and they liked it...well that's what they said (I don't know if they were just being polite or something). I would serve it every now and then, since. The way I do it:

2 kilo ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeds removed and diced
3 heads large garlic, finely chopped
3 heads large red onion, finely chopped
1 medium-sized can Del Monte tomato paste
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2.5 liters Beef or Chicken stock (your choice really, I like beef. If you don’t have the real thing you can use those commercial broths instead, like Knorr cubes)
Fresh Basil leaves, hand-shred
Dried Basil leaves (McCormick)
Bread croutons
Salt
Pepper (McCormick Peppermill)

Heat soup pot over medium-low heat. Add in Extra Virgin Olive Oil, garlic and onion. Cook for a few minutes, stir occasionally. Put in the tomatoes, crushing it a bit, then season with salt, pepper and a little dried basil leaves. Add the broth and increase heat. Bring to boil. And you’re done. (You may add or hold some ingredients as you wish. Like if you want it more tomato-ey add more tomatoes or tomato paste. Or more broth if you find it too tomato-ey. Ouido, remember?)

Serve in soup bowls, preferably the shallow ones. Top with parmesan cheese, bread croutons, fresh basil. Let them adjust taste, just pass around salt and pepper.

Fast and easy, huh? Serves 18 or more. Hey, It’s a big family. So I am used to cooking for a group. Just do the math, if you’re cooking for a smaller group.

*image from liketocook.com. Will post own photo once I cook it again.

The Ouido Chef

I am not the professional chef in the family. My brother is. He graduated from Center for Culinary Arts (CCA) Manila and is currently working at Heat Restaurant of EDSA Shangri-La Hotel in Mandaluyong City. But I enjoy cooking as much as I love eating. Got it from my lola, I believe. Tip from Ima: when you’re eating something, look at it, “feel” it, savor it… so you’d know how to cook it. I’d prepare food for my relatives every now and then but I started real food preparation when I got married. The hubby's family is sooo into food! Home cooked and resto stuff. Thank goodness for helpers, cause as much as I enjoy cooking, I am not too thrilled on doing some “pre-cooking” process… chopping onion and garlic!

My cousin also suggested, when we were talking about me blogging, I should share some cooking recipes. It’s taking me a while to write about it because like I said I’m not really a culinarian and when I cook, I don’t really follow recipe books. I get ideas from them, yes, but I’m more the cook-by-taste-bud kind. No exact amount of this and no exact quantity of that. Know what I mean? It really depends on who I am feeding. Like if it were for Chuck, it should not be too salty or sour. If it were for my mom, she’s so into salty, sour and spicy stuff. That kind of thing. So when I start sharing my recipes on-line, I’ll be mentioning brands and other stuff, but don’t expect me to put the “exact” quantity of ALL ingredients. I will just explain it as it is, no fancy, technical culinarian terms. If you have questions, just feel free to get in touch with me.

Beginning To Look More & More Like A House

Hey, everyone! House construction's coming along great. Roof undersheeting will be ready by Wednesday, Stone 2000 will be delivering the materials for installation of CPAC Monier roof tiles within the week and will start working on it as soon as possible. The Vignet uPVC windows are now being fabricated and will be installed most likely by January of next year. Long holiday for construction workers will start on December 22, I think. So these coming days, we'll try to finish as much work as we can. 


Progress photos as of 07 December 2008:

Coolness!

Split or Window type AC? Now this is another debatable topic. “Go split” you’d say. And who wouldn’t? It is said to be quieter than its predecessor, the window type, since its condenser and compressor are separated from the evaporator and blower. It’s very sleek, aesthetically appealing and you do not need a big “window” for it. Just a teeny hole for the copper wiring. Downside is the lowest Horse Power available in the market is 1.0 and it’s pricier than the window type. The window type is the tried and tested kind, less expensive and you can get one with 0.5 HP.

The husband and I have been discussing about the kind of air conditioning unit we’ll be using in our new home. We have to decide on this before the second coat application of our exterior wall paint. As I really do not want to see those uneven map-like thingies on our walls. I specifically told our architect and the contractor that no pipe or wiring should be seen, including the AC drain, so they’re all embedded. For the Master’s bedroom we will be using 1.5 HP split type, as there’s really no place for a window kind in this part of the house. The exterior wall finishing on this area, facing the corner, will be the “highlight’ of the entire house, with slate cladding, picture window, etc. The floor area in Bea’s room and the guest room is not big, so a 0.75 HP window type unit per room will suffice. For the attic, which will be the family room, a 2.0 HP split type is recommended. And as he would want to have the ground floor air conditioned as well, a free standing (floor mounted) split should be used as the area is big. This free standing unit will be placed in the pocket-door closet, initially intended for storage, in the living room.

Last Friday the surveyor from Carrier arrived and checked out the house and gave some recommendations, we weren’t at the site then. Originally, we wanted all outside units for the splits to be at the rear area of the house. The surveyor said it’s too far from the indoor unit, thus may result into early conking out of the AC’s. He would like to put the them on our precious highlighted area! No way! So I’m meeting with him again with our contractor on Saturday, to check out other possible location for the condenser/compressor.

Of course, I did some googleizing about air conditioners. I checked out chat rooms and blogs as well. They're practically the same in energy efficiency and maintenance. The big difference is really just the look and the price. Choosing the right AC unit is not really that hard. Just think about what you need, the space, etc. The best thing is really to have the surveyor come to the place where you'd want it installed, so they can make proper suggestions. They usually do this for free, just coordinate with your local vendor. We usually get our appliances from Abenson. http://www.learnaboutairconditioning.com/ gave me an in-depth information on this topic.

Man's Bestie

Our dog Napoleon turned 2 last November 26. Originally a present to my pa-in-law from the hubby's sister, this Labrador Retriever has been in our care since he was 3 months old, since we used to stay at my in-laws’ home. When Pa passed away, Nappy (as we fondly call him) moved with us to the townhouse. He stays with us inside the house, but we tie him up because we really wouldn’t want any accident with Bea, as you can see he’s very muscular and when standing on his four legs, he’s big (thanks to Eukanuba). Like any other lab, he is very playful and energetic and has literally dragged his handlers several times when he’s “chasing” or excited about something. This guy is very gentle and affectionate to humans though and he still has his “puppy-eyed” look even if he’s an adult dog already, even his vet at Animal House Alabang, Zapote (his cousin Cappuccino, my brother-in-law's German Shepherd, goes to the same clinic) says he still acts like a puppy. To know more about dogs check out http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/.

Caring for this breed is quite easy, a bit expensive though…bigger dog--bigger stomach to fill, bigger coat to shampoo, vaccine and meds (monthly maintenance) volume depends on dog’s weight. I’m not complaining, just stating facts in case you’re looking into bringing home one. Here are some of the stuff nappy uses to stay healthy and gorgeous-looking:

*Eukanuba Adult Large Breed Formula (Dry), we alternate Lamb & Rice and Chicken
*Lambert Kay’s Fresh ’N Clean Oatmeal and Baking Soda Shampoo
*Virbac’s Enzymatic Toothpaste in Vanila Mint Flavor
*Pedigree Denta Stix
*Heartgard – for prevention of heartworm disease
*Frontline drops or spray for flea and tick control (best way to prevent this is not to let your pet “socialize” with flea-infested animals.

We usually get the “personal hygiene” stuff from Animal House, but for food and other things, they’re cheaper at Canine Depot (near the terminal at ATC). A regular visit to the vet should be observed. More importantly, a loving home will do wonders for any pet.

Bea and Nap

Maki-baka!

On my way home from the house construction site yesterday we came across an amusing sight... a herd of cows taking a leisurely walk along Daang Hari, slowing down other motorists. It was like a scene from Gary Larson's "The Far Side."



For the non-filipino speaking readers, "baka" is the filipino word for cow. Now you might be thinking, are they moving to the province? Technically, the answer is yes. As the village we're building in is an Ayala Land (Community Innovations Inc.) project in Molino-Bacoor, Cavite. No longer part of NCR (National Capital Region). It's not that far though. It's like 10 minutes away from Alabang commercial area via Daang Hari, just behind Ayala Alabang Village. It's that strip of road connecting Alabang and Molino. Should you wish to view all Ayala Land developments click on www.ayalaland.com.ph.

Remembering Ima

This day in "my" history, my family suffered a great loss. My maternal grandmother, whom we fondly call Ima (capampangan for mother), succumbed to complications brought about by the condition diverticulitis or ruptured diverticulum, check out full text on http://www.merck.com/mmhe/sec09/ch128/ch128c.html.

She would complain about having persistent abdominal pains. The doctors initially diagnosed it to be Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), but even after medication the pain still won’t go away. They brought her to another hospital where she had an ultrasound. The OB-Gyn saw a small crescent-like image pushing on her uterus. Since she really won’t be using her uterus anymore, they decided to have it operated on. When they did, they saw the crescent-like thing was in fact solidified feces and puss from her ruptured diverticulum. They immediately decided to cut that portion of the colon and attached a colostomy bag. My lola had never been hospitalized before, not ever. So it must have been really scary for her. She wanted the bag removed the soonest possible time. With the doctors' go signal she underwent another surgery for the removal of the bag. But when they tried to sew the colon back together, it started to have perforations and leakages. And all attempts made to put them back together turned futile.

Being a lola and lolo’s girl, I was very spoiled by them. When we were kids, she’d cook all my favorites every time we’d visit her, and I can have any toy I want. A sleepover at their place was something I would really look forward to. When my parents decided to part ways, I initially stayed with my uncle and aunt, but I moved to my grandparents’ place when I started university until I got married. She would prepare my baon (lunch) to bring to work and it’s always yummy. I would even discuss my love life with my grandparents…over a game of tong-its (local version of gin rummy). She’s always been so supportive. I remember when I was job hunting, she’d get very excited when she’d tell me that a company or a headhunter called. She has always been proud of her kids and grandchildren.

It was the greatest loss I have ever experienced so far. It’s like a part of my heart, my entire being had been chunked off. She was 78 years old; some of you might be thinking hey she’s already had a full life at 78. That maybe true, but not for me, not for a loved one. When you love someone, you’d want to hold on as long as you can possibly could. That’s the first time I have gone through all the stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. It’s like I could not believe it was happening. I’ve seen it several times, yes, terminal illness or death of a friend’s loved one or even that of a relative, but it was the first time for me, as an adult, to face something like that and I could not believe it happening to my lola. Why her? She’s always been a good, generous and loving person. Oh, my… I am actually crying while writing this. Why not the scums of society? Why should it happen to her? Why couldn’t the stupid doctors do anything about it? I felt rage. Then I started to bargain. Please take 10 years of my life, even just for a 6-year lease extension on hers. I’ll do anything, just please don’t take her away yet. It was my birthday month. Even just 3-5 years please. or 2 to 3? It was really depressing. I could not eat. I could not work. I could not sleep. My boss at that time was very understanding and gave me time off to be with her. We took shifts watching over her. But none of us would want to go home. So we ended up getting a private room for the family while she was in ICU. But seeing her suffer like that… with a surgical slice up to her chest (after 4 operations), we just had to accept that maybe like any other human being, it was her time to go. Time to do away with the tubes and morphine. But we continued to hope.

On November 28, 2004 Ima finally joined her Creator. No longer in pain. No longer suffering. It is said to be man’s ultimate reward…to finally be with God in His kingdom. It is only difficult for those who were left behind. It was never the same for me. For all of us she left behind. The wound has healed. But there’s this void inside of me, a numb feeling. Maybe it will always be there. Through time I have learned to move on and accept that it was nobody’s fault, because sometimes you blame yourself and others—like if only I had done this, if only the doctor had done that…it was her time, it is supposed to be as simple as that. The thought that she’s now in pure bliss with God gives me consolation. But there are times that I still cry for the loss of someone very dear to me. I would just say to myself that hey, she’s just on vacation, and they only have a one-way phone to heaven. I can talk to her and she can hear me, but like God’s voice I can only hear her through my heart and though other people. Every now and then I would dream about Ima, sometimes they seem oh so real, an occasional treat from God I believe.

As long as she sees us moving on, living our lives with the values we learned from her, I’m sure she is very happy. The greatest lesson I learned from her was: if it's for your family, it's always worth it. Give until it hurts. Ima, you will forever be in our hearts.

The Search Is Almost Over

I have been using Clinique 3-Step Skin Care System for the longest time. Not because I’m into expensive brands, it’s just that I have sensitive skin, I easily get break-outs and dry patches using incompatible products. They have products for all skin type. Mine is part oily, part dry so I use Type II (Dry Combination). Step 1: To cleanse my face, I use their Mild Liquid Facial Wash (PhP1200.00). Step 2: Toner (PhP1600.00/400 ml). And Step 3: Superdefense SPF 25 moisturizer (PhP2700.00). I get my stock from Rustan’s, sometimes my aunt would send me a jar every now and then. A set would usually last for more than 3 months. For further information about Clinique, you may want to call their friendly specialist at (632) 8943521-- Rustan’s Makati or visit their website www.clinique.com. Even with minimal make-up, as in Johnson and Johnson’s face powder and a little Estee Lauder Rose Desire blush and popgloss, you’re good to go.

In an effort to economize, I told myself and my good friend F that I am going to try out less expensive facial care products. The search for the best alternative began. I first tried the highly-advertised Olay Total Effects. Thinking it’ll be cheaper if I get from our local membership shopping store, I went to S and R and purchased Olay Total Effects facial cleanser and moisturizer. The sales person from S and R told me that since I have sensitive skin I should try the “normal” line. I said maybe she meant “gentle,” she said firmly “normal.” Spent PhP800.00 for both. Big savings, eh? Not! It was slightly scented. But with a Wolverine-like sense of smell, it was pretty strong for me. True enough, a week into it, my face started breaking out. And when I get pimples, they are usually BIG. So I gave them away. Then I tried Pond’s. The girl from Makati Supermart convinced me to try their line. I got a set for around PhP700.00 (facial wash, toner and moisturizer). The facial wash and toner were not really that scented, but the moisturizer! Oh, boy! I had migraine first time I tried it. So I gave them away again. F was already telling me to save myself the trouble and just go back to Clinique. But I still tried another brand, Celeteque, PhP300.00 for an entire set. Inexpensive. I did not like the moisturizer. Too gooey for me. It’s like putting KY jelly on your face. It’s kinda uncomfortable having KY jelly after a transvaginal ultrasound, imagine putting some on your face? Let’s just say yaya M was ecstatic when I gave her the set. I'm sure these are all good brands, just not for me. F was right, I should have just gone back to Clinique after 2 tries.

And I did go back to Clinique. As a birthday present to myself, I got a bottle of the facial wash I so love. But not wanting to give up that easily, I matched it with Olay Total Effects GENTLE moisturizer (price increased to PhP700.00 a bottle), totally UNSCENTED from Personal Care Exchange at ATC, the promo girl there was more knowledgeable than the one at S and R. It has been 10 days since, and so far new pimples stopped bobbing up. Still have a humongous zit on my nose and some dark pimple spots from the recent break out though. If my face breaks out again…then so much for economizing, I’m definitely buying the Superdefense moisturizer again. I’m not so much into clothes, shoes, bags or whatever. When there’s an urgent need for it I do shop for clothes... otherwise I get by with presents from my hubby, family and friends. For shoes, a once or twice a year trip to Bass and Aerosoles shop at ATC is sufficient.

Hey, we only have one face to show and it is the face we have to live with for the rest of our natural life. We should very well take good care of it.

*photo from www.clinique.com

Bratz Leah's New Look

The little girl's Literary Program was last Friday. While the hubby and I were having lunch at the house last Monday, Bea came down the stairs excited to show me something. She was like "Mom, have something to show you!" I'm like "Hey, what is it?" Then she showed me her Bratz doll given by my cousin. "Here Mom. She's also a cat."

Using her ballpen, she drew lines on her doll's face. Almost the same way I did her face last Friday! It was soooo funny! But I did not laugh of course or I might be shocked to wake up one morning with all her dolls and our faces looking like felines. My reaction was "Oh, wow. She's now a cat too." I complimented her work. Told her that we'll get something to remove it like the petroleum jelly I used to remove her make-up (Wipe Out, perhaps?) after Leah's "program" and next time ask Mommy first if it's okay to do something like that. I do not really want her to stop being creative and all. And it is HER toy. My long-haired "twirly curl" Barbie turned into a short-haired punk before I reached High School. ;-)

I guess we should always explain to the kids why, how we do things, when and when not to do them. And we should never get tired of answering their perpetual "why's?"

My Kitten

My Kitten

By Marchette Chute

“Kitten, my kitten soft and dear

I’m so glad that you are here

Sitting together just us two

You loving me

And me loving you.”

Our Little Feline

My cuddly wuddly's teacher sent us a short poem by Marchette Chute before they went on vacation last October. Each child was assigned a poem (about animals) to memorize and recite in the school Literary Program, looking like the animal assigned. The grannies (my mom and my Tita Rose) were fussing about the costume. Told them I will probably just use face paint and her ballet clothes. They would not have it. My tita then said she’ll just go to Divisoria to get her a cat costume. Two days before presentation she said she did not have time to go. She’s really busy at work. So I went around looking for one. Went to three malls, but they had only Disney costumes left. I did not really have time to go to Divisoria, I then decided to make our own kitten costume.

Got a black long sleeved leotard from Landmark for PhP150.00, a kitten ear hat at PhP24.00, and 5 yards of purple boa feathers (PhP35.00/yard @ Carolina’s in Glorietta) for the fluffy/furry effect, black tights and black ballet shoes. Hand-sewn the boa feathers to the leotard and put on a little facial artwork. The last time I tried my hand at sewing was in High School, and I cried buckets of tears doing my projects, some of my classmates would even help me finish them. Man, things you'd do for your child! Oh, well here’s my cutie little feline:

Here are pictures of her with her classmates taken during their dance number:

A funny shot of Bea with a schoolmate-- a mouse with a sinister plot:

Most of the kids performed well, much to their parents' delight. They were very eager to strut their stuff for Mom and Dad. The teachers were there to coach them in case they forget their lines and dance move. After the show we went to Jollibee, Madrigal as Bea's treat for letting me dress her up and participating in the program. Good thing about Bea though, she enjoys these things as much as we love watching her do them with great confidence and enthusiasm. :-)

Counting My Blessings

I usually find myself do some serious contemplating days before (and after) my birthday. I reflect on the year that has passed and more often than not I end smiling after. There were trying times yes, but they just make the good times stand out more. I am grateful to God for giving me a wonderful, loving, supportive family: my mom, my husband, my daughter, my sibling, my extended family (grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins) and in-laws. Thoughtful, caring and supportive friends too! I am truly blessed.

I Like To Boodet, Boodet!

Bea would usually go to the office with me when she doesn’t have school. My mom and I would take her to Robinson’s Place Manila or Mall of Asia. One time, we were going around the mall while my mom was having a haircut. We dropped by Animaland to check out the stuffed animals there. And I told her she can choose one. She got a squirrel. It’s actually a “create-your-own” thing. So you just choose a skin then with the assistance of the sales peep, you can stuff it and add whatever trinket you want. Come to the funny part, we asked her what name she’d like to give her pet for the “Birth Certificate.” She stopped for a while and said “Budet!”. We were like “Ano daw yun?” (What was that?). She said “Budet, Mom. His name Budet.” I’m like okay, sure why not? Just told the guy to print it as “Boodette” to make it sound a little classy. I could not help it. I just had to ask her why that name. Her reply “Madagascar, Mom. I like to boodet, boodet!” LOL. I like to move it, move it! It was the squirrel-looking striped-tail lemur king from the movie Madagascar! She is just so cute!

We have been waiting for a good kiddie movie to come along for Bea’s first trip to the movie house. So when Madagascar 2 came out, it just had to be it. After my birthday lunch last Sunday, Bea, the hubby's niece, the nanny and I grabbed some Kettle Corns and trooped to ATC Cinema to catch it. The hubby dropped us off then went back for us after the movie, he was not feeling too well. And no, not from cholesterol overload, he’s got a cold. Bea was dumb stricken when she saw the big screen in front. It was much, much bigger than her dad’s Bravia at home. She was just staring quietly, in awe, at the screen. Monica and I were teasing her but she was not minding us at all. She’d look at me every now and then and giggle. It’s like she couldn’t believe there’s such thing as a ginormously huge T.V.! We all had fun watching it.

After the movie I asked her if she liked it in the movie house. She replied, “Can I sleep here, Mom?” :-)

My Birthday Surprise

I turned 32 last Monday. In cahoots with my mom, my aunt and uncle, the hubby surprised me with a luncheon treat at Gloria Maris last Sunday. Thinking it will just be the three of us, with our niece, we started the day with a mass at St. James the Great Parish and went to the restaurant immediately after. I was pleasantly surprised to see mom and aunt waiting for us there. Loving food as much as we do, we ordered a lot, as usual. We feasted on fish lip soup (you just have to put some balsamic vinegar to make it sing!), steamed dumplings (shrimp, spinach and polanchay), chicken feet, broccoli with garlic, crystal prawns, and the high cholesterol special-- a whole pecking duck cooked in 3 ways –wrapped, salt and pepper fried, and minced with fresh lettuce), and yang chow fried rice. Then we went to Starbucks at ATC after for another sinful indulgence…mocha and chocolate cream frapuccinos. Yummy surprise!

Deliberate Parenting

The hubby took the day off last Friday to go with me to Rosemont. I had to go to office in the morning to do payroll, but was home before 2 p.m. Our tutorial chat was scheduled at 3:00 p.m. I’m sure most of you are thinking “Tutorial what?” To understand better I got the exact text of what a tutorial chat is from the PAREF (Parents for Education Foundation) website www.paref.org:

“Parental collaboration, a must in the PAREF philosophy of education, is implemented through a series of periodic chats, of a tutor or confidante with the student, and also with his parents. Through these personal conversations, tutor and parents collaborate in the overall development of the child's growth and they assure greater harmony between the home and the school.”

Each child has his/her own tutor or “friend”. A “confidante” whose main task is to monitor the intellectual, socio-emotional and spiritual growth of the tutee. The child is encouraged to talk about the happenings in his life, his world outside school,home life. Some find this system intrusive. I mean it is like, OMG they will train our kids to spy on us! To be snitches! Moles! Or whatever. But it is not really as bad as it sounds. It’s actually good, my two cents.

When we became parents, we talked about the kind of parenting style we’d like to adapt in our home. Coming from families with different set-up and of course, different parenting styles, we both have our own take on how we’d like things to be with regards to the upbringing of our child. But you know what? Even with different family backgrounds, the husband and I are both for deliberate parenting. And being deliberate parents, we want to know what’s happening in Bea’s life, especially outside our home. As for the part wherein Bea will be asked about the happenings in the house, we are quite okay with that too. I mean, if you have nothing to hide, there’s really nothing to be afraid of. There’s no such thing as a perfect home, we all know that. If you’re not doing anything bad, then your child will only have good things to tell her tutor.

Last quarter it was just the tutor and I. I am glad that the dad was with me for the second quarter tutorial chat. We were so happy to find out that Bea’s doing very well in school. She aced her 2nd Quarter Math Evaluations and got 23/27 for Reading. For the 1st quarter she only got 1-3 mistakes for both subjects. Not bad for a 3 year old (July 23 birthday) Nursery student, eh? Like other kids, she still has to improve on her social skills. Like sharing, taking care of belongings, etc. which is quite normal for kids her age. I am not bragging or anything, okay? Just sharing. We’re just proud parents, that's all. You know how it is. :-) Her classmates are mostly a year to year and a half older than her. We were afraid that she might be too young for traditional school set up, for Nursery. She went to a play-based, developmental school, Toddlers Unlimited at Festival Mall, prior to enrolling at Rosemont. So far, so good. She seems to be adjusting well. And her developmental pediatrician at Asian Hospital, Dr. Bernadette Benitez, did say that most of her skills are advanced for her age. We closely monitor her schooling and its effect on her. We do not want it to be too overwhelming or stressful for her. We are just here for support. So long as she is happy in school and developmental goals are met, then we are good.

Deliberate Parenting is a term you will always hear in PAREF school talks and seminars (there’s a mandatory 5-module NPEP seminar for new PAREF parents). But I noticed that it’s a parenting style most people use nowadays. We do not call it exactly that. But boomer and gen x parents are pretty much hands-on with the upbringing of their children. We make it a point to be an essential part of their lives. And I mean both parents. Not just the mom, not just the dad. We do not just provide them with what we think they need, we are also interested in what THEY say or think they need. We do not just give them candies or chocolates, we actually squint our eyes in the grocery reading food labels to make sure it’s not contaminated with melamine or whatever “toxic” thing it may contain. We have their pediatrician’s personal number in our speed dial. We do not just buy the doctor’s Rx, we “googleize” first before we actually get them. We even googleize the doctor himself. We googleize a lot of things, actually. We encourage them to talk and we listen to what they have to say. We are involved parents.

This is not to say that other parenting styles are wrong or that parents before our time were not good.Hey, we did turn out well, right? LOL. Different strokes for different folks. No matter what our parenting style is, we all have to agree that we only just want what is BEST for our children.



"Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you, And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you. You may give them your love but not your thoughts. For they have their own thoughts. You may house their bodies but not their souls, For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams. You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you. For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday. You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth. The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far. Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness; For even as he loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable."
- Kahlil Gibran

No Way, Jose

Was off from work yesterday to wait for the delivery of our Toilet and Bath fixtures. Waited from morning until delivery truck finally arrived at 3:00 p.m.. I went through all the goods with the foreman, and the Wilcon guys. Good thing we checked. All the stuff were in A1 condition, save for the bathtub which I refused to accept cause there was a teeny weeny surface scratch, though it came wrapped, like the plastic we peel from our mobile phone LCDs. The delivery guys were like "Sa plastic lang naman po,Ma'am." (It's just the plastic, ma'am). But I could really see that it went through the plastic wrapping, so I asked them to peel off that portion of the plastic. And there it was, the teeny weeny scratch. I told them politely that I want it changed and to make sure that all items they are going to deliver next should be in perfect condition. I am kinda OC about these things. I feel for the owner of Wilcon, yeah, I do. But hey, we paid in full. It was not on "bargain". We should get our money's worth.



I warned our contractor, Architect Alex P. Ramos, earlier on that I am very particular about these things. And I am pretty sure AGC Design Concepts, firm we contracted to do architectural and interior design, know this very well. I understand it can never really be 100% perfect in projects like construction, but sloppy, lopsided work is unacceptable. So far, so good. I mean something will come up every now and then, but with all parties working together closely (homeowner should be very involved), we manage to address each and every problem that arises. But we're not done yet, and real house woes will start to come out months or so AFTER turn over.

Tiles, Tiles And More Tiles

As early as December last year we started the search for our preferred materials. Criteria: good quality, visually pleasing, and friendly on the pocket---value for money.



Like I mentioned on my previous post, we are about to start with the finishing part of the home construction. Bitoy, our site foreman, has been asking us for the Toilet and Bath tiles and fixtures. Started purchasing items around February of this year. Wilcon Builder's Supply Depot can actually store them for you while waiting for delivery date, and the sales people there are just so friendly and accommodating. For all the fixtures we got Kohler and Karat (a Kohler subsidiary).

Choosing tiles can be a pretty vexing task. And you have to work closely with your architect on this, as they need to see the tile of your preference for them to design the "look" of each space. Word of advise: when you've made up your mind on an item, show it to the architect, and have him do the final wall and floor pattern right away and buy it immediately. When we went back to Wilcon to buy the tiles last Saturday, most of them have very limited supply already. And you really would not want to get tiles from different branches as they might have different manufacturing dates. I've been told that even if they're of the same brand and specification, sometimes there's a slight difference in the actual color. They should be of the same batch. We ended up not getting anything that day. And I had to go back to Wilcon yesterday with our architect and the contractor. This was our original choice for Bea's T & B, Rhapsody White and Green with multicolored accent from Indonesian brand Romangres:





It would have been perfect for her room. But they did not have much stock left in their warehouse.



There are just so many options. Price ranges from PhP20.00 to PhP2000.00+ per piece, some even at PhP10000.00 + per square, depending on brand, design and size. Spanish, Italian, Indonesian, Malaysian, China and our local brands. They're all nice. But we do not really like the "shiny" look. We prefer matte finish. We decided to mix brands and opted to use same items for Bea's and the extra room (for the twins? he he). Got Grespania's (Spain) Luz series(Pistachio for Bea's, Turquesa for the extra room) for accent and Arte Ceramiche's (China) Waal Blanco, as main tile. In doing so, we were able to cut down cost. Imagine one of Grespania's Blanco line costs around PhP112.00 per piece. So that's PhP112.00 x 600 pcs vs. Arte Cermiche's Waal Blanco's PhP28.00 x 600? Almost the same style and quality? For powder room and master's T and B, we want neutral colors. Opted for Romangres' Vulcano Beige and GT Natural Stone's mosaic slate in Multicolor or Autumn Mix. Living, dining and kitchen will all have Malaci's (China) Kairos. I kinda like our very own Mariwasa's Liberty Ivory for the service area.



So there, we're finally done with the tiles. Next decision to make: solid wood, engineered wood, or laminates for the second level and attic flooring?




*progress as of 08 November 2008