HAEL'S 1ST BIRTHDAY PREPS AND DETAILS....PART I - LOOTBAGS

Boys' Lootbag Contents

(Tumbler with straw, wallet, two pencils, keychain, face towel, bubbles)

All bought at Divi Mall

Girls' lootbag contents

(Tumbler with straw, wallet, two pencils, keychain, face towel, bubbles)

All bought at Divi Mall

Hael's lootbag

Pooh's Face Tin Can Lunchkit

(bought at Divi Mall)

Divisoria is truly a haven for cheap knickknacks like party favors, party prizes, balloons and etc.

With Php2000, we were able to take home more than 800 pcs. of balloons, 4 pcs. large party poppers and curling ribbons. Not bad, huh considering some party planners can charge you at least Php5000 for simple balloon decorations. :)

Now, if I can only pull of that balloon decor tutorial I saw in You Tube. Haha!

PINOY BIG BROTHER DOUBLE UP RESBAK ATTACK OR CRAB MENTALITY ATTACK?

Being a stay at home mom, my main entertainment consist mainly comes from television or from a great book. Sure, pathetic as it may sound, I do watch telenovelas, soap operas and a couple of reality tv.

I do watch Pinoy Big Brother and I couldn't help but shake my head in disgust with what I'm seeing for the past week. They aired this so called "Resbak Attack" wherein the exhousemates get to test the housemates' true personalities and their "worthiness" to be in Kuya's house.

Sure, why not give them something to bring out their true personalities? I do get it. What I don't understand is that some of these exhousemates seem to take this as a perfect opportunity to vent out their personal issues with the housemates. They appear too bitter and personal. They don't hesitate to result to physical violence and what's sad, Kuya seems to be too lenient about this. This doesn't showcase the housemates' true colors but sadly highlights one negative Filipino trait which is crab mentality. I could see very clearly this so called "Resbak Attack" never meant to show who truly deserves the big win but nevertheless a perfect opportunity for some of the exhousemates to take out their personal angst against the housemates, deserving to win the title or not.

I never liked Princess. She's too tacky for my taste. True enough, her "palengkera" attitude was exposed during her confrontation with Mariel. And oh, don't get me started with Cathy. She feels she's all that. Hello! Trust me, I don't have any bet on who deserves to win. I just find it entertaining. Period.

I also hated Paul Jake's guts right from the start but to my surprise, I was really impressed on what I saw in the show this week. He stayed true on who really is and never gave up on what he believed in. Mayabang na kung mayabang, may paninindigan naman.

Really, don't we all have that invisible guard built around ourselves when we're around with people whom we barely know? We don't usually open up until we reach that comfort level with that person... We truly shine in the adversities we face. I don't think provoking and hurting people physically, verbally and emotionally is the right way to do it.

Just my two cents, really.

Sunset Bay Resort-La Union Jan. 18-19, 2010

Here I come, La Union!!!

Hasta la vista, baby!

Infinity Pool

Sunset Bay Resort

When Yab told me that I get to go with him to La Union for his client meeting I couldn't help but feel so giddy about it. Not only do I get a quick getaway from my mundane life, I also have the chance to explore another new place. ;)

After several pit stops at different gas stations in different towns and cities, we arrived in La Union more than six hours later.

We asked the locals for recommendations for the best resort and three people suggested Puerto de San Juan. We checked in and realized we didn't have anything for lunch so we decided to check out the restaurant and the beach, too.

I was quite disappointed to see the waves too ferocious to swim in... I do know a lot of surfers out there would definitely love to be in this place but not me. After a while, I resigned to the thought of settling to the resort pool instead. We took some pictures and headed to the restaurant afterwards.

Since it was a weekday, I didn't expect the resort to be packed of people but I was shocked to know that we were the only guests... I suddenly have the feeling that I'm in a deserted island somewhere. Hey, no man is an island, right? After some discussion with Yab, we decided to cancel our stay and check out the other resort in a different town, Sunset Bay Resort.

We immediately fell in love with the place. It has a "Moalboal" feel to it (popular diving/beach place in Cebu), not too pretentious unlike other resorts I've been to. It was so serene and peaceful. They have this very long shoreline perfect for day and night strolls.

The room accommodation costs Php1,600/day but it is truly cheap considering their amenities and facilities. The room is equipped with a 21" cable TV, a personal ref, safety deposit box and they've got heater in their bathrooms (I just love warm bath!). Oh, did I mention their whole resort is equipped with wifi? Yeah, you still get to log in to Facebook and other internet sites miles away from home!

During dinner, we decided to have sirloin steak and we were truly in for a big surprise. Not only does the food tastes great, they have great servings too. The steak costs around Php490 (can serve two people already) and you can order a liter of Coke for Php60 and viola! Great place with great food. What more could you ask for, right?

It was a quick and short stay but If given another chance, I'll go back to the place in a heartbeat. This time, I'll be bringing my kids with me. I'm sure they'll love it as much as I do. ;)

WELCOME TO MANILA!!!

I woke up today with body aches all over. Aside from the fact that my baby son was not cooperative at all last night, I came home from a get-together party wherein it took us almost 4 hours stuck in traffic. A trip from Sta. Rosa, Laguna to Mall of Asia in Pasay would normally take us 45 minutes to an hour of trip, took us a freaking of 4 hours!!! Well, Manila would never be Manila without the flooded streets and traffic, right?
Instead of taking the expressway, a friend suggested that we take the route via Alabang-Las Pinas-Coastal Highway. Nevertheless, we were already stuck in South Luzon Expressway for more than 2 hours already. Coming from a place wherein this kind of traffic is unheard of, the whole ride was totally crazy. How could we tolerate this at all? I could never imagine my neighbors who work in Makati and in some areas in Manila. One of my neighbors would even leave home as early as 5am just to make it on time for work. He said if you make it at 6am, you're doomed.
What makes it outrageous is that they are not even done with the South Luzon Expressway expansion, they "generously" added the Skyway project? Do these people have common sense at all? And when would these projects be completed? 2 years? 5 years? How long will the commuters suffer? How many gallons of gasoline will the commuters waste not to mention the endless gas hikes?
Can you imagine yourself travelling for 3-5 hours in traffic just to make it to an hour or two of social function? Pray for a good weather coz if you're lucky enough to brave that traffic, your car will likely get stuck in a flooded street anyway.
Yeah, very hilarious.
I even heard some of my hubby's balikbayan friend's daughter ask, "Can we take a picture of this?" (referring to the bumper to bumper situation).
Hey, why not? We might make it to the Guiness Book of World Records. The country who has the most idiotic public officials.

When it rains, it doesn't pour...it floods.

These problems seem not to end but then again, the world would never stop for anyone's grief, right? Rolling in with punches but there must be a way to get out of this alive. Why is life not fair? Trying to divert myself with quirky painted nails, trying to conceal those hideously bitten nails. Stress=biting nails.
Oooh, I love it when it rains but I never like it when it floods...

Is there still any food left safe enough to eat? =(

On a very typical hot summer afternoon, I had a bout of craving for Selecta's Pistachio and Cashew Icecream. I have never been the self-confessed chocolate or icecream addict but I do indulge myself with such treats most especially when I love the flavor. ;)

Hubby was so kind and generous enough to brave the summer heat and get me a piece of my craving as if I'm on my first trimester of pregnancy. He came back after a couple of minutes after and said he couldn't find any in 7-eleven.

Known for my stubborness, I asked him to accompany to the nearest store and search for the most sought icecream for the day. The other store didn't have any Selecta products so we drove (yeah, waste of gas, i know) to the other 7-eleven branch near Paseo. The attendant said the icecream flavor was pulled out from their stores. Now we wondered why.

I gave up the search and settled for Jollibee Krunchy Twirl and Jollibee Swirly Blitz. Upon reaching home, I immediately googled the reason why Selecta Pistachio and Cashew Icecreams were pulled out from the market.

From my search, I found out all pistachio products have been pulled out from the market due to the recent discovery of salmonella on the pistachios of Setton Pistachio of Terrabella Inc. Though Selecta claims they didn't get their pistachios from the said U.S. company.

I found this really disturbing... First the melamine on dairy products, followed by the widespread Ebola virus on swine products, salmonella on a local peanut butter and now, salmonella on pistachios. I couldn't help but ask, is there still any food left safe enough to eat?

Not that it's enough that we are now plagued with new diseases, some of which are still incurable. Add to this the global warming as a posing threat to all of us. I wonder, what kind of world would we be living in a decade from now? Would we be all wearing those astronaut masks coz the air would be too lethal to breathe?

My thoughts exactly.

LET ME BE THE MOM...

For the first few weeks since Hael's arrival, I have learned that my life has to change drastically overnight. Gone are those sleep-all-i-want marathon, extra space on my bed and being selfish to my needs and wants.

For the first few nights, I had to literally beg him to sleep so I could get mine, too. He would just stare blankly at my face and give me that famous smile. I often catch myself dropping the feeding bottle and would later realize my body has given up on me. But who am I to complain? I have this perfect little angel who constantly rewards every hardship with a smile. Whose every movement fascinates me everytime?

I would often stare at his little face when I should be taking a nap, too. I just couldn't bear the thought of missing everything. I wanna be a part of every milestone he has. Who could blame me? Every mom should know.

He's now 23 days old and I just couldn't believe how fast he has grown... Years or decades later, I will soon have a little man and I will miss everything when he was smaller and more dependent of me. So as time allows me, let me be a doting mom. A mom who hurriedly runs to her crying infant, dropping everything she does in an instant. Let me be the kind of mom who never gets tired of cuddling her little angel no matter how achy my back gets. Let me be the kind of mom who never gets tired of whispering "I love you" even if he didn't quite get the phrase yet. And please let me be the kind of mom who never gets tired of loving my child unconditionally no matter what happens.