I AM A WOMAN

"Why join a race?"

2010-10-13T22:51:00.000-07:00

I came across this topic in one of the running forums I'm visiting lately and asked myself the same question. Why do I want to join races? What motivates me to run? Each runner has its own personal reason why they run: health issues, camaraderie, to beat personal record and the list goes on and on.

And I just want to quote what Self-coached Runner said:

"A race is the validation of all your training. Why train if there is no race to run to? Why do intervals, or long runs?

A race brings the best or the worst in us. It is a test of our character, our will. It reveals and it should reveal the real "us," the real "me."

Races also teaches many lessons.

When you are tired and about to give up, when you see others huffing and puffing like you do and not give up, it teaches you not to give up too!

And when you overtake others, espeicially that last 100m, it teaches you that the lesson that you are never the last in a race.

When somebody pippes you or overtake you, it teaches you that you are also not the fastest.

And it teaches you that you can be faster.

Races are also building blocks of future improvements, of future races. You race a 5k now, so you can race a 10k later. A 10k later, to race a 15-16k down the road. That 15-16k becomes a 20-21k. And later on, it is a marathon. When you think about it in those terms, you realize that regardless of age, sex, or what has given you, you are capable of doing very remarkable things if you set your mind to it. And you prepare for it. Preparation means discipline. And only discipline and proper training can deliver you the results.

Races also teaches you to be humble. You learn to respect the distance. You learn to be patient. You learn to wait. And yet you also learn to be a tiger, to risk it all when the time comes.

And you learn from races that you cannot use only your heart to finish a race. You have to use your brains. You have to use both heart and brain to do well. You can't do well with one lording it over the other. You can't just shout to the heaven's that you will finish 42k. No courage or determination can make you cover that distance if you don't think and prepare for it.

Races, is not really about medals, trophies, the girls, or the guys, or the artista we might see. It's about memories. It's about excelling and being better than what you thought you were. Races should bring out the best in us. It should make us reflect, and see the hero in ourselves, even as we see the heroes in others. Races should bring out our true character. When the pain is great and unbearable, it shows us which way we will go and what we will choose.

Yes, races are not just about making friends, and winning medals, and getting t-shirts, and loot bags. Above anything else, races, should really reveal the real you."

Very inspiring, indeed :) I will always keep that in mind sir. Thanks for this!

HSBC 135 and Unilab Run United 2

2010-10-11T17:47:00.000-07:00

Yes! We already registered and got our kits :)

So excited with the Unilab race since this is the first race organized by Coach Rio that we'll be participating in though got turned-off during the 1st day of in-store registration at Planet Sports, Trinoma. I was there 10am but Runrio staff arrived at 230pm and had problems with their on-line registration. I've waited till 4am but their "chuvaness" system isn't working at all so I decided to go home and fortunately, my friend Louie who was with me, took care of our registration and finished almost 6pm. My gulay! almost 8 hours! Mas matagal pa hinintay namin para makapagregister kesa takbuhin ang 5k run na yan :( Buti na lang ganda ng singlet nila hehehe...

(more details of the race here)

We registered online and paid registration fee at their HSBC Savings branch (staff were very friendly and accommodating) in Cubao. I'm excited to get my kit and singlet since it was designed by Mr. Rajo Laurel (kahit man lang sa singlet makapag-RAJO ako hehehe....)

(more details of the race here)

Getting serious about running? I think so! :)

My upcoming runs

2010-10-03T05:49:00.000-07:00

I'm back! After almost 2 months of not blogging anything, I'm now writing about my upcoming runs. Yes, I'll start running :)

It has been my dream to do marathons and this will be the start. My number one motivation actually is to lose weight and running is the answer. I'm 33 years old and not getting any younger, weighing almost 130 lbs. I think (my last trip to the weighing scale, I was 120 lbs. already) and so I have to get my acts done: to exercise and live a healthy lifestyle, I hope. And to make it more exciting, I have my besties Jos and Louie as my running mates.

Here are our upcoming runs:

(Adidas King of the Road - will participate in the 5k category since its the shortest. This will be on Oct. 24 at Bonifacio Global City)

(Bluewater Day Spa Fun Run - Since this is my 1st ever run, I will be participating in the 3K category. This will be on Oct.17,MOA)

(Next tentative race will be the HSBC Run on Nov. 6 and the Unilab Run United 2. Haven't registered yet that's why its tentative.)

Oh, did I mention about collecting singlets and eating out every after race? hehehe....

Ordinary People

2010-08-16T20:54:00.000-07:00

Just want to share music video of John Legend's "Ordinary People". First heard this when Markki Stroem performed in Pilipinas Got Talent as his semifinal piece and loved it eversince :)

Here's the video:

ORDINARY PEOPLE

[Verse 1]

Girl im in love with you
This ain't the honeymoon
Past the infatuation phase
Right in the thick of love
At times we get sick of love
It seems like we argue everyday

[Bridge]

I know i misbehaved
And you made your mistakes
And we both still got room left to grow
And though love sometimes hurts
I still put you first
And we'll make this thing work
But I think we should take it slow

[Chorus]

We're just ordinary people
We don't know which way to go
Cuz we're ordinary people
Maybe we should take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow

[Verse 2]

This ain't a movie no
No fairy tale conclusion ya'll
It gets more confusing everyday
Sometimes it's heaven sent
Then we head back to hell again
We kiss and we make up on the way

[Bridge]

I hang up you call
We rise and we fall
And we feel like just walking away
As our love advances
We take second chances
Though it's not a fantasy
I Still want you to stay

[Chorus]

We're just ordinary people
We don't know which way to go
Cuz we're ordinary people
Maybe we should take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow

[Verse 3]

Take it slow
Maybe we'll live and learn
Maybe we'll crash and burn
Maybe you'll stay, maybe you'll leave,
maybe you'll return
Maybe another fight
Maybe we won't survive
But maybe we'll grow
We never know baby youuuu and I

[Chorus]

We're just ordinary people
We don't know which way to go
Cuz we're ordinary people
Maybe we should take it slow (Heyyy)
We're just ordinary people
We don't know which way to go
Cuz we're ordinary people
Maybe we should take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow (Take it slow oh oh ohh)
This time we'll take it slow

Spanish Sardine Pasta

2010-08-13T09:21:00.000-07:00

Just want to share my own version of Spanish Sardine Pasta. I've first tasted it from Fleur de Lys Restaurant located at Tomas Morato when my bestfried Jos invited me for dinner. At first, I was hesitant to try it because for me, sardines and pasta didn't match together but then Jos convinced me to give it a try because it was very good "daw" according to her. And yes, she was right! That lead me to cook my own version here at home so that family members could try and they love it too!

Ingredients are: linguine pasta (spaghetti noodles can do), spanish sardines, tomato, capers, onions, garlic, olive oil and salt & pepper to taste. Top it with Parmesan cheese and pair it with your favorite garlic bread.

(sorry for the blurred 1st pic)

Try this and enjoy!

Update on my "anakis"

2010-08-13T09:02:00.001-07:00

Matteo is doing okay already. He cough once in a while and has a slight cold but still very active and so "madaldal". His appetite went down a bit but now, he finished a bowl of rice with mashed potatoes and carrots and a little bit of sauce from the menudo dish for dinner and after that, ate 3 pieces of "monay" bread with skin off.

We have a schedule pedia appointment tomorrow for his flu vaccine but I doubt if Dr. Avendano will give him his shot because of his condition. I'm thinking of postponing the visit and will go on Aug. 17 instead; well I guess, he'll be perfectly okay come Tuesday.

I will post some pictures of Matteo's recent drawings when I figure out what to do with my expired Bluesoleil program installed from my my laptop (pictures and video's taken from my phone cam).

My "anakis" is sick again :(

2010-08-09T16:16:00.000-07:00

Matteo is sick once again, bad case of cough. As of this writing, his temperature is 37 degrees (I will give him paracetamol as soon as it reaches 38.5 degrees).

He's coughing so hard and has the tendency to throw-up. He is kind of irritated with the phlegm sticking to his throat; he does not know still how to spit it out. He had a hard time sleeping because he kept on coughing and coughing. I put a generous amount of Vicks Vaporub on his chest and back and eventually, went on to sleep.

Since yesterday, he is taking Ascof Lagundi syrup for his medication and I let him drink lots of fluids, water in particular.

His appetite is there and very active still but I hope he gets better soon:(

Dinner time with Louie and Jos

2010-08-06T16:33:00.000-07:00

Last July 29, we had dinner at Mann Hann, Trinoma with my bestfriends Jos and Louie. Matteo is always tagged-along everytime I meetup with them. It has been a weekly tradition for us to see each other, to have dinner and some chit-chat so we could catch-up with what's happening to our lives.

This particular dinner I will never forget because it was like a feast! We were only 4 but we ordered for like 7-10 persons hehehehe...we had yang chow friend rice, spicy squid, spicy spareribs, beef with brocolli flower, hacao, fried noodles, green spinach soup and lotus fried tofu. The food were very delicious. I like everything but the lotus tofu was my favorite. Matteo had fried noodles and soup of course which he loves since he's into noodles and soups lately.

Here are some pics:

(Thanks Jos for the pics!:))

After that sumptuous dinner, we went straight to Starbucks to have some frappucino and blueberry cheesecake.

Thanks for that good night guys, sa uulitin! Love you both!

Tribo Escapade At Anilao

2010-08-03T17:33:00.001-07:00

Last weekend, Tribo Palaboy went on a weekend getaway at Anilao, Batangas and stayed at the Bartolome's residence.

I will never forget this trip because its tribo's first time to have gourmet food as meals. Yes I said gourmet because of Tito Amor no less, who was our "chef" during the said trip. He prepared sinigang na baboy, grilled tahong and tilapia for lunch. Then we had sashimi, roasted pork and marinated octupus (can't remember what its called but it taste so good!) for dinner and my favorite of all, okonomiyaki, a Japanese pancake for breakfast. We were so full every mealtime because the food were so yummy and delicious. And the best part was when Tito Amor taught us how to make sashimi and okonomiyaki :)

Here are some pictures of the trip:

me, snorkling

the yummy okonomiyaki

raw octupus

jenga time!

jen and her maki

tito amor

the boys

matteo

Thanks to Jen and Dane for the pics; love you both!

We did snorkling, the boys played jenga and had a couple of beers; Matteo enjoyed throwing stones to the water and playing jenga by himself; we all had fun! And also, it was a very relaxing trip for all of us I must say; away from the busy, polluted and stressful city life.

See you on August 20, Anilao! We can't wait hehehe...

The LDS Blog Train

2010-08-01T18:11:00.000-07:00

I am so happy with the August's LDS Blog Train collaboration named "A Name and A Blessing". Its all about newborn babies and baptism; in time for my next photobook project. I hope I can finish with the birthday photobook so I can start with the baptismal one.

Here are examples of kits you will get from the beautiful collaboration:

Thank you very much to all the designers who participated; so generous of you to share your kits with all of us :)

Mojo, Oh Mojo...

2010-07-28T17:42:00.000-07:00

... where are you? I can't seem to find you! It's been weeks since my last LO. I need to finish my son's 1st birthday photobook since my 10 free 8x8 photobooks at Artscow will expire in September. Need to to do his baptismal and 1st year photobooks. Oh my gulay! I need to start working or else, I won't have nothing :(

I need to do the following layouts in a 2-page spread: party venue, party program, cake blowing, loot giving and gift opening; this means, 10 pages more. Also, need to finish and revise the following lay-outs: party details, kids and adult guests. A total of 16-pages work load.

Be positive! I know I can do this :) 3 photobooks in 45 days, so help me God:)

BIR

2010-07-28T00:55:00.000-07:00

Thank God! I'm done with BIR. I started my week with them and just finished everything today.

I'm the person in-charge of fixing my titas and titos' capital gains and documentary stamp taxes. Actually, I started that last week already. I prepared all the necessary documents before heading to Intramuros. Very tiring but still happy because I've learned and accomplished something eventhough it took me years! hehehe :)

Next step, the Register of Deeds in Manila. Our lawyer told me, she will handle it since its her territory ( She works as a Clerk of Court at RTC Manila). Goodluck Atty. Pascual! =)

Booksale Buys

2010-07-24T01:55:00.000-07:00

Now, I'm enjoying going to Booksale and everytime I leave the shop, I always have something on hand. Primarily, I go there to get back issue magazines about scrapbooking. But lately, I'm also into getting cooking, parenting and celebrity magazines, all back issues since they are way cheaper than the new releases. The other day, me and hubby bought 7 magazines for just a fraction of a cost (if i remember it right, total amount is P365) and the magazines were:

* Playhouse Disney (Aug 2010)- for Matteo
* Car Craft (May 2010)- for Roy
* The Oprah Magazine (Jan 2009)
* Parents (July 2009)
* Cooking Light (March & April 2009)
* Creating Keepsakes (July 2009)

I'm looking for other scrapbooking magazines like Digital Scrapbooking and Memory Makers. Hope I can get them in other Booksale branches. And now, I'm starting to read my magazines and looks like we got a good "buys" :)

Jake Cuenca

2010-07-23T19:15:00.001-07:00

I can't believe this! Yes, i'm blogging about Jake Cuenca. I can say he is one of my showbiz crush now and thanks to "Rubi", one of ABS-CBN's Primetime Bida teleserye. I'm so hooked with that show that I even searched for live streams so tI can watched episodes that I missed. I love his character as "Alejandro", the very handsome-looking doctor whose very loyal and loving to his family and to his partner, Rubi and now, Maribelle. I'm really drawn to him because of his character; he's the type you want to have as a boyfriend and a husband material. That explains why I dreamed of him a couple of days back hehehe...

The show will end in three weeks time and I promise not to miss an episode. I want to know if he'll be true to his promise to Maribelle that he would marry her. I want to know result of Rubi's "paghihiganti" to Sylvana and what her relationship to Hector will end up. From the trailer, it looks like Alejandro will fall for Rubi again and I'm not in favor of that! I'm for Alejandro-Maribelle and I hope the ending will be favorable to them :) Let's wait and see.

Enough of it. Back to reality :)

Cherry Mobile P1i

2010-07-23T06:45:00.000-07:00

Got myself a Cherry Mobile P1i in pink today. It was hubby's gift to me. He promised me that a couple of months back because I really need to retire my Sony Ericsson T610; thanks for the 6 fruitful years :) So, my globe sim will have a new home and I hope their relationship will last for years hehehe...:)

My CM P1i

(sorry for the blurry image; phone cam was used)

Specifications:
* Single SIM dual band
* STK function
* Polyphonic
* Dual band 96 x 49
* 1.2” B/W screen
* Alarm
* Calculator

Not bad for a secondary phone since its very affordable (for only P999) trendy and easy to use, even though it functions for text and call only.

Thank you very much mahal!

43 Things You Don’t Know About Me

2010-07-23T04:19:00.000-07:00

Snagged this from Sis Diane :)

What color is your toothbrush? Pink
Name one person that made you smile today? Matteo
What were you doing 45 minutes ago? Looking at Bookoto site
Have you ever been to a strip club? No
What is the last thing you said aloud? Matteo!
What is the best ice cream flavor? Pistachio and Double Dutch
What are you wearing right now? Guess shirt and shorts
What was the last thing you ate? Inihaw na balat
What is your favorite flavor of popcorn? BBQ
Who is the last person you sent a comment/message on facebook? Ate Larcie's

Do you take vitamins daily? Yes, ascorbic acid
Do you go to church every Sunday? Sometimes
Do you like sweets? Sometimes
Do you like Chinese food better than pizza? Yes
Do you drink your soda with a straw? Yes
What did your last text message say? Regarding infant bottle cleaner from Grace
Are you someone’s best friend? Yes
What are you doing tomorrow? Clean the room
Where is your dad? Sleeping in his room
Look to your left, what do you see? My son's closet and high chair

What color is your watch? Red Nike Presto watch, silver and black Kenneth Cole, silver Fossil, black Casio watch
What do you think of when you think of Switzerland? Watch
Do you use chapsticks? Yes
What is your birthstone color? Amethyst (purple)
Do you go in at a fast food place or just hit the drive through? dine-in and drive thru
What’s your favorite number? 8
Do you have a dog? Yes, Tsico
Have you met anyone famous? Yes
Any plans today? Tonight? Just stay at home, watch tv and read magazines
Ever gone to college? Yes. I am a BS Architecture graduate from UST

Do you dye your hair? No
Last song listened to? Baby by Justin Bieber
Can you say the alphabet backwards? Of course!
Do you have a maid service clean your house? Wala po
Favorite pair of shoes you wear all the time? My Zara black flats
Are you jealous of anyone? Friends at work, pero minsan lang naman :)
Is anyone jealous of you? I don't know
Do you love someone? Yes, I love Roy and Matteo
Do any of your friends have children? Yes, most of them
What do you usually do during the day? Go online and watch over my son

Do you hate anyone that you know right now? Wala naman po
Do you use the word ‘hello’ daily? Yes.
Do you like cats? Yes

LO: Birthday Cake

2010-07-21T19:20:00.000-07:00

Credits:
1. Layered template by GG template challenge 1
2. Brown paper and orange strip by Disaster Piece Studio 's Birthday Bash freebie
3. Lucky stripes and green polka dot paper by Peppermint Creative's Miss Mint kit
4. Purple polka dot paper by Marie Stone's Spring Punch collection
5. Paper 5, cupcake and cake by Little Dreamer Design's Simple Pleasures (Leora Sanford)
6. Stars by Dianeskie's Dulcie collection
7. Green ric-rac by Danos Pookie Designs (Heather Greene) Glittered Chaos
8. Silver doodle dots by GM Design's Happy Birthday collection (recolored)
9. Circle strip by Julia of Everyday Mom Ideas' Backyard Play kit (recolored)
10. Brown and pink-a-dot alpha by Shabby Princess' Promise kit and Marie Stone respectively
11. Bracket and framed paper by Dianeskie's Maree collection
12. Barney and friends from Google images
13. Brown stitching to follow (can't find from the folders)

LO: Face Paint

2010-07-21T08:44:00.000-07:00

Credits:
1. Layered template by Cindy Schneider for the Sweet Shoppe Designs
2. Artist critter boy, color pallete, orange paint and star clusters by Julia of everyday Mom Ideas' Creative Critter kit and Paper 02 from the Backyard Play kit.
3. Brown tag by Delicious Scraps' Awesome Autumn collection
4. White button, stitched page border, brown alpha, polka dot brown paper, plaid paper, and orange circle paper by Shabby Princess' Harvest Spice, Promise, Splendid, Happy Go Lucky and Two Soon collections
5. Yellow ribbon by Amy Teet's Sun porch collection
6. Green ric-rac by Marie Stone's Egg-Static kit
7. Pink-a-dot alpha and purple polka dot paper by Marie Stone
8. Glitter splat by Britt-ish Design for Scrapmatters' "Im Yours" add-on
9. Lucky stripes and green polka dot paper by Peppermint Creative's Miss Mint kit.
10. Brown and orange star by Disaster Piece Studio's Birthday Bash kit
11. Paper 2,4 & 5 by Dianeskie's Maree kit
12. Stars and paper 4,6 & 7 by Dianeskie's Dulcie collection
13. Staple wire to follow (can't find it from the folders)

My first scrapbooking magazines

2010-07-18T19:48:00.000-07:00

Got myself back issues of "Creating Keepsakes" magazines from Booksale at SM City Sta. Mesa. I've been looking for this for a week now and fortunately, I got hold of 2 back issues; June and August 2009. Also, got back issue of "Real Living" magazine.

Will read them and I'll see of it will encourage me to go into traditional scrapbooking and I'm keeping my fingers cross :)

Matteo's new toy

2010-07-18T19:11:00.000-07:00

We got him a wooden magnetic building blocks last Friday. Actually, he picked what he wanted. He doesn't want simple peg puzzles, too easy for him I guess. We also got him his 2nd box of smart cube. Yes, he's into educational toys lately and we're happy about that :)

I just took a couple of pictures while he was playing with the building blocks:

The figures in the photos were "penguin" according to him :)

I'm back!!!

2010-07-17T06:45:00.000-07:00

Yes I'm back :) After 4 days in hiatus, I'm definitely back. I was out because we lost our internet connection and electricity during the Basyang typhoon last Tuesday. Power came a day after while internet connection came back just today.

What I did for the last 4 days? Made a couple of layouts for my son's photobook; went out window shopping with family and fixed our room a little bit =)

Will post LOs in the coming days. I would like to finish credits first before posting them here.

LO: Birthday Family

2010-07-13T01:22:00.000-07:00

The first layout I made with Roy included in the picture hehehe... No choice because the LO is titled as "Birthday Family" so he must be included. And also, the first layout I made that I jot down credits as soon as I used them.

I only placed one photo because that was the only family picture we have during the party! Would you believe that?=) Anyways, I'm still thankful to my brother for being our official photographer eventhough he's only an amateur :)

Credits:
1. Template by Chrissyw
2. Sequins scatter by Pixel Perfect Design's Butterfly Kisses collection
3. Purple dot paper by Marie Stone's Spring Punch kit
4. Brown paper 5 by Disaster Piece Studio's Birthday Bash freebie
5. Lucky stripes paper by Peppermint Creatives's Miss Mint kit
6. Ricrac by Marie Stone's Egg Static kit
7. Plaid paper, white button, felt heart and alpha by Shabby Princess' TwSo Soon, Harvest Spice, Amore and Promise Collection
8. Stars by Dianeskie'd Dulcie collection
9. Black polka dot ribbon by Miss Mint's Ten Pin collection (Peppermint Creative)
10. Brown tag by Delicious Scraps' Awesome Autumn collection
11. Doodle by Erin's Dream's Happy Day collection
12. Note paper by Everyday Mom Ideas Design's Creative Critter kit
13. Brads from Amy Teets' Sun Prch collection
14. Paper # 5 by Little Dreamer's Design's Simple Please Birthday add-on

I appreciate comments and suggestions :)

LO: Frontcover

2010-07-12T19:59:00.000-07:00

Made this layout a few days back. I'm thinking if I'll make this as the frontcover of the Matteo's 1st birthday photobook or I'll do another LO:

(credits to follow)

Comments and suggestions are highly appreciated =)

Update on Matteo

2010-07-12T08:28:00.000-07:00

He's perfectly fine now. Back to "kulit" and "daldal" mode. Appetite is back and resumes drinking his vitamins without hesitation hehehe... I can go back on my lay-outs; been absent for 4 days already. Mojo is nowhere to be found =)

Just want to share a video of him when he was about 13 months old; one of our "kulitan" moments =) The video was kinda blurry because phone video cam was used.

Branded Tag

2010-07-12T04:04:00.000-07:00

I snagged this to sis diane's blog

1) What’s the brand of your wristwatch?
Casio, Nike Presto, Kenneth Cole, Fossil and Guess
2) What’s the brand of your bracelet?
It doesn't have a brand. Got that from a multiply seller
3) What’s the brand of your cell phone?
Nokia, Sony Ericsson and soon will have a Cherry Mobile P1
4) What’s the brand of your computer?
IBM Thinkpad
5) What’s the brand of your bags?
Lacoste, Girbaud, Nine West, RL, Kenneth Cole
6) What’s the brand of your undies?
M&S, Triumph, Hanes, Avon and Natasha
7) What’s the brand of your flip-flops?
Havaianas and Banana Peel
8) What’s the brand of your shoes?
Zara, CMG, Nike, Lacoste, Gap
9) What’s the brand of your wallet?
Lacoste, Nine West, Esprit, Lesportsac
10) What’s the brand of your shirts?
Mango, Guess, Mossimo
11) What’s the brand of your TV?
Samsung, Sony, Goldstar
12) What’s the brand of your cars?
Honda
13) What’s the brand of your mp3 player?
unbranded hehehe.. basta yung made in China
14) What’s the brand of your make up?
Avon, Maybelline, Body Shop
15) What’s the brand of your shampoo and conditioner?
Vaseline and Creamsilk
16) What’s the brand of your jeans?
Levi's, Calvin Klein but most of them unbranded (from Landmark and 168 mall)
17) What’s the brand of your laundry soap?
Ariel, Tide, Champion, Surf
18) What’s the brand of your lotion?
Victoria's Secret, M&S and Gerber Giggles
19) What’s the brand of your toothpaste?
Colgate
20) What’s the brand of your ballpen?
Mygel and Panda

Random Question #23

2010-07-11T17:20:00.000-07:00

1. Have you had a friend for many years and then they left just like that? I can't think of anyone kasi lahat naman sila nagpaalam, like my friend Rex who left for Dubai to work
2. How loud do you listen to your music? Just right for my ears (pero sabi nila medyo malakas daw kaya parang may problem na ata ako sa hearing ko hehehe...)
3. What is more important: happiness or trust? Trust
4. Ever kissed someone else's girlfriend/boyfriend? Hmmm... I can't remember! Meron nga ata hehehe...
5. Do you take walks often? Not so often
6. What were you doing at 1am this morning? Pinaiinom si Matteo ng gamot and yes, gising pa ang bulilit.
7. Last thing you did before bed last night? Kiss and breastfed Matteo
8. You're thinking about someone, aren't you? No one in particular.
9. How many people do you trust? Less than 10 I think.
10. Why did your last relationship end? I just didn't knew why. He might be afraid of commitment.

Got this HERE.

Little bit worried :(

2010-07-10T19:41:00.000-07:00

I woke up this morning with a bad note; Matteo's fever went as high as 38.9 and he was crying :( I filled-up a small basin with ice and water and performed sponge bath to him to lower down his temperature. After that, he drank milk and ate 1 pc. of chocolate cupcake and then the paracetamol. After an hour, temp went down to 37.4 and then 37.7.

I'm a little bit worried because he was complaining about his throat. He had tonsilitis a couple of weeks back and might be the cause of his fever again. He let me looked at his tonsils and yes, they are pinkish red once more:( I'm thinking if i'll give him the antibiotics now or wait until tomorrow for his pedia? Need to consult Roy first.

My day is over

2010-07-10T11:24:00.000-07:00

Time check: 2:24 am; time to go to bed. Just finishing downloading free templates. Matteo's temp as of 1am is 36.6 and hoping he gets better later today. Good night Philippines, good night world!:)

My baby is sick again :(

2010-07-10T07:18:00.000-07:00

Matteo is sick again :( He got fever and I don't know why. He was complaining about pain on his right leg and left arm after he took a bath this evening. When I held him, he's hot. So I got the thermometer right away and his temp was 37.7. After an hour, I took his temp again, and it was 37.9. I immediately let him drink paracetamol just to make sure.

As of this writing, Matteo is already asleep but still hot. I'm touching his forehead and neck from time to time. I'll check his temp again by 11pm. I hope the paracetamol will work wonders.

Lord, please keep that fever away :(

Tokwa't baboy

2010-07-10T03:22:00.000-07:00

From time to time, I will be posting here some of my recipes :) My own version of a particular dish / menu. Yes, I cook and I love doing it. I should have taken hotel and restaurant management or culinary back in college hehehe...

Anyways, here are photos of my tokwa't baboy:

tofu, boiled pork, white onions and green chillis

fried tofu or "tokwa" in Tagalog

chopped boiled pork ( I like the part with more fat in it =) )

minced garlic, ginger and red onions

the sauce: mixture of vinegar, soy sauce, sugar and a little bit of ground pepper and of course the minced garlic, ginger and onion combo.

the finished product: top with white onions and green chilli

Enjoy!

Matteo singing

2010-07-10T02:56:00.000-07:00

Here are videos of Matteo singing. He was in the mood that is why I hurriedly took video of him using hubby's mobile phone. These were taken last month.

ABC

"I love you" and baby bop song

Dibo, the gift dragon and animals mechanicals

Matteo loves to sing. He can easily memorize a tune of a particular song. I think, he inherits his love of music and singing voice to us hehehe...

Matteo solving his puzzle :)

2010-07-09T08:37:00.000-07:00

I'm one proud mama! At age 2 years and 7 months, Matteo knows how to solve a 9-inch, 15 pc. Winnie the Pooh and friends puzzle. We just bought it the other night and got hooked on it eversince. Before, he only plays them at Playhouse Disney and Barney sites. So, I thought of buying him a real one and see how he can manage. And now, he was asking me to buy him some more with different cartoon characters on it:) "Anak, kaya mo na kaya yung tig-100 pc.? hehehe..."

Here's a video I took just this afternoon. He sings pa while solving it hehehe:

It will be a great day!

2010-07-08T16:12:00.000-07:00

Good morning world! I got a good night sleep. Seven hours is a good number considering I just slept almost 3 hours the other night. I'm rejuvenated! I'm excited to do a lot of things today: continue may LOs, arrange my digital scrapbooking files from the external drive I barrowed from Jay (Thanks again ninong!:)), download digital freebies (thanks to sis Diane for the links!)go to Air21 drop-off site to ship my client's loot, go to BDO, go to the grocery and buy Matteo some supplies, watch Ginebra and Alaska's game 1 of their quarterfinal match later this evening and the list goes on and on but I'm not complaining :) These are blessings and I love it!

Yes, it will be a great and productive day for me. Thank you Lord!

"Did I marry the right person?"

2010-07-08T06:11:00.000-07:00

I would like to share this article I've read in one of the threads in Pinoy Parenting. This is worth reading especially to those who are married already and for those who would want to marry someday ... something to think about.

DID I MARRY THE RIGHT PERSON?
By: Bo Sanchez

During one of our seminars, a woman asked a common question. She said, "How do I know if I married the right person?" I noticed that there was a large man sitting next to her so I said, "It depends. Is that your husband?" In all seriousness, she answered "How do you know?" Let me answer this question because the chances are good that it's weighing on your mind. Here's the answer.
EVERY relationship has a cycle. In the beginning, you fell in love with your spouse. You anticipated their call, wanted their touch, and liked their idiosyncrasies. Falling in love with your spouse wasn't hard. In fact, it was a completely natural and spontaneous experience. You didn't have to DO anything. That's why it's called "falling" in love... because it's happening TO YOU. People in love sometimes say, "I was swept off my feet." Think about the imagery of that expression. It implies that you were just standing there; doing nothing, and then something came along and happened TO YOU. Falling is love is easy. It's a passive and spontaneous experience. But after a few years of marriage, the euphoria of love fades. It's the natural cycle of EVERY relationship. Slowly but surely, phone calls become a bother (if they come at all), touch is not always welcome (when it happens), and your spouse's idiosyncrasies, instead of being cute, drive you nuts. The symptoms of this stage vary with every relationship, but if you think about your marriage, you will notice a dramatic difference between the initial stage when you were in love and a much duller or even angry subsequent stage. At this point, you and/or your spouse might start asking, "Did I marry the right person?" And as you and your spouse reflect on the euphoria of the love you once had, you may begin to desire that experience with someone else. This is when marriages breakdown. People blame their spouse for their unhappiness and look outside their marriage for fulfillment. Extramarital fulfillment comes in all shapes and sizes. Infidelity is the most obvious. But sometimes people turn to work, church, a hobby, a friendship, excessive TV, or abusive substances. But the answer to this dilemma does NOT lie outside your marriage. It lies within it. I'm not saying that you couldn't fall in love with someone else. You could. And TEMPORARILY you'd feel better. But you'd be in the same situation a few years later. Because (listen carefully to this): The Key To Succeeding In Marriage Is Not Finding The Right Person; It's Learning To Love The Person You Found! SUSTAINING love is not a passive or spontaneous experience. It'll NEVER just happen to you. You can't "find" LASTING love. You have to "make" it day in and day out. That's why we have the expression "the labor of love." Because it takes time, effort, and energy. And most importantly, it takes WISDOM.. You have to know WHAT TO DO to make your marriage work. Make no mistake about it. Love is NOT a mystery. There are specific things you can do (with or without your spouse) to succeed with your marriage. Just as there are physical laws of the universe (such as gravity), there are also laws for relationships. Just as the right diet and exercise program makes you physically stronger, certain habits in your relationship WILL make your marriage stronger. It's a direct cause and effect. If you know and apply the laws, the results are predictable. .. you can "make" love. Love in marriage is indeed a "decision".. . not just a feeling.

Nice explanation indeed. I think I married the right man; happily married for almost 4 years already:)

Happy birthday JAY!

2010-07-08T01:41:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to our dearest friend JAY! We wish you all the success and happiness that you definitely deserve :) I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for all the help you are generously giving our family; we will never forget that. We love you very much!

We will see you and Ninyah later. Looking forward of eating that sumptuous spaghetti you prepared :)

LO using free template

2010-07-08T01:09:00.000-07:00

First time I did a layout with a template. Its a lot easier because all you have to do is to add the necessary photos and elements on the template; you don't to think about the layout perse. Misty Cato's photoshop tutorial on "Using Layered Templates in PSE" was very helpful.

Here is the Cshneider "Simple Pleasures" free template:

And my own version was this:

(credits to follow)

Any difference? I think I have to revise this one. Hmmmm....

My first 2 page layout

2010-07-07T18:44:00.000-07:00

Tried doing this yesterday, a 2-page spread for my son's birthday book. Hope I gave justice to the designers but credits to follow hehehe... I'm having a hard time doing credits because I'm using different kits from different designers! And still have to learn photo editing; need to do a lot of readings

Oh my! This is the reason why I wanted to have my own dslr camera but i don't have moolah right now and still have to think about this all over again. For the meantime, I'll just barrow my brother's Canon :)

Anyways, here's the 2 page lay-out i did:

(credits to follow)

My first attempt on scrapblog

2010-07-07T12:03:00.000-07:00

After reading threads and forums about digiscrapping, I subscribe at scrapblog.com and tried a couple of layouts. I did three (3) layouts in less than 15 minutes! It was very easy to use. They have ready layouts for you, with themes and all. You just need to upload photos and drag them to your desired layout and you'll have an instant layout.

This one I did for my husband:

Thanks to scrapblog.com! But I still prefer doing my own layout on photoshop hehehe...

Digiscrapping

2010-07-07T11:20:00.000-07:00

Its been almost a month now when I started doing my LO (layouts). At first, I just wanted to make a photobook of all the major events in my son's life: baptism, 1st birthday and first year of life. I've collected a large number of photos, lie unprinted trapped in my laptop so "photobooking" it is the best answer. But after reading threads and forums and visited blogs of digicrappers, I was inspired to be one of them.

Before, I did a couple of traditional scrapbooks. But because of limited resources (not so many kits, papers, embelishments and alphas available in the market), I stopped. with digital scrapbooking, there are lots of kits available on-line; some are free and some are not. But what's important, you can already start to work digitally using photoshop with all those freebies. Thanks to the links and quick page given by digiscrappers. You just need to have a big hard drive to be able save all of them.

Here is a layout I made for Matteo's 1st birthday photobook:

Credits:
(Inspired by Misty Cato's tutorial "Blending Made Easy")
1. Blending mask and whispered background by Misty Cato
2. Polka dot purple paper by Marie Stone's Spring Punch 600 Collection
3. String file 2 by Chriscrap's Oh My Prince Collection
4. Ribbons by Shabby Princess' Sun Porch by Amy Teets
5. Butterfly, flowers, buttons, stitched page border and "playful" fonts by Shabby Princess' Promise, Vintage Florals, Harvest Spice and Splendid Collection (some were recolored)

I'll post the other layouts here as soon as I finish them.

Blogging

2010-07-07T11:07:00.001-07:00

Yes, this is it! I'm reviving my blogger account. After almost 2 years of not posting anything, I'm happy and excited to blog everything about me; me as a wife, a mother, a daughter, a friend or even as an enemy. Basically, a story of my life :)

This will be also be a great chance for me to go into writing, again, and be good at it. So please help me God!