My Not So Private Space In The Web

Last Saturday, we checked-in at Joya Lofts & Towers at Rockwell to celebrate Adriel’s belated 5th Birthday. We were accommodated on a 1 Bedroom Executive with a living room with beautiful interiors & fully-equipped kitchen and also a balcony where the view boasts of the tall buildings surrounding the Makati area. We really liked the place because it has so much space(60sqm), good for family or friends. The Powerplant Mall was also just right in front of Joya, you just have to walk not very far to go to the mall if you want to relax, go shopping or eat out.

I bought an angry birds cake at Conching Sabale’s before we went there and I’m really glad that Adriel liked it a lot. Before we sang Adriel the customary Happy Birthday, we went to sample their swimming pool located at the 7th floor. There was 1 kiddie pool, a larger one for the adults and also 1 medium pool located at the back. All of us didn’t had the proper swimming attire when we got there, only the kids so what my companions did was strip on their underwears(ha ha) so that they would be allowed to swim! Niknok and I were the only ones who did not swam. We all had a great time there though the security guy kept on looking at us and checking us out because we tend to create some noise.

We also went at Powerplant Mall come evening time for some grocery shopping coz we run out of rice and drinking water. We went grocery shopping at Rustan’s to buy those that we need and also Tanduay Ice for us! We just bought one bottle for each and we drank it later that time. I think we slept at around 12 midnight after watching PBB.

The following day, the kids used the pool once again. We just let them be since it wasn’t everyday that they go swim on the pool. We finally checked out at 12nn with all of us having a smile on our faces, all happy how our weekend getaway went.

Yesterday evening we were able to use the voucher that my sister purchased September of last year from Sun Cruises through Pakyaw deal. The deal was a 66% off on a Manila Bay Cruise valid for 1 and half hour cruise with set dinner onboard M/V Spirit of Manila. From the regular P550 she only paid P188 each. She purchased 2 vouchers and the other voucher was for me. We took our 2 daughters with us(Hannah and Dana) and the kids are still free since we declared them as 2 year olds :) If you have more than a 2 year old kid, I think you have to pay already the regular price of P550.

We got to the docking area(behind Folk Arts Theater) at around 4:45PM so we waited till the registration started at 5:15PM. Once on the registration, we were told that the seats available for us were only on the lower deck, I thought maybe it was on a first to reserve, first to get to the upper deck kinda basis. After the registration, we waited to board for the 6:15PM-7:30PM schedule that we chose. During that time that we waited, Hannah and Dana are already so naughty, running around the waiting area and impatiently asking when will we board the cruise. After awhile, it was already 6:15PM so we were already told that boarding is now open. So we lined up and entered M/V Spirit of Manila.

My sister and I noticed that all those on the upper deck has a sticker on their chest while we, on the lower deck, has none. Apparently, the once on the upper deck paid the regular price of P550, while all those on the lower deck availed the Pakyaw deal and all the other deals from other sites. So that explains who gets to the upper and lower deck… hmm.We’re not complaining though since we’re on the airconditioned room while they’re on an open air area. Anyway, our set dinner included a sweet and sour fish, beef teriyaki(I think, not sure), 3 small cuts of potato and for dessert we had buko pandan. The dinner was ok, nothing spectacular, just enough to feed a hungry stomach, anyway I didn’t get the chance to eat the dessert since Hannah chowed it up to the last bite..haha! I was thinking, maybe it tasted so good!

After our dinner, we got out of the airconditioned room to enjoy the scene outside. It was chilly when we got out and there were already a couple of people outside also admiring the view from the sea such as the towering buildings from afar and also SM Mall of Asia. After some picture taking we got up and saw what it’s like on the upper deck. Well there was a band playing and it has more space than the lower deck. I can’t help but think maybe their food was also different from us, just thought so. Anyway, while outside, there were parts of the ship that we can’t go through so basically we just stayed in front of the lower and upper deck. After 45 minutes on the cruise you just wanna go out and leave since there’s nothing much to do anymore.

All in all, we did enjoy the Manila Bay Cruise. I wouldn’t mind going again this time with the sun still out. I just thought to try maybe the Prestige Cruises next time since they have a Cruise only rate of P250 and a Cruise with set dinner for only P450, much lower than Sun Cruises. Well, I am going to think about it for the upcoming Pyromusical Competition since I thought it would be nice to see all those beautiful fireworks onboard a cruise.

So the celebration of the Chinese New Year already started with lots of festivities on the different parts of the country. Since last Sunday, I already planned on watching the Lunar New Year Festival at Resorts World Manila like the Chinese Cultural Exhibition at 3PM but since we won’t be using a car and had to travel by public transportation, I nixed the plan because I can’t stand the heat that afternoon and I don’t wanna carry Hannah all the way from Cavite to Resorts World on a public transpo.

So anyway, just when I thought we won’t get to see any Chinese New Year festivities, luckily we were able to catch the Dragon Dance Parade at SM MOA yesterday afternoon. We went at SM MOA to drop Adriel and Len coz they won’t be joining us at Manila Bay Cruise that we’ve reserved later that afternoon. We noticed that there are throngs of people lining up on the middle part of the mall, so I thought maybe they’re waiting for the dance parade. And I was right! I few minutes later, we already heard drums beating and a group of people on poles, inside the image of the colorful dragon dancing. I immediately took a couple of pictures to capture the moment. Later, they were also outside the mall joined by a few smaller dragons dancing. After 10 minutes or so, the parade was over and I was really glad we were able to witness it as the kids really enjoyed the dance parade. Here are some of our pics:

Hello bloggers out there! I really missed blogging a lot! I’m sure you’ve wondered why I haven’t updated my blog for a long time. You see a LOT has happened and I really got busy with work and family that blogging took a back seat for awhile but I really do hope that I’ll get to update as often as before.

Anyway, it’s already 2012, a new year and hopefully this year would be a better year than last year. I must admit that last year wasn’t a really good year for me so I ‘m looking forward to 2012 with a more positive attitude since this coming school year my Hannah will go to school for the first time! Yey! I am so excited! I’ve already checked a lot of preschools here in our neighborhood and I hope the school that I would choose would bring out the best on my daughter socially and academically . By the way, I enrolled Hannah about 3 months ago on a ballet class and her class was finished after 2 months so I am planning to re-enroll her again this summer so she could enjoy her summer before she starts schooling.

With regards to me, sadly my plan on enrolling again to continue my studies was not pushed through due to problems encountered on the school we’re supposed to enroll at. I am just sad that they did not treated us as professionals that they supposedly are. We did not got any feedback from them regarding the assessment that they’ll give after sending all those requirements that they asked from us! Anyway, my dream of going back to school were not through yet, I have still plans although I really don’t know when will I be able to get it done.

This July 7 will mark Hannah's 3rd birthday and I am just so happy that my sister and brother will be here to celebrate her birthday with us. And two days after her birthday she will be a first time flower girl on the wedding of my cousin from mother side. She had her final fitting last week and I was completely awed by the beauty of her gown! It was really beautiful and I learned beforehand that it was designed by VJ Floresca, an up and coming avant garde fashion designer. I also plan to let Hannah wore it on her July 10 birthday celebration in our house. It would just be a simple birthday with no party this time. I thought I would make it simple this time because I plan to save up for her upcoming schooling next year. She would be a nursery when she enrolls next year.

My Aunt Cleo whose been working in the US as a caregiver for three years already called me up to inform that she already received the scrubs that I bought for her about a month ago. She said that she loved the color and the design that I picked for her. I bought two womens scrub at the department store, a plain one with a pink color and another with a girly print which I thought will look lovely on her. And I was right! She absolutely adored it!

Before I went to buy her scrubs, my aunt told me to check http://www.blueskyscrubs.com/ so I could have an idea what does scrubs look like and what particular design will look good on her. Will all those cute and beautiful scrubs I saw, I had a clear idea what she might like so in the end I didn’t had a hard time picking scrubs that she would wear. She now told me that she plans to buy more colorful scrubs in the future since she knows it really looks good on her.

Thank God our much awaited summer outing was already finished! We’ve enjoyed every minute of it especially Hannah who soaked her little body on every part of the beach. This was also the first time that Hannah went on a beach so I took pictures a lot so I could make a photobook of it in the future.

We stayed at JohnDel Resort at Nasugbu Batangas. I really didn’t know how much is the entrance fee and the accommodations coz it was my co-workers who took care of it. We just paid P500 each and showed up and that was it. There was all night singing courtesy of the very popular videoke, games and we also went on a boat going to “White Sand”(rent of the boat is P1500 rountrip for 15 persons and you just have to tell the boatman the time to pick you up) which by the way is not that white at all and the sand is not that fine. So don’t expect a Boracay like beach when you decide to go there. But the beach is way better than the ones at JohnDel Resort. Hannah can’t even swim there because of the yucky factor, but on “White Sand” she enjoyed it so much and me too!

At last, Hannah get to spend her summer on a beach which was my plan for the longest time. I hope it was not the last coz I still want her to go to Boracay with me in the future if if have the budget already 

Our department will be having a summer outing next Saturday and I plan to bring Hannah so she could enjoy the pool as well as the beach. There are various summer activities I’ve been planning for me and Hannah but I just couldn’t make time for it due to work related issues. I wish I’d be able to enjoy some extra curricular activities and travel like this guy, because let’s face it too much work can be stressful especially if you work 5 times a week! Wow, I really need some time off to just enjoy nature, my kid without worrying too much about work.

So it’s been such a relief when we went to Baguio City last Holy Week with my sister and the kids. We really enjoyed our 3 day stay so much that we’ve been planning ahead of time to spend our holiday vacation there again! Travelling is one of my greatest passion so it makes me all excited when there’s planning and travel that I really can’t wait to make it happen! Our Baguio Trip was truly memorable and I wish me and my family could be able to do this annually.

You Are Original and Innovative

You are very open. You communicate well, and you connect with other people easily. You are a naturally creative person. Ideas just flow from your mind. A true chameleon, you are many things at different points in your life. You are very adaptable. You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone. You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together. At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together. You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing. You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long. You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start. You are relaxed, chill, and very likely to go with the flow. You are light hearted and accepting. You don't get worked up easily. Well adjusted and incredibly happy, many people wonder what your secret to life is.

Me and my co-workers enrolled on a baking class called Baking & Pastry Production at Dasmarinas Cavite and the first day of class started this day. Our class is schedule to last for 12 weeks or 3 months and will cover the making of breads, cakes and all types of pastries. I am so excited to learn all this things and can't wait to learn baking cakes and cupcakes.

Anyway, we learned how to bake choco chip and butter cookies as well as crinkles earlier today an I wanna show you the finished product that we proudly did on our first day of class. Take a look! It was really delicious..not bad for first timers :)

I am really confused because during this time, I am very sure that summer has indeed arrived here in the Philippines. Well you know for sure that it's summer already if you're constantly sweating because of the intense heat even during the night. But, no not this time. It is still cold especially in the evening, it still rains once in awhile and I have yet to take a shower for 2 to 3 times a day. Not that I'm complaining, I love the cold weather especially in the night, but I also want to have my summer vacation in the beach or the swimming pool hoping that it won't rain. Well, one thing's sure though, summer will still come most probably this April and we will definitely have a summer outing in our company and I plan to bring Hannah there.. so excited!

Happy 2nd Birthday to my dear niece Dana... I Love You!

I have a friend who worked as a nurse on a government hospital for 2 years already until he resigned to work as private nurse to an elderly. He will start first week of April so I accompanied him about 2 weeks ago to find some medical scrubs that he can use for his new work .

Because he has a budget to spend, it took us long hours looking to find cheap mens scrub at scrub stores and it’s not an easy task. Luckily, we found what we’re looking for, affordable but with good quality to boot. The owner of the scrubs store even gave him a discount because he bought 5 pieces of scrubs! I told him our patience definitely paid off and he completely agreed with me. After that, he treated me to a nice resto since we’re very hungry and tired from our trip.

I did this by using Windows Moviemaker. This is my first time, nothing fancy, just dedicated for my daughter, Hannah. Hope you like it!

I visited a friend last Saturday which I was not able to see for a long time now, imagine 15 years of not seeing each other? Wow that's a long time ago! So I asked her how she was doing and she proudly told me that she already retired from working 9-5 jobs and now thinking of a good investment to start the money that she got from working all her life, rolling. She told me that she's seriously thinking of investing on gold bullion because gold has been the most trusted and most popular form of investment that you could think of. Generally, buying gold bullion has been the safest way to invest which can withstand any economic, political and social crisis.

She also added that she already talked to a trusted and professional gold trading dealer to help her about the ropes on buying and selling gold bullion. According to her, it is really a must to research, learn and ask questions before anyone wishes to buy gold bullion. That is exactly what she's doing now, carefully planning and strategizing before she buy bullion so she would not make a mistake by losing money instead of earning more. Well, I wish she would become successful on this kind of business, that is gold trading.