cherry blossom jigsaw puzzle

Just finished putting up together 1000 pieces of jigsaw puzzle that we bought as a souvenir, which I thought was gonna take forevah to finish. I too shocked myself when I finished it in just a month and a half.

So fulfilling making and finishing this one. It just sends me a great deal of completeness and closure (WOW! ;p)

It just makes me so happy to see it as one big picture now.

Just have to get used to seeing doubles from now on (nadokleng na...hahahaha)

Next step, framing. Good luck to me :)

chewy brownies..

Made brownies today. Sorry about the pictures. I take really bad ones. But this recipe really is a winner. Enjoy baking :)

You will need:

350 mg Dutsche semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup of butter

3 eggs

1-1/4 cups of flour

1 cup of sugar

1 tsp vanilla

nuts (optional)

Melt together butter and half of the semi-sweet chocolate chips in super low heat. Add in 3 eggs, flour and sugar. Mix well. Add the rest of the chocolate chips, vanilla and nuts. Place in a lined 7 x 10 rectangular baking pan. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

My Favorite Things - St. Ives Lotion

Was thinking of blog ideas and came up with wanting to share my favorite things, kinda like one of Oprah's segments in her show.

So for my first entry I would like to share my love for this St. Ives Cucumber-Melon Lotion. Coz you see, I am not blessed with the softest skin so everytime I feel my skin are tight and dry, I make it a point to dab on lotion and this lotion -- gosh -- it just spells F-R-E-S-H-N-E-S-S.

Also, its one of those lotions where it does not leave a greasy feel. The moment you feel youve scrubbed and spread just enough lotion, it dries up but still leaves your hand feeling soft.

This lotion just feels and smells ohhhhh soooo heavenly. I just love it.

photohunt - sports

I hope Im right when I thought of this as a sport. Anyways, this photo was taken at the entrance gates of Grand Circuit Raceway at the Tomorrowland Park Area at Tokyo Disneyland. This was actually one of the rides I marked when I was making our itinerary (along with Haunted Mansion) - turns out it was closed for the day for renovations. Oh well!

remembering tommy

Oh my gosh! I'm so back from whatever limbo I've been in. With what actually were two months of very rich kwentos going on in my life, became the most quiet of all.

Sometimes, words just aint enough to express what you truly feel.d


Iniweyz, one of my missed kwentos was that my nephew passed away because of dengue while we were still away. All was so sudden. My dear nephew suffere and gone because of the complications of dengue in just one week. I was waiting for my sister every minute to YM me details of his condition and experienced calling from a payphone at a train station to send words of love when he was in a coma - like a movie I swear - wish it was!! Sooo hard!!

Crying alone in an environment who does not share the same amount of grief as a family would was very very hard. They shared but they can only go as far as saying condolence - just not as much as you think a family would. You know what I mean. Its just hard to keep your smiling face to friends when just moments ago, you were reminiscing on past times with the departed.

I tried to write about this two days after my nephew passed away but I just cant go on so I stopped. I wrote:

"...two days ago, I lost my dear nephew to dengue. He passed away at the tender age of 17. This is a first to me - death of a family. No words can describe the grief and the longingness that I feel right now. Memories coming back one after the other with only tears to combat it with..."

So hard. Death is such the most painful.

To you Tom, I know you are in a much better place now but the whole family is going to miss you soooooooooo much! We love you dearly.

turning japanese - twin liner bus

looks more like a train to me ;p

turning japanese - parking area for bikes

One of the things that amazes me most as I experience life here in Japan is their use of bikes. Bikes here are used by everybody --- to the office goers, stay-at-home moms, kids, and of course those health buffs. Bikes also are registered in city halls - and I mean complete with certifications and all that paper proofs that it belongs to you.

From where I grew up, bikes are used only for recreation or for a morning or late night exercise, but here its like its equivalent to a car. I can see beautiful petite Japanese woman (oops! too much admiration..hehehe) wearing skirts, no wait, "mini"skirts to go to work; and sometimes guys in their coat and ties as well.

And what made me think that bikes REALLY are so much a part of Japanese' daily life. They have parking areas for bikes as well.

These parking areas are situated near train stations so people who uses the train to go to work leave their bikes there. And after work and train travel again back, they can just hop in to their bikes and head on home, since there is no tricycle that could take them to short distances like in ours ;p

orange bike is hubby's

Its gonna cost you though. When we left hubby's bike in the parking area and have been gone for 6 hours, it cost us 100 yen (50 pesos approx.). They have this vendo look-a-like machine (which i forgot to take a picture of) that computes how much you are supposed to pay by just keying in the parking lot number. And you can't cheat and just pull out your bike without paying the fee. It locks your bike until the machines says you've paid (cool hi-tech Japanese). Not bad eh? considering you have been super stressed from work and quite sleepy on the train ride - a bike ride can be quite invigorating.

photohunt - entertainment

As usual, always late with the posting of the photohunt.

Last Saturday's theme is entertainment. Picture showing my daughter popping bubble wraps bringing entertainment to an otherwise boring day.

photohunt - garbage (july 11)

This is a super dooper wackadoodle late post of the photohunt themes. During the time that garbage was the theme, I couldnt come up with a picture to depict it. But today while walking on our way to eat lunch, we saw this computer monitor laying around like a gum wrapper and I just could not resist. Funny thing is that I cant even see a gum wrapper on the streets. How's that for garbage. ;p

See related posts:

photohunt: painted

kopi roti - kaya toast

At the waiting area of NAIA Terminal I1, near the boarding gates, is a breakfast nook called Kopi Roti. Having read raves about this shop in Awesome Planet's blog and the fact that we still havent had breakfast yet made me want to check it out.

It is a coffee shop with just a few selection of tasty treats, toasts and buns mostly.

What I ordered was the kaya toast. It is toasted bread sliced thinly and served with kaya spread and butter. (Kaya is a famous jam hailing from Singapore and Malaysia made from coconuts.) To me it feels like eating pan de coco only on a crunchier bread. For 55 pesos, you get 2 sandwiches - not bad.

Too bad I didnt have the chance to taste their coffee selection because adding caffeine to my already excited phase that day could kill me :p

To get a glimpse of what their menu looks like and their branches, view this.

turning japanese - prologue

So this stuff that I was talking about that left me "blog dead" for a month and a half was this trip that my husband planned for us two girls (my daughter and me) to visit him for a month.

During the start of the preparation to come here, I thought paperworks were the hardest to fix. It turns out packing stuff to buy and bring was the hardest. I mean to fit the whole house, where I have been most comfortable with my entire life, in two 20-kg suitcases is just so hard - doable - but hard ;p

So iniweyz, this is a pretty major thing for me since I havent been away from home for more than a week or two, and that Baguio (still, with family) and Surigao (at my parents house) are the only places I went - which still feels like home - so there you go.

Let me share in the next days the experiences I'll have during my stay here - from a not so well-travelled momma's standpoint (ignoramus hehehe). I'm sure every bit of experience - be it good or bad - will be worth blogging and reading. Hai!

boyce avenue on avril lavigne's keep holding on

My husband sent me this link from youtube saying that this song fits us perfectly - sweetness! I havent heard of these boys (or boyce? hehehe) yet and just thought that they are just one of those guys who want to make it big in youtube. Apparently, Boyce Avenue did make it big and have been big for quite sometime now. In fact, they had a concert already here at SMX MOA according to my friend. Iniweyz, I just super love these guys and how they do their own interpretation of famous songs - acoustically.

Boyce Avenue on Avril Lavigne's Keep Holding On

My personal favorites are their version of Oasis' Wonderwall and Goo Goo Dolls' Iris.

Enjoy!!

are you a movie addict??

My month-long haitus is over. Stepped out of blogging for a while to organize some stuff.

Iniweyz, I am back with this self-reflective (hehehe) survey. Got this from my friend Yvon's site. Here goes:

If you've seen over 85 films, you are a movie addict.

Mark the ones you've seen. There are 239 films on this list. Then, put an 'x' next to the films you've seen, add them up, change the header adding your number.

Teen/Romance:
(x) The Cinderella Story
( ) Another Cinderella Story
( ) Step Up
( ) Step Up 2
(x) High School Musical
(x) High School Musical 2
(x) High School Musical 3
( ) Hannah Montana Movie
(x) Enchanted
( ) Sydney White

Total: 5

( ) She's the Man
( ) Licensed to Wed
(x) The Break-up
(x) 13 going on 30
( ) 27 Dresses
( ) P.S I Love You
(x) Made of Honour
(x) What Happens in Vegas
( ) Get Smart
( ) The Princess Brides

Total: 4

(x) Camp Rock
( ) Wild Child
(x) Ella Enchanted
(x) The Princess Diaries
( ) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
(x) 50 First Dates
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Hotel For Dogs
( ) Just Married
(x) Freaky Friday

Total: 5

(x) The Hot Chick
( ) Sleepover
(x) Confessions Of a Shopaholic
(x) Twilight
(x) Nancy Drew
(x) The Devil Wears Prada
(x) No Reservations
(x) Perfect Man
( ) Australia
(x) Never Been Kissed

Total: 8

Comedy/Humour:
( ) Yes Man
(x) Bedtime Stories
( ) The Pink Panther
( ) The Pink Panther 2
(x) Marley & Me
(x) Cheetah Girls
(x) Cheetah Girls 2
(x) Bratz
( ) Haunted Mansion
( ) Paul Blart Mall Cop

Total: 5

(x) The 40-year-old virgin
( ) Night in the Museum
( ) Night in the Museum 2
(x) Evan Almighty
(x) Bruce Almighty
(x) White Chicks
(x) Never ending Story
(x) Meet the Spartans
(x) Meet the Parents
(x) Meet the Fockers

Total: 8

( ) Scream
( ) Scream 2
( ) Scream 3
(x) Scary Movie
(x) Scary Movie 2
( ) Scary Movie 3
( ) Scary Movie 4
(x) American Pie
(x) American Pie 2
( ) American Pie Band Camp

Total: 4

Adventures:
(x) Harry Potter 1: The Sorcerer’s Stone
(x) Harry Potter 2: The Chamber's Secret
(x) Harry Potter 3: Prisoner of Azkaban
(x) Harry Potter 4: Goblet of Fire
(x) Harry Potter 5: Order of Phoenix
(x) Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring
( ) Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
( ) Lord of the Rings: Return Of the King
(x) Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
(x) Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian

Total: 8

(x) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
( ) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
( ) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
( ) Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull
(x) The Mummy
(x) The Mummy 2
(x) The Mummy 3
( ) Journey to the Center of Earth
( ) City of Ember
( ) Finding Never land

Total: 4

(x) Pirates of the Caribbean
(x) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest
( ) Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End
(x) X-Men
( ) X-Men 2
( ) X-Men 3 Origins Wolverine
(x) Spider-Man
(x) Spider-Man 2
(x) Spider Man 3
(x) King Kong

Total: 7

(x) Hellboy
(x) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
(x) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
(x) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(x) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(x) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
(x) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
(x) Underdog
(x) A Series Of Unfortunate Events
( ) Batman: The Dark Knight

Total: 9

Action/ Thriller:
(x) The Matrix
(x) The Matrix Reloaded
( ) The Matrix Revolutions
(x) Terminator
(x) Terminator 2
( ) Terminator 3
(x) Ocean's Eleven
(x) Ocean's Twelve
(x) Ocean’s Thirteen
( ) Casino Royale 007

Total: 7

( ) Bourne Identity
(x) Bourne Supremecy
(x) Underworld
( ) Butterfly Effect
( ) Death Note
( ) Death Note 2
( ) Death Note 3: L Change the world
( ) Resident Evil 1
( ) Resident Evil 2
(x) I, Robot

Total: 3

(x) Rush Hour
(x) Rush Hour 2
(x) Rush Hour 3
(x) Mission Impossible 1
(x) Mission Impossible 2
(x) Mission Impossible 3
(x) I Am Legend
( ) Predator I
( ) Predator II
(x) Signs

Total: 7

Horror:
( ) Saw
( ) Saw II
( ) Saw III
( ) Saw IV
( ) Saw V
( ) The Grinch
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
( ) The Ring
( ) The Ring 2

Total: 0

( ) Final Destination
( ) Final Destination 2
( ) Final Destination 3
( ) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
( ) Child's Play
( ) Seed of Chucky
(x) Bride of Chucky
( ) Gothika
( ) Nightmare on Elm Street

Total: 1

( ) The Grudge
( ) The Grudge 2
( ) The Haunted Apartment
( ) Siren
( ) Silent Hill
( ) The Mask
( ) Son Of The Mask
( ) Alone
( ) Omen
( ) House Of Wax

Total: 0

( ) The Eye
( ) The Eye 2
( ) Shutter
( ) When the Stranger calls
( ) The Fog
( ) The Orphanage
( ) The Skulls
(x) Cruel Intentions
( ) Cruel Intentions 2
( ) House of 1000 Corpses

Total: 1

Cartoons:
(x) Lilo & Stitch
(x) Ice Age
(x) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
(x) Madagascar
(x) Madagascar 2
(x) Kung Fu Panda
(x) Bolt
(x) Wall-E
(x) Monsters Inc
(x) Shark Tale

Total: 10

(x) Shrek
(x) Shrek 2
(x) Shrek 3
(x) Finding Nemo
(x) ET
(x) Cars
(x) Ratatouille
(x) Toy Story
(x) Toy Story 2
(x) The Incredibles

Total: 10

Inspirational:
( ) Little Miss Sunshine
(x) I Am Sam
( ) The Day After Tomorrow
( ) Coach Carter
( ) The Last Dance
( ) To Kill A Mockingbird
( ) Conrack
( ) Midnight Sun
( ) Little Black Book
( ) Rwanda Genocide

Total: 1

Classics:
(x) Ten Things I Hate About You
(x) Titanic
(x) Romeo & Juliet
(x) Frankenstein
(x) A Midsummer Night's Dream

Total: 5

TOTAAAAALLLLLLL: (jenjereren!!!!) 112 movies

I therefore conclude that I am in fact a TV addict (hehehe). But definitely, noooooo horror movies for me. Shyaayks!!

desert mode: my sloppy icebox

Craved for something sweet today, and this is what I came up with. Refrigerator cake - graham cracker cake - just grew up calling this Icebox.

To make a 6 x 4 x 2 size cake, you will need:

1 pack of graham crackers
1 250 gm of all purpose cream, chilled before using
half a pack of 250-gm condensed milk
2 mangoes

- slice thinly mangoes and set aside

- combine all purpose cream and condensed milk and set aside

- To assemble: Put a small amount of the cream mixture first so the graham crackers wont stick to the bottom of the container. Next would be the graham crackers. Followed by the cream mixture and then the mango slices. Repeat the layering order ending with mangoes on top. You can put crushed graham crackers on top to seal the mangoes.

and....VOILA! sloppy noh? hehehehe

korean egg rolls - gye ran mal ee

This is how hooked I am to Boys over Flowers -- I made my own egg rolls from the series.







Recipe will be from this site coz its quite hard to explain how to cook it, so here's the link where I got the recipe from. I used spring onions instead of onions for a more subtle onion-y taste. Enjoy :)

watchamacallit shrimps - dampa style recipe

Whatchamacallit? Just coz I dont know how what to call it (hehehe ;p) but I am super sure that this recipe is rice-worthy and is...ahm..sipsip-alicious!!!

I will try my best to express this recipe in measurement as this has just been a mix of what I recalled when my sister cooked this for us and the taste I cannot ever (EVER!!) forget everytime I eat at dampa.

For this, you will need:

Star Margarine Garlic flavor to be used for sauteing
10 cloves of garlic, minced (adding more is fine- go crazy on the garlic)
1 kg shrimps (yummy if sugpo - my sister gave us lots fresh from Iloilo - yum!!)
salt to taste
6 Tbsp of mayonnaise or just enough mayo to cover all the shrimps (used Lady's Choice)
sprinkle of sugar (adjust according to your taste)


-Saute garlic in margarine.

-Add shrimps and season with salt.

-When shrimps are done. Spread mayo on top of the shrimps until it melts down.

-Add sugar a little at a time until you achieve the sweetness to your liking.


Zita!!! Try this!!! I promise you our most precious shrimp will not be to waste.

F4 mode - super on!!

Spent four days last week watching Boys Over Flowers, the Koreans version of the Meteor Garden a few years back.

I loved Meteor Garden then and felt that it was a bit touching and cried quite a bit too that I thought I'd try watching Boys Over Flowers tagalized version and see how they'd compare with the old version, and I totally loved it right away - so smittened that I watched the whole thing online.

Being the hopeless romantic that I am, all those 'kilig' scenes for me were done soooooooooo perfectly. You know those scenes in movies that touches your heart so much that it makes you feel like crying too? - UGLY CRY?!?! - THAT kind of cry!

Although the actors werent really as hunky as what should have been projected (except for that Kim Bum guy - cuteness!!), the boys there kinda grows on you and if during the first few episodes you still find them not cute enough - wait till you watch the whole thing, you will definitely love them and their characters.

I also love their OST, though in korean language, its super nice and refreshing to hear. A good addition to the Ipod playlist.

Oh!! You just have to watch it!!! Super nice and heartwarming. Nice quotables there too - I'll try and slip some of those in my quotables posts.

Word of caution though, I spent 3 sleepless nights trying to watch and finish the episodes. I just cant stop!!

F4 mode - definitely ON!

Photo courtesy of mysoju.com. You can also watch all 25 episodes of Boys Over Flowers there too.

Friendship Award 2009

Thank you Golden of One Proud Mom, One Proud Wife for this award. If this was given to me before you got it, I would have passed this award to you also.

I thought it would be hard to meet new friends when I started this blog, but all the ones I met during my interest in blogging began proved me wrong.

I would like to pass this award to the guys who have been super supportive and friendly and who willingly shared tips and experiences to me:

zita of I ammmmmm Maria Zitaba

Magz of The Game Warehouse
utotmopink
Ish of Before the Eastern Sunset
My left hand corner

photohunt: painted

This week's photohunt theme is painted.

This picture was painted by Leila in a Faber-Castell Free Art Workshop held at Southmall. I am usually shy in joining activities when I am alone. Its just that Leila just had a skin test and that it was the first time I've seen her so scared and I just thought -- what the heck? I can sit down in the middle of the mall with my daughter. It made her very happy and proud but most of all made her forgot all about the pain she just felt in her checkup. My poor girl!




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Related post:

on following photohunt

"quotables"

While watching cartoons.

"Mama, I'm never gonna leave you."


Awwww!!

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Related posts:

"quotables"

Tagged Too - from Ishmael

My very first tag coming from Ishmael --- and this wasnt easy at all. Its hard to say something without giving out too much :)

The rules of this tag are:

1. Write anything about 15 persons you know.
2. Don't mention the names of these 15 persons you are referring to.
3. If someone would ask who these persons are, don't tell them.
4. Tag 15 persons but don't include the persons you included in your post.

Iniweyz, here goes:

1. You may be the fattest, the loudest girls there are but I love and treasure you all dearly. I value your friendship so much. Bad as it may sound, I am glad I lit that yosi that afternoon I met you guys.

2. You may not know this but you were such an inspiration in high school. You are smart, prayerful and super nice. Hope all is well with you now :)

3. You are always there when I need help, from simple to the not so simple ones. I appreciate it very very much and I love you - in case you dont know yet :)

4. I miss you so much. When you left, I really felt lost and super alone. I miss hanging out with you badly. Mondays are not the same. I miss your laugh. Write more often, gosh! (Galit na!)

5. You may not be close to the ideals but I love you just the same. I will try to forget all that has been done and the effects that it caused. I will always be here for you.

6. I am sorry I made it difficult for you then. I hope I am now what I should have been before. Take care there!

7. You are one of my inspirations in life. With such a privileged life, you chose to be down to earth. Truly an amazing person with good brains to boot. God bless!

8. I dont know what happened with us but we used to be super okay friends. We are not "not okay" now but I know we can be more than just okay, okay? hahaha

9. I hate that you didnt listen to me when I told you not to do it. Just the same, things came out well and you have been blessed with such a beautiful and cute angel. I love you and that I will be your friend forever. PERIOD.

10. What happened to your sweetness. You were so full of it then. Everyday problems must have taken that out of you. I hope and pray that you find peace and eventually find joy with it.

11. I thank you for all the hardwork, the not so obvious advices that you gave (that is super obvious now that I have my own child), and the patience. Love you.

12. Thank you for being ever so dependable. You are always just a call away, though sometimes I worry about you with handling finances. Love you still.

13. I have misjudged you and I acknowledge that. You are one of the few people that we can count on all the time. I hope good health is with you always.

14. I never thought I would find the best companion in such a small you. I have learned a lot of things about myself and what I am capable of doing when we are together without you having to say anything, you just stare at me in amazement, or worse, you just cry (and then I know I did something wrong and then I change). I have seen in you the sorriest face when I get mad, and the sweetest thank you I have ever heard when you are happy when I do something you like. I hope I give you enough love and encouragement so you end up knowing what you want and having the confidence and will and faith to get it. I will always be here for you. I love you very much.

15. I am so thankful I met you. As demanding as you are about things you want me to be, I know you mean well and I willingly change - sometimes - with much arguing, hehehe. Thank you for giving me things I never thought I needed, that now I love and treasure so much. I appreciate it when you said that you not only love me, but you learn to love all the things I love and hope for, and that you will help me get it. I could not ask for more. Love you. Soulmates are true.

Phew!!! Enjoyed doing this, promise. Now, I pass this to everyone who reads this. You're TAGGED TOO!!

on following photohunt

Found out about photohunt through one of utotmopink's entry. I wanted to try and follow the themes but I am not sure I would be able to deliver good enough photos because I am super bad at taking pictures.

Flashback: I remember one time in college, one of my girlfriend's joined this college pageant thing and she asked me to take pictures of her (using old cam model) while she's strutting her stuff - and I did - I took pictures of her alright - her feet, the golfclub she was carrying for sports wear, and another one beside her co-contestant or was it her co-contestant beside her (she was on the side hahaha).

Okay, okay, maybe that's just plain dumbness on my part (I was jumping up and down coz I was happy for her, duh!? hahaha) but with digital cameras now in different shapes and sizes, every click now can be picture perfect. As for me, this baby is what's helping me with my blogging pictures lately and hopefully will be giving me good ones when I follow this photohunt themes every Saturday.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-M2

Good luck to me!!!

Photo courtesy of http://img.engadget.com/

time off at timezone

What to do? where to go..hmm! Its a Monday, my day off. I'm 10 minutes away from fetching my girl from summer school. Oh! I'll let her decide.

"Let's go to Timezone pls??!!!"

Okay, the plan is to go to Timezone and then get ourselves a good dinner, anyway mother's day is yet to be celebrated. So, off we go.

Just one left turn and we're in the parking lot when - tsk! tsk! tsk! - the police pulled me over to say that I beat the red light. What a way to start our mother's day celebration. Haaay!!

So after that incident, we went on with our celebration plans.

Timezone has this student promo wherein you bring your child's ID and you get extra 50 pesos if you avail of their P150 load. We had fun swishing cards left and right and because of our good gaming, we managed to exchange our tickets to a nice toy - like Handy Manny's tools - she loves it.


We then treated ourselves to a simple dinner, a sizzling bangus steaks fine with my super picky anak, then headed home.

A happy duaghter makes the happy mother's day!

"QUOTABLES"

Coversation with my 5-year-old daughter.

"Girl, pano pag old na ako tapos made-dead na ako?"

While stroking my hair, "Mama!!! That's not true!!!! Sila mamang (her lola) nga old na d pa sila nade-dead e!!"

happy mother's day ;p

Found this wonderful poem on www.poemsource.com. I directly asked permission from the author of the poem, Joanna Fuchs, if I can publish her poem here and she graciously allowed. Here's to all the mother's reading..

Everything Mom

How did you find the energy, Mom

To do all the things you did,

To be teacher, nurse and counselor

To me, when I was a kid.

How did you do it all, Mom

Be a chauffeur, cook and friend,

Yet find time to be a playmate,

I just can’t comprehend.

I see now it was love, Mom

That made you come whenever I'd call,

Your inexhaustible love, Mom

And I thank you for it all.

By Joanna Fuchs

..spot on, right?!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL MOTHERS!

For more wonderful poems for every occasion, visit www.poemsource.com

late night read

Read last night the May 2009 issue of YES! Magazine that pays tribute to the late Francis Magalona where wife, Pia Magalona, shared their beginnings as a couple until their battle against Francis' leukemia.

While saddened upon reading about Francis' undertakings, I was quite impressed with how Pia Magalona handled family situations even before FM got sick - more so during the last few months of FM's life. She shared that there are times when Francis would say sorry because he got sick and that all she could do was to hug him to ease the pain. Sad no? Hahum! :(

This 30-page spread also included personal pictures that Francis took himself and touching and inspirational stories of family and friends (including Michael V's eulogy).


Source: YES! Magazine May 2009

budding web designer :p

my daughter's young creative hands at work, now my desktop's display image ;p

fried tofu with teriyaki sauce

A week before I got married 7 years ago, there were two things I knew I needed to buy before we finally live together - a new set of undies (*wink*) and a good COOKBOOK. Thankfully, Good Housekeeping dished out a Collectors Edition of easy everyday meals - EXACTLY what I was looking for "something easy" for our "everyday meal." This cookbook has over 101 recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner and a variety of desserts, compiled in one PERFECT cookbook and it is not even expensive - just P150. Suffice it to say that this cookbook, that is as old as my marriage, has been a great help in planning and experimenting new recipes at our dinner table.

So iniweyz, I made fried tofu with teriyaki sauce today from this perfect cookbook (sorry, just had to tell the story behind the cookbook). I am not crazy about tofu but anything that has teriyaki sauce in it must be good - and it is :)

You will need:

2 blocks of tofu

oil for frying

2 tablespoons spring onions, chopped

Teriyaki Sauce:

2 cups water

1/2 cup light soy sauce

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons potato powder dissolved in 1 cup water (i just used flour of same amount)

1 tablespoon garlic, chopped

You need to:

- deep fry the tofu until golden brown

- in a saucepan, combine the ingredients for the sauce and cook until slightly thick

- place the cooked tofu in a bowl. Top with the sauce and chopped spring onions.

I paired this with daing na bangus and LOTS of rice ;p

No Reservations - Philippines

I super love watching Anthony Bourdain in Discovery Travel and Living's No Reservations. And all this time I have been asking why the Philippines has been bypassed when I have seen him travel in almost all of Southeast Asia. The answer to my why's had been answered today with just a click of a button. I was trying to view the TV guide of Discovery Travel and Living in SE Asia and ended up reading "Our Awesome Planet's" blog about Anthony Bourdain being here --- IN THE PHILIPPINES. Great!

It started with Ivan Man Dy touring AB through Chinatown where they tried chicken balls, taho, and pancit palabok. Then went to Dampa and ate pinakbet, ginataang crab, and adobong hipon. Halo-halo though could have been a nice addition to the list of something to try.

Pampanga was next where he met with Claude Tayag, artist, writer and chef (as mentioned in the show). AB was introduced to different goat dishes, and sisig which is what as AB says in the show and I quote, "the come to mama moment of my trip." You just have to love the wit of this man.

Last stop was Cebu where they visited Tabuan (place were danggits are sold) where AB was accompanied by Joel Buenamira, who then cooks up a meal and celebrate the most awaited LECHON which was tagged by AB himself as the "best pig ever".

What more can I say, Anthony Bourdain is just for me the most entertaining and the coolest chef ever, and watching him enjoy our food makes me so proud. Kudos to the guys who toured AB. I felt that the Philippines was well represented with you guys leading. Well done! :)

------

Watch the whole episode of No Reservation's Philippines in youtube.com by ArcApex.

PACQUIAO WINS OVER HATTON!!

Im betting no one in the Philippines couldnt be prouder to be a Filipino right now.

Manny Pacquiao defeated Ricky Hatton, who has just been beaten once in his entire boxing career (well, now twice ;p), in just 2 smashing rounds. Hatton dropped twice in the first minute or so of the first round, then knocked down on the second round. Amazing!

I personally admire Manny Pacquiao's determination, his discipline and his faith. Just shows that hardwork and faith will take you many places. Such an inspiration!

Wanders @ PAGCOR

Decided to repost this entry (from March 2008) since Wanders stint in PAGCOR is still ongoing.

"Last Saturday, we had the chance to watch Wanders at Pagcor Grand Theater thanks to friends who were super kind enough to share us tickets. I was expecting a circus-circus type of act, you know the regular stuff where the ringleader introduces a group who performs with instrumental songs as backgroundmusic. Well...uhhmm...it kinda went around that order but with a beautiful beautiful beautiful band behind it (headed I think by Egay of ASAP before??), wonderful pinoy singers (Frenchie Dy, et al), great foreign dancers, grandiose costumes and hair designs - FEROSSSSHHH!!! As in I was as amazed and applauded just as hard as my daughter did, if not louder :)

My daugther, Leila, had so much fun. She was laughing so hard with the mimes drumming beats which turns out to be the Maneouvers - and yes! yes! yes! they were ultra cute. I enjoyed the interpretative dances so much especially when they swung their act across the stage twirling themselves with just a ribbon (like what KC Concepcion did for Sharon's bday) AMAZING!!! And Aldrin (my husband) of course, with a lot of hot hot hot hot chikas dancing beside him (beside coz they went up and danced at the aisle) who would not be staring, even I caught myself staring ;p

I also realized how star struck I can get, I mean c'mon who gets star struck toMatt Ranillo? our moms maybe? but again..ME..STARING!! She was with her daughter Krista too, who is a looker too. We saw Bobbie Andrews too with his family just about two rows down from where we were sitting. Too bad, cameras were not allowed inside.

We had our share of quick fame as well during curtain call. They showed Leila on the two big LCD screens on both sides of the stage while she was having fun picking up confetti and dancing.

Overall, we had an amazing night. We had pictures taken with the performers at end of the show for an additional fee."

Wanders still have shows at PAGCOR Grand Theater in Paranaque.

Ticket prices are at Php 3090, Php 2575, Php 2060, Php 1545, Php1236.

Performance dates are on May 1 to 6, 15 to 17, 19, 20, 30 and 31.

For more details on seat plan and directions on how to get there, visit Wanders at http://www.ticketworld.com/.

swine flu scare

Nothing will catch my attention most than a threat to the health of my family or to the ones closest to me so the thought of the swine flu being a pandemic panics me. Not to mention imagining the scenes from "I am Legend" -- oooohh my paranoia!!

So what is swine flu and how can we catch it?

In simple terms, swine flu is a type of flu carried by pigs that can be transmitted to people so hog raisers are especially at risk of acquiring this. The person infected then can spread this infection through droplet infection to other people. It was overly reported in the news too that you cannot catch swine flu by eating pork meat.

What are the symptoms of swine flu?

Symptoms of swine flu are the same as a regular flu like:
- fever
- cough
- body aches
- headache

There are also some cases where there are associated diarrhea and vomiting.

What to do? What to do?

Although there are no vaccines for swine flu in humans, there are simple everyday habits and ways to prevent oneself from being infected.

- cover nose and mouth when sneezing or coughing
- if you feel sick, do not go to crowded humid places to prevent spreading what you have to others and vice versa
- wearing masks
- AND as simple as this may sound it is really important to HANDWASH!! HANDWASH!! HANDWASH!!

Read more on swine flu for information and updates.

chicken nuggets

Thinking of what food to cook next can be quite tiresome. That is why I love watching cooking shows because it gives me a lot of ideas so planning meals would not be as tiresome. So yesterday, while flipping channels, I bumped into three channels with cooking shows on the same timeslot and got different recipes from those, but chose to do this first because (yes!) its easy, its healthy (because its chicken) and its fun for kids to eat.


sorry 'bout the picture, im bad at taking pictures :)

To make 46 pieces of these, you'll need:

1/2 kg of ground chicken
1 large onion
1/2 cup of minced carrots
crispy fry breading mix

- just mix all these ingredients together
- shape them any way you want
- coat with Crispy Fry breading mix or any breading mix you fancy (notice that it really does need salt and pepper because of the breading mix)
-fry til golden brown

Actually, what's really different about this recipe is that it should include minced vegetables like string beans, and minced tofu so your kids can eat vegetables without them knowing. But I thought I have to trick my daughter first into making this her favorite before I mix in those veggies. Moms can be tricky too! ;p

wallet tag -- what's in my wallet?

I love this tagging game. Got this from utotmopink's site. Lemme start off with my wallet :)

The mechanics of this tag are the ff:
1) take pictures of your wallet and its content.
2) talk about how you got your wallet and how much you paid for it.
3) enumerate the contents and tell a few things about them.
4) pass this tag to the rest of your friends.


I bought my wallet from Egg (Southmall) for just P200 - its on sale ;p. It's quite a big wallet and its super durable - been with me for 2 years now - and I love it. It holds my EVERYTHING including:






-atm cards
-BDO emerald rewards card
-PRC license
-driver's license
-my daughter's TIMEZONE powercard
-MAKRO temporary passport (have to claim that ;p)
-previous office ID and review center ID (in case i have to leave an ID at the guard)
-a 3 o'clock prayer card
-my daughter and hubby's health cards
-calling cards (pedia, brother's, catering services, laboratory/diagnostics office, Galera/Baguio city apartel, Tita Pearl's inihaw bangus - yum!)

and then there are:



-SM ice skating coupons
-McDonald's coupons (this totally expired on me..hehehe)
-Toy Kingdom promo claim stubs (grand prize is a shopping spree at TK *cross fingers*)
-pictures
-old SM IMAX ticket stubs
-calendar
-and RECEIPTS!! RECEIPTS!! RECEIPTS!!!



That's about it. Now, I'm tagging you. What's in your wallet? ;p

chicken sisig

My husband and I are always craving for this chicken sisig at Puregold so I decided to give it a try and remake it. Super easy and yummy. You can either have it super hot with lots of green chillies or not. Either way, good good good. Try it! ;p



INGREDIENTS:
just enough cooking oil for sauteing
5 cloves garlic (or more??? – love it!), minced
2 onions minced too, and another onion minced too for topping
½ kg chicken, boiled, deboned, cut into small cubes
1 tsp ground black pepper
a cup of chicken broth (broth used in boiling the chicken)
half cup vinegar
1 tbsp brown sugar
half of a chicken cube
2 tbps of liquid seasoning, or according to your taste

-Start with boiling the chicken with salt til cooked
-Then scrape the meat from the bone then cube it. Save the broth. (You can actually use chicken breast so you won't have to debone and all, its just that the broth of a chicken bone, or any meat for that matter, has more flavor.)
-Saute garlic, onion, chicken and black pepper. Let it simmer til the chicken is cooked
-Add the rest of the ingredients

To plate, top with uncooked minced onion and green chillies and chicharon --- ooohhh yummmy!!!!


If you prefer to do this with the sizzling plate, I think it would be better to mix the uncooked onions and green chillies with the cooked sisig and then crack one egg on top of it and put kalamansi on the side. RAPSA!!!

sugar cookies with royal frosting

I made this yummy project one weekend with my daughter 'coz i think she needed a little something to put her appetite back on track. She was getting a little bored with the usual meals so I searched for an EASY cookie recipe that I can make with her, and came across this. She had fun rolling out the dough, cookie cutting, and designing her batch of cookies. Its also a pretty good way to boost the confidence in your child's abilities as well. Try his yummy recipe that became an instant favorite in our household - 'coz my mom loves it too :)

Sugar Cookie Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup unsalted butter - I used Dairy Creme Classic for this
1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

-Sifted together flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.

-Using a hand mixer, beat butter and sugar just til butter and sugar are well mixed.

-Add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat until combined.

-Add the sifted flour mixture to butter mixture and beat until you have a smooth dough.
-Divide the dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap.

-Refrigerate for about one hour or until firm enough to roll.
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven.

-Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

-Remove one half of the chilled dough from the refrigerator and, on a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a thickness of 1/4 inch. (I floured mine when it gets too sticky so it wont stick to the rolling pin.)

-Cut out desired shapes using a cookie cutter dipped in flour so the dough wont stick to the cookie cutter.

-Transfer cookies to the prepared baking sheet.

-Place the baking sheets with the unbaked cookies in the refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes to chill the dough which prevents the cookies from spreading and losing their shape while baking.

-Bake cookies for about 10 to 15 minutes or until edges are brown.

-Remove from the oven and let it cool then decorate! decorate! decorate!

Royal Icing Ingredients:

2 large egg whites
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
3 cups confectioners sugar, sifted

-Beat egg whites with the lemon juice (beat mine for a minute or so)

-Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat until combined and smooth.

*This should be stored in an airtight container as it hardens when exposed to air. Placed mine in a plastic container, covered it with plastic wrap then covered with its lid.

*I placed four tablespoons of icing in two containers and mixed each with FERNA red and violet food coloring. Try adding drop by drop to get desired color.

That's it. Happy baking :)

INTROs...INTROs...

what better way to start this blog page by introducing myself... here's my take on the very famous 100 things about me...here goes 80 of mine...I...

1. am mai.

2. am a wife to aldrin for 6 years..girlfriend for 11 years..

3. am a mother/playmate to daughter leila..

4. love to cook and bake..

5. can watch cooking shows all day..

6. spend about 12 hours of my every day in front of the computer...

7. super love chicken/pork adobo..

8. sometimes can taste something and can work out the recipe from there..

9. belong to a group of ladies called chuvas (fat)..so called..

10. attended opposing schools - benedictine abbey school and la salle..

11. was told that i joined so many field demonstrations and contests when i was in grade school that my mom got tired of going..

12. once joined a declamation contest in grade 1..the piece required a bit of drama and crying..but nerves got to me so crying was effortless..so was the snot (excuse the word) ;p

13. can probably sing all of cartoon movie soundtracks because my daughter watches it ALL THE TIME..

14. always have very vivid dreams..

15. once had a dream that i was whispering something to a friend's ear and woke up posed like it..

16. am FAT ...argghh!!!

17. love ADAM SANDLER movies!!!!

18. enjoy reality shows a lot..project runway, top chef and the rachel zoe project..to name a few..

19. recently realized its hard to write 100 things about yourself... 61 more to go...

20. am a registered nurse..not practicing though..

21. enjoy watching celebrity bag raids...

22. believe that julia roberts is perfect in every way..EVERY!!!

23. dream of becoming a chef..

24. most definitely believe that you should never ever trust a fart...especially aldrin's hahahahha..but you can trust mine (*smirk*)...hehehe

25. learned how to apply eye makeup just last year..

26. was once picked out to represent my class in a physics contest..

27. youngest of 4 siblings..

28. am slow in math..quick on the calcu...hehehe

29. have a very reliable set of brothers and sisters..love them..

30. have used one book (oliver twist by charles dickens) throughout high school for book reports but i havent read it once...

31. love colors red, purple, blue, white and black..

32. am an insomniac..

33. am a capricorn..

34. think that curtis stone and anthony bourdain are the hottest and the coolest chefs ever, respectively..

35. was a CAT officer in high school..DAHAP! ;p

36. pray as if i am just talking to a friend..which i am..so to speak ;p

37. am a PSP freak..

38. love wearing flip flops..

39. ....and shorts...

40. .....and pique shirts..

41. have braces..

42. HAAAAAAAATE COCKROACHES...

43. am scared..oh wait...TERRIFIEDD!!! of dogs..

44. super super love the koreanovela Coffee Prince..

45. can do cartwheels..in my young tender years..hehehe

46. cannot grow plants..howsoever..

47. love bowling coz i think im good at it..surprisingly so..

48. love thai massages..

49. take very, very poor pictures..

50. am an instant coffee kind a gal..

51. was accelerated from prep to grade 1..big deal?! hahaha

52. learned that my mama got my name from a contestant in miss universe..

53. love desserts..

54. go by different names...MEU, mama, mamamonchang, subaru, joks, mai, ma..

55. have only had one boyfriend...and i am married to him..

56. easily cry over Lolo scenes..

57. worry A LOT!!!

58. once, in high school, fell down a flight of stairs and dragged my Filipino teacher with me..he's hated me ever since..Peace, Mr. Acoba!

59. am a bargain hunter!!

60. love sushi..

61. ...and i make them too..

62. get cranky when bills starts piling up (who doesn't??)..grrrr!!!

63. believe that everything happens for a reason..

64. never liked beer..

65. ...but i love vodka..

66. love to sing..

67. am a very fussy buyer...before i buy anything i rummage through all the nearby shops to make sure i really picked the one i like..

68. procrastinate...a lot...i invented it actually...

69. can get very dependent and attached to friends..

70. have read all series of The Adventures of Tin Tin in our high school library..(so?!?)

71. talk and tell stories animatedly..

72. this is really not easy...

73. shared the same stage with lea salonga when i was in grade 1 in a school program at the Met..yes!! spoken like a true thespian...AT THE MET! hahaha

74. consider my daughter as my best companion..

75. just realized that its hard to be a single parent...with hubby away..(miss you much!)

76. was always elected class treasurer from grade school to college and i was never good with money..talk about irony!! :p

77. am currently working at home..

78. believe that in every undertaking be it major or minor...there is always a lesson to be learned..

79. want to travel anywhere with my husband in our retiring years..

80. am DONE with this list!!


Gosh!!! it is harder than i thought it would be..but fun. Enjoy listing yours :)