c'est la vie

I'm back!

2011-06-06T01:01:00.004+08:00

Wow, I can't believe it's been months since I last made a post, and it was barely a post even. Between reading emails, other blogs, face booking, twitter, and now instagram--who has time to blog at all? Maybe I should just link my instagram here? After all, a photo with a caption is a mini-post or a slice of my life in itself. :)

Anyhoo, my birthday is coming up in a few weeks. I'm officially feeling quite old now as I am getting past "mid-30s" and fast approaching late 30s. Eep.

Ootd

2011-03-12T12:20:00.001+08:00

Ootd
Originally uploaded by MandyEC

The Perfectionist by Rudolph Chelminski

2011-02-15T21:06:00.001+08:00

The Perfectionist
Originally uploaded by MandyEC

This book has been on my bedside for more than a year now. I got this the same time I got my first copy of "The Quentins" (by Maeve Binchy; yes I have 2 copies of the same book, senior moments!).

It is a biography about this French chef who killed himself after losing one star in his 3-Michelin starred restaurant. I am just on the first chapter and it has been quite interesting.

He was said to have been very, very particular as to how his eggs were cooked. He deemed it too plebeian by cooking an egg on a frying pan. Instead he slow cooked it on a saucer with melted butter until the whites are just slightly creamy and the yolk warmed & liquid. When it is "cooked" and transferred to a plate, it is poured with more melted butter. Amazing, huh?

To revolve your life around food and base your self-worth on what you have made is sad, because one may fail in life and it shouldn't be the end. Kinda reminds me of Gen. Reyes and how, he too, took his own life because of pride.

But I digress, this is a good read for those who are interested in gastronomy & the culinary arts. I just like to eat. :) so reading about "poached filets of sile on puff pastry croustades, each filet topped with a lobster tail scallop and a ruinously thick slice of T. melanosporum..." Ah, now that's what differs French cuisine from the rest of the world! :)

Cibo: Penne al telefono

2011-02-15T20:34:00.001+08:00

Cibo: Penne al telefono
Originally uploaded by pussmercs

This dish is one of three I would alternately order in Cibo. I take photos of food I eat, but I can't believe that I haven't taken photos of food I eat in Cibo. Sorry my dear love, you were taken for granted. Hehehe. (very special thanks to pussmercs from whom I swiped this photo from)

Penne al telefono is named as such because at the end of the cooking, cubes of mozzarella are added and they melt. When you pick up the pasta, the melted cheese are long and stringy resembling a telephone cord. Cute huh?

My other two favorites are Farfalle alla Genovese, which is pasta ribbons with pesto, cream & mushrooms. The other one WAS (yes, was) Spaghettini Valentina and it has long been discontinued. It was my absolute favorite & I stopped ordering the Genovese & al telefono for this pasta dish. It was quite simple--it had lobster, cream, and some liquor I believe.

I didn't pay much attention to the description as I thought it will always be available. Had I known, I would've paid more attention to what it had in it so I can somehow replicate the dish at home. Ms. Fores, can you please return this dish to Cibo?

Backlog

2011-01-28T02:02:00.001+08:00

I have so much! If you look at my Flickr, my photos there are from September last year! I still have lots to upload. I also have some posts in my draft folder, that I never got to finish. Sigh. I have lots to share here, if only I don't get lazy to type out posts. LOL.

Our New Year

2011-01-27T15:09:00.000+08:00

...Or rather, our New Year's eve. This is the first time we spent New Year's eve in a different place (not out of town though). In '08, we went to the ILs, to celebrate for a while, do the media noche thing & watch some fireworks. It was too smoky for our taste. In '09 & '10, DT was already born, we spent at home, to avoid the fireworks. It was still smoky (even if we were indoors) and a bit too loud for our toddler. It was always in hindsight, those past two years, that we wished we checked in a hotel. So this New Year, I prepared ahead & bugged DH that can we please check in a hotel? So we did. We decided to stay at Bellevue Manila as we had a reunion the following day to attend. I booked us a room at their new wing.

Come Dec. 31 in the afternoon, we checked in (there were already a lot of families checking in too). Service was quite fast and we got our room in no time. A bellboy helped with our luggage who led us to our room on the 5th floor. DH commented that it would be nicer to get a higher floor room. Much to our surprise, we were placed in a smoking room! Our very kind & listong bellboy offered to do our room transfer (although at first he offered to spray the room with air freshener, which won't do of course!). The reason we check in is to avoid the smoke & here we are in a smoking room. The bellboy was quick to return with our new room assignment.

He led us to the 11th floor, and to the last room at the end of the hallway. What a pleasant surprise--we were upgraded to a grand deluxe suite. :) Hahaha, I guess they gave us this so we won't complain to the manager or leave a bad comment. We had a great view of Paranaque on one side and Alabang on the other side window. A couple of hours later, they brought us a bottle of Asti Martini. Wasn't that nice?

Since we had a late merienda, we had a late dinner. Unfortunately for us, the nearby restaurants outside closed for the New Year's eve celebration. Galing no? So we just had room service. We had our usual Nasi goreng (I don't know, but we always always order this dish for room service in any hotel we stay in). After dinner the kids were knocked out, so we celebrated quietly, DH & I, by having a bag of lay's potato chips & the Asti that we were given. (we did bring our own bottle of bubbly, but the foil was gone & it made the bubbly stale. Ew.) we watched the fireworks from our windows. It was a nice quiet, non-smoky new year. Just the way I like it. :)

01/27/11 P.S. Just finished typing this very long overdue post! Teeter.

Japan Part 3

2011-01-05T23:58:00.000+08:00

This post is a tad too late, but here's one more post about Japan.

A few days after Halloween, our hosts brought us along to a time share resort facing the famous Mount Fuji. We stayed in the XIV (read as "eksiv", not 14) Yamanakako Resort. This was about a 2 hour drive from Yokohama where we were based for the duration of our trip.

Before we went to the resort we stopped over at the Gotemba Premium Outlet. Heaven!! When we got there, I didn't even realize where we were. I thought we stopped to eat or we were passing the back of the hotel or what. Until I saw their map around the area. Woohoo. Shopping.

I went to the Cosmetic Company Store (CCO in the US), I picked up a few items from Clinique & MAC. There were other brands too, like Bobbi Brown, Estee Lauder. I had to hold back myself! ;) I do regret not getting some stuff from another store, the Shu Uemura outlet. They had really good deals as well. There was a GAP store, North Face, Barney's, etc. Unfortunately, shopping at the outlet was not the purpose of our stop there. It was to grab some lunch and our host wanted to buy a present for her friend. They did let us stay for an hour or two. Not enough, I tell ya.

It was dark when we drove to the resort. They already checked us in earlier; DH & I were pleasantly surprised to see our "room". It was not a room, it was a suite. Not a 1 bedroom suite, but a 2 bedroom suite. Wow. Just for the four of us.

Soon after, we had dinner at the French-slash-Japanese restaurant. Kinda difficult to order because the menu was in Japanese characters. I settled for the hamburger steak, DK had her usual spaghetti, DH his steak, DT ate off our plates (he totally loved the "babi-cue" aka my hamburger steak). When we stepped out of the restaurant to go to the car--it was soooo cold. Like 5 degrees celsius. Sarap! :)

Here's what greeted us when we woke up the following morning:

Isn't it beautiful? I took this photo right from our balcony! What a wonderful view. :)

Happy Holidays!

2010-12-27T14:52:00.002+08:00

I've been really busy the past few weeks doing this and that. Also I've been really lazy to blog at all. In fact, I haven't been visiting my other blogger friends' blogs. :)

Anyway, it's a little late, but happy holidays from my family to yours! Wishing you all more blessings in the coming year. :)

US Visa Application

2010-12-09T01:02:00.002+08:00

Here's what I shared with a yahoogroup I'm part of:

Thought I'd share our experience in applying for a US Tourist Visa. Since December 1, there has been a new system. One payment ($140--to the accredited banks) is good for: visa application fee, scheduling at their call center, courier fee (if the visa is approved).

http://www.ustraveldocs.com.ph

First thing is to fill out the online application (DS-160). I don't know if they added better features to their online system but when I filled out my husband's and son's applications, you can save each page (because you are only alloted a few minutes to type in the info, if not, it will close) or even save the file to your computer (PC only, not Mac). It is important to have your passports, old passports, month/year of travel to other places, so that you are prepared to input the info in the application. Also, save the UID or application number, so when you haven't finished your application yet, you can go back to it. If not, you will have to re-do your application.

Before beginning the application, make sure your photo is the right file size (that is acceptable to the system). However, like in my son's case, his photo was not uploaded properly (even if it confirmed that the photo was good), and when we printed out the confirmation letter, there was no photo. But don't worry, you can just attach a photo when you go to the embassy. If your photo is not acceptable to them, you are given a chance to have your photo taken at a Kodak booth in the pavilion.

After filling out the applications, we scheduled their appointment. We used VisaPoint, but I think this site is non-existent now. You can just schedule through the call center. Print out the DS-160 confirmation letter and the appointment letter. Pay the fee $140/person and depending on the bank's conversion that day, you have to pay it in pesos (Php6200 +/-).

What to bring to the appointment:

- confirmation letter

- passport (valid for more than 6 months)

- proof of payment (blue deposit slip)

- appointment letter

- extra photo (with white background)

- ballpen, very impt as you will need to fill out some more forms

- your other docs

On the day itself: Hubby & son applying, but I was allowed to go inside. Any form of electronic device is absolutely not allowed inside the embassy premises. If the x-ray catches it during scanning, you are automatically not allowed to go inside & you have to re-schedule your appointment. Liquids are also not allowed (food, water definitely not allowed)--I'm not sure what liquids really, but I threw out my small bottle of alcohol before we entered the x-ray room. I read in a forum that those tambay outside the embassy who sell ballpens & envelopes--you can pay them 200 pesos to hold your cellphone for you in case there's no one/no place you can leave it with).

From the x-ray, we went straight to the visa section (our appointment was at 7:00am, so we didn't wait in the pavilion anymore). We were given 2 sheets of paper each passport. One pink sheet which you fill in some personal/passport info, and the bigger, white sheet which had a barcode sticker on (same one they stick on the passport) which you fill in passport & mailing address details. After that, we were called for a pre-screening. A Filipina officer asked my husband some questions (based on the application) like name, birthdate, mother's complete maiden name, who filled out the application for you.

After the pre-screen, you are given a number, this number they will flash on the LED display showing the window you need to go to. First 3 windows are for the fingerprint scan. Windows 4-9 are for the visa officers. Windows 10-12 for the Filipina officers who pre-screen.

The visa area was really full, as in medyo ubusan sa seats. Funny story, my husband overheard this guy telling another guy that he was just there to renew his passport, so he didn't bring any docs with him (to prove his ties to the country). Ngek. Wonder how he fared. Hahaha.

For the interview, they will call the number one by one. Unlike before, there'd be a queue of 2-3 people who can overhear you interview with the consul. Now, it's just you at the window. You are spared your dignity. But that is not the case with the Pinay pre-screen officers. Medyo loud boses nila & you can hear them fr anywhere you are seated. Too bad we were seated a bit far from the visa officers' windows so we couldn't see if strict sila or lenient with visas.

Then our number was flashed and we approached the visa officer. Funny lang, I got asked as many questions as my husband did even if I was not an applicant. Bad trip lang kasi pati ako ninerbyos and put on the spot. Hahaha. We were both asked about our last trip to the US, how long we stayed, where we stayed, etc. The consul was a bit sungit that time, he commented that we should have divulged that information (what info, the cities we stayed in? everything they asked on the DS-160, we put them in!). Then he asked about our income. Then finally he asked if we go on trips around the region. He didn't ask to see anything except for my passport & my husband's old passports. Then, sigh, sigh, he said that their visas were approved and their passports will be delivered to our house.

Previously, you will need to go to the courier's counter in the pavilion. It's not like that anymore. That white slip we filled out, that will be given to the courier.

P.S. The passports of DH & DT were delivered this afternoon--a record breaking 2 days since their interview at the embassy. That was really quick, huh? :)

Japan Part 2

2010-11-29T00:29:00.005+08:00

Just as I had suspected, my Japan Day 1 post would be all by its lonesome for quite some time, that it would take me forever to do another post on Japan.

Here's a copy of my email to my mommy/wife yahoogroup, sharing our trip to Japan, some observations and a few tips.

Destination: Japan (Yokohama & Tokyo)

Travel Date: Oct. 29-Nov 10

Travel companions: 1 adult, 2 children (ages 2 & 11)

Budget:

1. Plane tickets via Cathay Pacific: $1662 for 2 adults & 2 children (cheapest compared to PAL, Delta, JAL); can even do a stop-over in Hong Kong; + 3000 airport fee + 5260 travel tax = Php80k

2. Hotel/lodging: none, we stayed in our friend's condominium's visitor's room

3. Other expenses: transportation, meals, entrance to Disneyland, shopping (in ¥)

*meals are ¥800-1000; fastfood 500; you can also buy meals in 7-11, masarap din.

*train fare 130 for a single stop, can go as high as 540 one way (Yokohama to Akihabara)

*Disneyland tickets are really pricey: adult 5800, child (age 4-11) 3900, junior (age 12-17) 5000

*limousine coach to the airport ¥3500/adult; 1750/child (3 & below are free of charge)

4. If we stayed in a hotel, did a trip on our own, I'd say, we'd spend a total of 180-200k (semi-tipid) for a weeks stay in Tokyo or wherever.

Itinerary:

1. At first, we were planning on staying for just 7 or 8 days. But our friend suggested that since we were with kids, we should stay for 2 weeks so that we won't be in rush to go around where we wanted to go. So we stayed for 12 days in Japan, essentially, it was just 10 days really (Days 1 & 12 were for travelling into & out of Japan).

2. Days 2-3, we went around Yokohama & its shops, the weather was not favorable because the bagyo we left in Manila went to Japan, it was raining. We also we trick or treating.

3. Day 4, we went to Asakusa, Shibuya (Omotesando, Aoyama, Harajuku).

4. Day 5 was museum day for me. If you like museums or western art, do try to catch one of the special exhibits they have in Tokyo (or Yokohama, where I went). I went to look at the Degas exhibit. I wanted to look at the Van Gogh exhibit in Tokyo but I didn't have time anymore.

5. We went out of town to Shizuoka, Kawaguchi, Fuji__?__ near Mt. Fuji. Super nice place! (If you have additional funds, do make a trip to see Mt. Fuji or the nearby hot spring areas.

6. The rest of our trip (days 6-11) were spent shuttling to & fro Yokohama & Tokyo.

7. We're not the touristy type, but we did go to a few popular tourist spots (Imperial Palace, Ikebukuro, Akihabara). Mostly we enjoyed walking around, observing the people around us, and looking at their buildings, etc.

Observations:

1. Japan is so child friendly! Train stations always have elevators for the elderly, handicapped & children on strollers. Shops (like bookstores, etc) have a children's corner where they can play while their parents look around or sit to rest. Restaurants will always give the childrens' utensils for the kids to use.

2. Super clean.

3. Super polite. Pet peeve ko ang walang elevator manners. The Japanese will press the button to keep the door open for you & wait before you step out before they enter the elevator.

4. Trash bins are hard to come by. We are always stuck with trash in the stroller. This is bec they are strict in segregating their trash. They want to avoid those people who throw their trash indiscriminately.

Tips:

1. On buying train tickets: they have machines that you can buy tickets from. But most of time, it's hard to figure out how much the fare is (you need to choose the fare amount of your ticket), so the best thing to do is just get the cheapest ticket & before you go thru the turnstile, go the the fare adjustment machine to add on to your deficient train ticket.

2. If there are specific places you want to go to (like a shop--we must've gone to about 3 or 4 bicycle shops my husband wanted to see) and all you have is an address, do try to google-map it or iphone-map-it ahead of time. Their addresses are a pain to figure out with the dashes & numbers. Not everyone speaks English, so it can be hard to ask for directions. When we were there, we were lucky enough to borrow our friend's son's ipad to guide us when we had to look for places we wanted to go to. But if it's popular places, any old tourist map will do.

3. When you google map, the places or directions (like train stops or what train line you must take) are in Kanji (Japanese characters), you can copy & paste that particular line then paste the characters to google translate. Then you can read the place/train in regular letters.

4. Don't be afraid to get lost. It's when you get lost when you see things you don't expect. That's the fun of travel. :)

5. Recommended places to eat: ANYWHERE! Lahat masarap. Hehe.

Mistakes:

1. I wanted to buy a Lonely Planet guide for Japan but I only started looking for a few weeks before leaving. I went to Powerbooks, National, fully booked. They did not have one single guide book for Japan. (There were a couple of Tokyo ones, but I wanted yung pang Japan talaga). If I'd known there weren't any, I would've ordered online nalang. Fully booked even has 3 full shelves of guidebooks, ni isang Japan, wala. They even have Jordan, Syria, etc. sheesh.

2. Research on airports--we didn't know that there was a new international airport near Yokohama, the Haneda Intl airport, and Cathay has a few flights that land there. It's only 20 minutes away fr Yokohama, compared to Narita, which is 1.5 hrs away. :(

I have uploaded a small percentage of the photos we took in Japan in my Facebook, but not yet in my Flickr account. So I'll try to put photos here to the best of my abilities. It's kinda hard to choose from thumbnails. We have over a thousand photos!! I was a bit trigger happy, especially in taking photos of the places we visited & walked around. Japan is indeed a country that is like no other. I'd love to go back.

Hakuho-do brushes preview

2010-11-11T22:59:00.008+08:00

Buying a few make-up brushes was one of my intentions during our trip to Japan. I had a few in mind and going to the mother ship was in my definite must-visits. So, on our first day out to Tokyo (our 3rd day in Japan), a trek to Aoyama was first on my list. :) I got 6 brushes there. I was holding back, as I did not want to spend so much. But the brushes were oh so lovely! I got a pointed face brush, round face brush, eyeliner, eyeshadow fluff, smudge, and blending brush.

It's a good thing that I read in a blog/review somewhere that some brushes had the same brush heads but different handles, and are priced differently too. So I compared the brushes I wanted while going around the store. As you can see, there are brushes everywhere! Heaven indeed!! There are a lot of brushes here that are not seen in their website.

They had brush sets starting at around ¥10,000 (about Php5,000+) for about 5 or 6 brushes in a roll; up to ¥50,000 for 20 brushes. They even have a holiday set (as is the custom for cosmetic brands)-- I wasn't able to take a photo but the handles are metallic purple and on of the brushes had a MAC 239 dupe (which is way softer too!).

Later on, we passed by Tokyu Department Store (in the Shibuya Station) and I picked up 2 more brushes. Yes, I wanted more, but I held back. The boutique in Aoyama, of course had more choices. Fortunately, the brushes I was planning on buying were there. Next time, I will buy that big finishing brush and a blush brush. These brushes are more expensive so I didn't buy for now.

Like what others have said about Hakuhodo brushes, they are indeed the softest brushes I have touched. I haven't used them yet, but I have put them on my face, and they are sooooo soft. Even DK agrees with me. :)

Don't let the brand scare you. Not all their brushes are expensive. Some are even cheaper than MAC brushes. (And yes, they are the manufacturers of MAC brushes). Now why would I buy MAC brushes now, when I have tried Hakuhodo, and can be cheaper than MAC as well?

L-R: eyeliner, eyebrow, pencil, smudge, crease/blending, eyeshadow fluff, pointed face brush, blush brush round

Blush brush round (goat hair) - MAC dupe: 209; It is so dense & very soft; not scratchy at all.

Eyeliner brush (weasel hair) - Very dense, pliable & firm at the same time.

Eyebrow brush (water badger) - very affordable, it costs only about Php400 [after conversion]; fibers are not splayed, stiff but not scratchy.

Smudge brush (goat, I believe) - this brush I picked up impulsively as it was at the counter across the cashier. There are no numbers on the packaging & this is not found on their website. It reminds me of the Laura Mercier smudge brush. There is a smaller version of this also.

Pencil brush (goat) - MAC dupe: 219; It is really soft but very dense. The tip does not poke & is not scratchy.

Crease/blending brush (blue squirrel) - They say this is the sire of the MAC 222 & 224. I have a Coastal scents brush that is similar to this, also soft. But this brush is softer & denser. I am hoping that when I use this, it will not scratch my eyelid the way the MAC 217 does.

Eyeshadow fluff (pahmi/horse) - Super dense & soft. The brush is fatter & "taller" than a MAC 219.

Blush/face brush pointed - MAC dupe 138. Super soft & feels wonderful on the face.

Round blush brush - MAC dupe 209; Very, very dense & soft. I'd love to use this for cream blushes, liquid/cream foundation, and contouring.

I think I am spoiled for life. I don't think I will buy another brush brand (well, for now). I hope they start selling in other parts of Asia too, so they are more accessible.

Japan Day 1 (long post!)

2010-10-31T00:16:00.010+08:00

Our flight to Japan (Narita) was via Cathay Pacific. It was not only the cheapest I found for us, but it also stops in Hong Kong, and we took that as a sign for us to have an overnight stop over on our way back to Manila. The only downside is that it is not a direct flight from Manila.

We left at 6:20am (meaning we had to be in the airport at least 2 hours before--I had already checked us in 2 days before, so we didn't need that much time. Or so I thought). So we left our house at around 4:15am. Good thing we lived some 15-20 minutes away only (no traffic) from NAIA. Like I said, we were already checked in and our boarding passes were already printed out. All we needed to be concerned about was paying the travel tax at the PTA desk and the immigration queue.

When we arrived at the airport, what greets us? Yes, a verrrry long queue to get inside and get past the first security check (as in security guard). There was one security guard who was very, ahem, arrogant. He was pointing, telling people to move, etc. He happened to push our cart wit the luggage and my son (in his stroller) was beside it, almost bumping my son with the heavy cart. So of course, parents that we were, told off the guard to watch what he was doing, etc. What does he do? Make excuses, etc. What an asshole. No apologies at all. Had we more time, I would've reported that guy to his supervisor. Tsk tsk. That line alone took 15 minutes or more.

I don't even know why they assign guards to check the ticket & passports of passengers. What is their authority? Grrr. Anyhoo, onto queue number 2: PTA. Just to pay takes forever again! I don't know why these people can't move their asses any faster! That was another 15 minutes. DH & the kids were already waiting for me at the Cathay counter. Good thing we were already checked in, so they didn't need the passports (which were with me at the darn PTA desk) for the rest of the check-in process to be completed. Sigh.

When we enter to pay for the terminal fee, yes, another security guard to check the boarding passes & passport. Guard check #2. I peeked past the terminal fee counter to see how long the queue for immigration was. Omg. It. was. so. long. Thank goodness for our kids, security guard #3 told us to go to the side. Oh yeah! There was an APEC/VIP line. At ha, ang linagay nilang tao doon, magaling mag-English and pleasant personality. At buti nalang din! Because DH was left witht the chore to fill out all the departure cards. Darling husband that he is, he left out sooo many things unfilled. The officer kept on returning the cards for me to fill out! Sign here, the date, the flight number, etc. Ms. Mendoza, thank you for your patience and excellent diction. Aylovet.

Security check #2 was quick. Short line because everyone else was stuck in line for immigration. We hurried over to our Gate (7), security check #3. Guard check #4 also. Guard check #5 to see our boarding passes again (so how again can an idiot go past so many checks without a boarding pass and see if he can get past you?). Sigh. Another unpleasant surprise, going to our gate entailed taking the stairs down. No elevator. No escalator. And we had a stroller. Pano nalang pag may wheelchair? Good think guard #5 helped DH carry the stroller down the stairs.

Cathay Pacific, world class airline that they are, made sure that people boarded according to SOP. First/Business class first then those with kids/elderly next. We also left on time. :) The flight was uneventful and we reached Hong Kong at 8:00 am. We walked to our next gate (quite a lot of walkalators but at least we didn't have to take a tram to our gate.

We also left HK on the dot. However our flight in the last 2 hours was really awful. There was so much turbulence. Typhoon Katring (from the Philippines) was on its way to south Japan, and that was our path. We slept it off, thankfully the kiddies did not suffer from motion sickness.

We arrived in Narita half an hour before our scheduled arrival. Thank you Katring. LOL. Our friends/hosts picked us up and brought us to have lunch first in (the second biggest) Chinatown (in the world) in Yokohama. We were supposed to have shabu-shabu but it didn't work out. But it's okay because our merienda/early din-din was sooooo good! We had xiao long bao, hakao, fried rice, etc. Really good stuff. After that we went for a walk around Chinatown. It is unlike any Chinatown I have seen. It was so clean, and there was no distinct Chinese food smell. Hee.

We went home after that. Our friends Malou and Fumio reserved the visitor's room in their condominium for us to sleep in. I'll take a photo of it, it is Japanese style with tatami beds. We hardly stay in it as we are always at their unit to eat breakfast and wind down. :)

Funny, that on our first day in Japan, we end up in Chinatown. Hee. No worries, it is, after all, one of the attractions in Yokohama. :)

Japan Visa 101

2010-10-20T00:16:00.003+08:00

We applied for a visa a few weeks ago. We coursed our applications through Friendship Tours (located in the 3/F Dusit Thani Hotel in Makati). Initially, we inquired with Reli Tours, but our friend advised us to go to Friendship. (Btw, Reli charges 2,000/person for tourist or visitor's visa)

I looked at the Japanese embassy website, and it was quite helpful. But the agency advised us on what was a better option for us, because we were thinking of applying with an invitation from our Japanese host. We decided to do the application as tourists by ourselves because, one, it was easier for us & it required less documents to submit. If we went with getting an invitation from our friend, we'd have to get a written invitation, residence certificate, (in case they will sponsor part of your trip, like hotel stay, etc) a letter of guarantee & inviting person's bank certificate. We were told that more often than not, this method was more difficult for tourists than just applying for the tourist visa.

For a tourist visa (fee is 1,200/person) here are the requirements:

1. application form with 4.5 cm x 4.5 cm photo

2. valid passport

3. birth certificate (only if you've not had a Japanese visa issued to you before)

4. marriage certificate (if applicable)

5. bank certificate/ITR

6. daily schedule

It's not absolute that you have to follow the schedule you have made for them. In fact we are going earlier than that and staying on a little longer. The flight & hotel bookings are not checked/verified when you apply. So you don't have to stress about making an early booking. :)

For a visitor visa (visiting a friend or relative), the requirements I mentioned above plus a few more must be submitted. They are all listed in the website. The forms can also be downloaded from there.

Japan! Japan!

2010-10-20T00:07:00.004+08:00

A few years back, our friends from Japan have been inviting us to come over and visit. We were supposed to do a stop-over on our way to the US, but our promo ticket from Northwest only allowed a stop within the US. That was 3 years ago. Fast forward to July of this year, our friend was here again and we were talking about this and that, which led to another invitation to visit them. The husband always says yes and does want to go back to Japan again; but of course applying for a visa and booking, err, paying for plane tickets is another thing altogether.

Things fell into place after many calls/texts with our friends in Japan. We were able to get our visa (and being able to apply is another blogpost!), book our tickets; and in about 10 days, we will be flying to Japan. Yay! :)

Gel eyeliner tip

2010-10-09T02:44:00.003+08:00

I have a tip for you gel eye-liner users. Have you ever had your gel liner dry up on you? Hard to apply because it's not smooth anymore? I was told by an SA from a cosmetic counter that if ever it dries up, to just add a few drops of oil. Now we all know that once your skin gets oily, make-up will smudge off. So what could possibly happen if you put oily or oil based make-up? Yep, it can smudge off. What I did was put a few drops of that silicon hair oil, (the stuff that makes hair shiny) and mixed up the gel with a spatula. I wasn't sure that it would work, but I have used the gel liner for a few weeks already and it hasn't smudged on me. In fact, I rubbed it off with my finger and it wouldn't budge. After all, silicon in make-up products help for it to stay on longer, right? So silicon + dried gel eye-liner = good stuff! :)

Johnson's baby products

2010-10-08T01:30:00.002+08:00

I didn't realize until tonight how loyal I am to Johnson's baby products! I took a photo of what's in my bathroom and saw a lot of J&J stuff! Hahaha.

Not in the photos are the big bottle of the pink baby lotion we just finished up, the tiny bottle of regular (blue) cologne & small bottle of alcohol in my purse, the cooling baby powder in my son's bag (not for his use, but mine), tiny sample lotion bottles around the house. Ang dami!

Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao (?)

2010-10-04T20:59:00.002+08:00

I'm not entirely sure if that is the correct name of the restaurant, but I'm sure most of you have heard that Crystal Jade opened in Virra Mall a few weeks ago. It was the first xlb resto we went to in HK, not our fave anymore, but it surely has a place in our hearts. :)

CJ is a restaurant franchise from Singapore, and it has a lot of branches and concepts around Asia. Like I said, I first tasted CJ in Hong Kong and we got to eat at their Branch in Bangkok (Erawan Mall). They have the Crystal Jade Restaurant (does not have the pulled noodles & xiao long bao, this is their high end Chinese resto), Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao (the same concept as the one here in Manila), and the Crystal Jade My Bread (something like Bread Talk).

Watch the chefs from Hong Kong in action.

DH, my mom and I went trooped over to Greenhills on the second day of their official opening. We got there around 11ish & we were seated some 20 minutes later. As expected the xlb was really great. We ordered 2 baskets right away. Eat it while it's still hot, because once it gets cold, it won't taste good; parang nag-sebo na. We ordered the chicken dish we always order (with cashews & chili), yang chow, yang chow, and another dish I forgot. I was disappointed that they didn't have the bean curd skin veggie roll. I love anything bean curd skin, so I ordered a dumpling that had that as a wrapper. :)

We can't wait to go back. I'd love to bring the ILs there because my nephews/nieces love xlb too. :)

Prom make-up

2010-10-03T13:59:00.004+08:00

Prom season in our country would be around February to March. That's from experience--perhaps in other schools, they do it earlier? I don't know.

Anyway, I was looking through my posts and I realized that I didn't post the prom make-up I did on this young lady. She went to two proms and I did both her make-up for those events.

Doing make-up for younger people is always so much easier. For one, their skin is almost always great and there's not too many problems to deal with. You don't have to apply too much powder or foundation because you want them too look natural and look their age, basically.

For this one, I did a blue-gray semi-smokey eye with a nude lip.

For this event, she was wearing a green dress with a hot pink lining so her mom and I thought we'd give her a strong pink lip (I used a Nars lipstick in Schiap); although I heard that her dad didn't particularly like this lipstick (hahaha).

Updates

2010-10-02T23:25:00.002+08:00

It's been almost a month since I last posted! Whew. I really have gotten lazy at blogging. :)

Nothing much has been happening with me. Still same ol' same ol' routine around at home. DT and I have been doing our homeschool for a few weeks already. Although I have yet to finalize her curriculum, but it's just a matter of putting everything together. We went to the bookstore a couple of weeks ago to check out the local textbooks, *just* to see what the lessons are for Grade 6 students (Language & Science, in particular) and it is quite disappointing to see that the lessons to be tackled in Language are almost identical to her Grade 5 Language textbook. I don't see why they have to keep on repeating the same lesson over and over again! Tsk tsk. That really cemented our determination to use books from the US in some (most!) of her subjects.

Anyway, this week has been really great for my family. We had a lot of answered prayers. Truly, God is in control all the time. It's too personal to share here, though, but there's one person here who is the most ecstatic over the news we've been receiving.

Miracle oil?

2010-09-08T19:28:00.003+08:00

When DT was just a baby, he suffered from really dry skin on his legs and back. His pedia prescribed a steroid cream, Elica, and it did clear up some. But I didn't want to use it all the time. So we bought him Grandma Minnie's Oil's Well from VMV. It's essentially virgin coconut oil. After his bath, before wiping, I'd apply it to his dry skin. Then dry him off and apply Aveeno baby lotion. This regimen really worked well for him, so no more steroid creams.

A few weeks ago, I started to have a an itchy right eyelid and then it became dry and a bit scaly (just a small portion, not to gross you out; it was hardly noticeable even). Vain that I am, I didn't stop from applying eye make-up, although that didn't aggravate it. I didn't realize that it was some sort of allergy, so all I'd do was apply moisturizer on it. Of course the moisturizer did not work. Finally it hit me to search the net about my dry eyelid (yes, just one eyelid). So turns out it was some sort of allergy, like eczema or dermatitis. I was deciding if I should get a high end eye cream, but the kuripot in me decided to give VCO a shot.

I applied it on my eye last night; it felt a bit gross and oily. But when I woke up this morning, my eyelid felt less dry. The portion that was scaly became only slight. :) Needless to say, I am quite happy with what happened.

What is virgin coconut oil in Oil's Well and how does it do what it does?

The Skinny on Grandma Minnie's Skincredibly Versatile Solution Oil's Well Nurturing Do-It-Oil

A surprisingly simple formulation for so many skin solutions.
Contains just two excellent ingredients: organic virgin coconut oil and coconut-derived monolaurin.
Soothes and softens dastardly dry, atopic, seborrheic skin. Prevents diaper rash. Soothing and moisturizing for bonding infant massages. Great for hair detangling and ouchless wound cleaning. It’s an oil-in-one must-have for moms and munchkins alike. Oil’s well that ends well.
Organic virgin coconut oil provides incomparable moisturizing and soothing because its fatty acids are native to skin.
Coconut-derived monolaurin provides safe and gentle-yet-powerful antibacterial disinfection.
1. Softens + salves even severely dry, atopic, seborrheic skin or cradle cap.
2. Prevents diaper rash.
3. Detangles hair.
4. Is ideal as calming, nurturing massage oil.
5. Provides ouchless cleaning for wounds, too.
Comes with a cap, a separate pump, and a spatula for dispensing options.
With published studies on virgin coconut oil and monolaurin. (from the VMV website)

Business opportunity

2010-08-30T20:50:00.003+08:00

I've been thinking of bringing in a product here to Manila. It's a make-up brand that is not that popular mainstream-wise, but quite popular among YouTube make-up gurus. What's holding me back is the price of the make-up. It is a bit expensive, but I think they are very good. See, I haven't even tried the make-up brand for myself. Haha. I'm still praying about it, and do some study if it is a feasible venture I should engage in. First off, order make-up to try on myself first. :)

My everyday face

2010-08-26T21:01:00.006+08:00

I'm no make-up blogger, but I do make-up for other people from time to time. I have one make-up post here. So I thought I'd post on how I do my face when I go out on a normal nowhere special day.

When I have more time, I do more, but my usual routine consists of powder foundation (or mineral foundation), blush, contour powder, concealer (I have dark undereye circles), eyebrow stuff (either powder, pencil or corrector cream), lipstick (almost always a nude colored lipstick), gel eyeliner, and mascara. The last two, I skip when I'm in a real hurry. I could probably do this in 5-10 minutes.

My routine used to be much simpler years ago, but I guess with my age, I can't afford to go out with a bare face. Vanity! Heehee. I also feel that going for that extra effort shows that you care how you look. That's my opinion though. It's like going out, getting really dressed up, but your face is devoid of any make-up. It's like something's lacking--one doesn't look polished enough, I think.

Anyway, back to my everyday routine. Like I said in my eyebrow post--eyebrows are extremely important. You must groom them because the eyebrows frame the face. If they look too bushy, they make the face look too strong. If it's too sparse, it looks bare & washed out. Too thin, it makes you look old. So take that extra time to have them groomed. Powder evens out your skin color, a little blush adds vitality, contouring powder helps to, well, contour & shape your face. Mascara and eyeliner are important to give emphasis to your eyes. It looks a bit bare without. Lipstick is my least favorite product, I don't like product on my lips really; but it finishes the look. :)

Hey, who knows, maybe for my next make-up post, I'll include a video! Heehee.

Baby items for sale!!

2010-08-24T23:45:00.000+08:00

I have to clean out some of the things cluttering the house. So I'm having a blog sale of my baby's surplus feeding items. These are brand new, except for the three items below.

***Brand New items:

1) 2 packs Playtex natural latch nipples (2 each pack); fast/rapid flow for 3-6+ months - Php250 @

2) 2 boxes Playtex drop-ins 8oz. (expandable to 10oz) 100ct - Php500 @

3) 6 boxes Target brand drop-ins (for Playtex bottles) 8oz. 100ct - Php400 @

~~4) 6 boxes Playtex standard liners 4oz. 100ct -~~ ~~Php250 @ (these can still be used as breastmilk storage like the 8oz ones, esp if you use a sealer or clip to seal the bag)~~

**This is how I seal my breastmilk in 4oz. I've always used 4oz, mas tipid kasi. I also don't like thawing so much milk at a time.

- http://www.flickr.com/photos/amandaec/sets/72157605786985095/

5) 3 boxes Longs (the US drugstore chain) disposable standard liners 8oz. 140ct [fits Playtex, Evenflo, Gerber] - Php250 @

6) 5 boxes Playtex standard liners 8oz 140ct - Php300 @ - ONLY 1 BOX LEFT

7) 2 boxes (of 3 bottles each box) Playtex bottles [drop-in system 8-10oz] with slow flow nipples - [boy colors] - Php700 @

~~8) 1 pc. Nuby Flip-it no spill cup -~~ ~~Php150~~

9) 2 boxes Gerber seal & go breastmilk storage bags 25ct- Php200 @

10) 1 box Medela breastshield (plus valve & membrane) - Php400

11) 1 set wooden blocks - Php550 (Imaginarium 50pcs)

***Used items:

1) 2 pcs 4oz bottle/nurser holder Playtex drop-in system + nipple assembly (will not include nipples as they are used) - Php100 @

2) 3 pcs. 8oz. bottle/nurse holder + nipple assembly - Php200 @

3) 1 Set Playtex breastmilk storage set (has 1 adapter so you can use the Playtex bottle to the Medela breastpumps; and you can directly save your milk in the plastic bottle liners) USED; 1 set UNUSED but no box. Bought this in Rustan's for about 900@ - Php300 @ set

***I am also thinking of selling my Medela Freestyle pump. This is hardly used as I am a SAHM. Bought it when my baby was almost 1 year old already. So it's almost new. :) Shoot me an offer I can't resist & I might just sell it. :)

PHOTOS HERE: http://www.flickr.com/photos/amandaec/sets/72157624665088204/with/4865215079/

Please PM me if you are interested. Items are located in BF/Alabang area. Pick-up can be arranged; for others, shipping (buyer's account) through Xend. Thanks!!

Manila Ocean Park: a review

2010-08-24T23:06:00.005+08:00

We are probably one of the few families who have not yet gone to this place. LOL. But we are MOP virgins no more! We went last week because it's a long overdue promise to DK that we would go when we went to check in Sofitel (and we didn't have time, after we checked out, it would be too late to go). So finally, after about 2 months, we went.

We went on a Tuesday, left around 11ish from here and got caught in traffic inside BF Homes, and no traffic in Paranaque nor Manila. It was lunchtime already when we got there, so we decided to eat first before going in the aquarium area.

Okay, when we got in, there was a North Park (would've been happy with that), but I said they had this Singaporean type restaurant inside and we should try that. From the main entrance, we turned left and that would lead us to the restaurant. Not! It led us to this ultra-baduy wing with the Divi-type stalls. They cordoned off the path that goes straight to the escalator. No, we had to go around those stalls and other paid (read: harang) attractions (jellyfish, fake digging for bones, etc). Ugh. They also had the free-standing stalls with the magic tricks, fake perfume, etc. How can they make the place world class with that tiangge?

We finally reached the restaurant and it was sorta empty. Just a few tables were occupied. We decided to eat there because it was Singaporean, but we ended up eating Thai, Chinese, and British food. Heehee. I was surprised that what we had ordered was good. My bagoong rice & chicken pandan were quite tasty; the dimsum we got, okay din, especially the rice noodle roll with shrimp. DK had her fish & chips--a huge serving! We walked away with happy tummies. So that part was good.

Off we went to the the park itself. Tickets for adults are 450, and for kids, it's 350. Pwede na rin. I won't bore you with what we saw, as I'm sure you've seen it too. It was nice to see different kinds of fishes and other reptiles. The huge grouper scared my toddler, wasn't able to take a photo, too bad. The best part was the dome aquarium. It had all the different creatures swimming together. BUT it was so small! I have nothing to compare it with, as I've never seen any other aquarium (DH says the aquarium in Monterey, CA was the best he's seen), but I know when I see a good one. This was just okay, so-so, pwede na rin. I was disappointed a bit. After bugging DH to bring us there... Well...

One more thing, with the baduy management, I'm guessing the hotel H2O is nothing great too. I'm sure nahawaan sha ng kabaduyan, with that tiangge next to it. I'll check in at Manila Hotel any day. Hyuk. :)

Six Things You Should Clean – but Probably Don’t

2010-08-19T00:32:00.000+08:00

Read on...

Six Things You Should Clean – but Probably Don’t - DivineCaroline

So what are you guilty of?

Giant Bubbles

2010-08-18T00:14:00.002+08:00

My sister posted this on my FB wall. This is so cool!

Things I'm liking [wanting] right now.

2010-08-04T14:38:00.005+08:00

Because I mentioned to DH that it would be better for me to just ride a scooter to work--how about he teach me again to ride his Vespa. So how about a nice looking helmet to go with that retro scooter?

So pretty no?

Some cute necklaces from Anthropologie:

A laptop case:

Other items (goodness, Anthropologie is pure ♥!!):

A chesterfield couch:

Okay, that's all for now. :)

A photo everyday.

2010-08-02T00:30:00.004+08:00

I read this blog from a link posted on Twitter. The write up made me a bit sad. Well, read on.

*****

That said, I think I will do that too, take at least one photo a day. After all, one is never without a camera. A few friends are already doing it--this 365 project. It's amazing that when you look back at your photos and see what you have been doing.

Makes me want to go out & buy a polaroid or instax camera! :)

P.S. This is the photographer's website.

Favorite food finds in HK

2010-07-29T20:52:00.009+08:00

Hong Kong has been on my mind lately because I'm getting bitin with our so-called trip there. We were supposed to go for my birthday, but it didn't push through, and now, I don't know if we'll go at all. It's supposed to be our (DH & I) first trip together, alone, after having DT. Oh well, if it comes, it comes, right? It's not like we didn't go to HK early this year. LOL.

Might as well share with you my favorite places to eat in HK. As you all know, HK is a foodie paradise. There'd be one or two meals where we'd eat in fastfood (KFC or McDonald's), unforgivable, yes, but when you need a quick meal, right?

1. Din Tai Fung - This is a franchise from Taiwan and in HK, there are two branches: in Silvercord (along Canton Road) and one in Causeway. It is always full, but their seating system is great. We've never had to wait more than 15 minutes for a table (and that's a party of 16 people ha). They are popular for the xiao long bao (Shanghai dumplings with soup inside), they have different variations, but I've never tried the others, we just order (& additional order) the regular xlb. Their yang chow is also good, it has plenty of egg, which I like. Other dishes to try are the sauteed pea shoots (I'm confused, in the menu, it's also called Indian lettuce), pork chop, red mung bean buns. Service is really good, efficient and none of that prejudice (we sometimes get from other Chinese restaurants).

Pea shoots (photo from worldfoodieguide.com)

Xiao Long Bao (photo from sassyhongkong.com)

2. Crystal Jade - This is a Singaporean franchise, I believe, and in HK, they have several branches. I've been to the one in Harbour City only. Before DTF, this was my fave. (we even ate at CJ in Bangkok!). They are also popular for their xlb, also very good. Other dishes we order ar the beancurd skin rolls with veggies, sze-chuan chicken with cashews, yang chow (again! haha). What I don't like is their servers hardly know any English (well, at least the ones we get) and it's hard to get a table.

the orange colored food there is the spicy chicken, yellow--the yangchow...

3. Guangdong Barbecue Restaurant - This is a restaurant that serves roasted/barbecued food. I think there are two outlets, both in the Kowloon area. We went to the branch along Hankow Road, very near Canton Road & Kowloon Park. We ordered their crispy roasted pork. It is TDF. The skin is very crispy and the meat flavorful. The only downside is, again, the server hardly spoke English, despite their sign that says they welcome foreigners. Yeah, they welcome foreigners who can speak Chinese. Hahaha. At least the menu had photos, so we could order. But we weren't able to order plain rice (what DH wanted). Oh well. It is always full and the seating is horrible. We had dinner at almost 9pm and yet we had to wait more than 15 minutes for a table. If I had to score them, 10 points for taste, 1 point for ambience. LOL.

(photos from ahkingfoodtalk)

4. Eggettes - I heard you can find this everywhere HK, but the only one I saw was a stall near a Santa Barbara Polo store, the police station--all near Miramar Arcade along Nathan Road. We chanced upon this while we were walking from Temple Street one drizzly afternoon. There were a lot of people lined up. So we got curious and my dad ordered a waffle with some sort of condensed milk at first. It was warm, sweet, and slightly crunchy. Really good, but the people were not walking away with this waffle. They had those egg tray looking waffles. So my mom ordered and it took some time before we got our order, like 5-10 minutes. It came wrapped in paper and it was sweetish like the waffle, but crunchier. The "eggs" were sort of hollow inside, hence the crunchiness.

**there's an outlet in Alabang Town Center that sells mini-eggettes. Pwede na rin. Only 30 bucks.

the waffles with condensed milk (?)

compare the tiny local eggettes to the one from HK

******

I have yet to go to that wonderful noodle place in Wellington Street, just never had the time. I've had it on our itinerary, but we never went. My dad went there 3 or 4 times and it was really good. Anthony Bourdain thinks so too. ;) The place is called Mak's noodles.

Other places to go to are Yung kee--but I'm not a fan of roast goose, so I don't think we should bother--I don't know. :) When you go to HK, there's no time to go to all the places you want to! Maybe we should stay a week! LOL.

Definitely there are lots of other places to go to eat. What are your recommendations?

Another proud wifey moment!

2010-07-24T23:13:00.005+08:00

This time, DH joined an online lottery to have your name put in Alberto Contador's (2-time Tour de France winner) bike (an SL-3 Specialized bike). His name is one of 250 names chosen. :) he was absolutely tickled pink by this. Teka, kinilig lang pala. LOL.

FitFlop Shine! Event

2010-07-24T20:33:00.002+08:00

Maay was a schoolmate when I took up nursing. We're not particularly close but we kept in touch through Facebook (but of course! hahaha.). One time I needed models for my artistic make-up class finals, she happily volunteered.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago, she was chosen in a Facebook contest to be one of 6 Fitflop fans to be the ambassadresses of Fitflop for its "Shine" promotion. She contacted me to do her make-up (for her, it was gratis) and two of her friends. :)

I don't know how to do hair, but I do know how to direct. Hahaha. So I brought along one of the girls from the parlor to execute the hairstyles. I really must enroll in a hairstyling class one of these days...

Maay & her smart little boy

Maay, Rhea (this pre-school or is it SPED teacher owns 30 pairs of FFs!), & Jo-anne

Hubby on MultiSport

2010-07-23T18:52:00.004+08:00

Forgot to blog about this. Proud wifey moment lang. :)

He's part of an executive cycling team (non-professional teams that compete on a regular basis), the Yellow Cab-Cycling Zone team; and they were featured in the May 2010 issue. Was too lazy to scan, so I just took photos. Was very happy to see he was chosen to be on the cover as well. :)

Eyebrows & eyebrow pencils

2010-07-13T22:16:00.002+08:00

Eyebrows make or break the person's make-up or face. They frame your eyes so it us important that the shape of your brows are nice. If you don't know how to shape your eyebrows, then have them PROFESSIONALLY threaded, waxed, plucked or shaved. Then when it grows back a bit, then you can DIY at home. If ever it grows unruly again, go to the salon again. :) If it's too sparse, then spend a little time to fill them in before you leave the house. You can use eyebrow powder, pencil or even eyeshadow to fill them in.

*******

I never used to use a pencil to fill in my brows, I just used eyebrow powder (in2it brand). I was perfectly fine using it and on my make-up models/clients, until I saw it being used by Sam & Nic Chapman, sibling vloggers on YouTube (username: pixiwoo); and by their former student (and soon to be SIL perhaps), Tanya Burr (pixi2woo). They all have thin/sparse eyebrows but they make it look natural with the eyebrow pencil. [I love the Chapman sisters. They are pro make up artists and are really good in what they do.]

I bought one during a trip to HK from the MAC store--the non sharpening one, the shade is lingering. I LOVE IT! It's a very light brown, almost a dark blonde actually. It fills in and shades my brows in a very nice shade of ashy brown. However, I am a cheapskate and since I use the pencil almost everyday, I run out after a couple of months. I am wondering now if there is a good dupe of this Lingering pencil... Perhaps I'll go check out maybelline or something. :)

10/4/10 Edit: I found a dupe for the pencil. L'Oreal has one, same shade and texture. Still expensive at Php695, but once my Lingering runs out, I'm getting this. I also saw a pencil in The Face Shop, but I have to compare the MAC one to their sample first. It's cheaper at a mere Php225. :)

Goodbye!

2010-07-11T22:36:00.001+08:00

P1060441
Originally uploaded by MandyEC

Today I bid goodbye to my trusty PowerBook. It was given to me by my (then) boyfriend (now DH) five years ago. It's been with me through thick & thin--thesis, slideshows, review notes, wedding planning, photobooks and so much more. It never broke down on me (well, except the broken letter 'V' which was replaced for free at Ynzal) and it was such a reliable machine that I've never brought it to an authorized Apple center for any software/hardware issues.

Since it has gotten old & a bit slow, and a replacement took over, it's been forgotten and hardly used. I'd use it only for Photoshop or when I'm desperate to use the Internet when DH is using the other laptop. Soinstead of it gathering dust, we decided to sell it, hoping someone can get more use out of it. So today, it was sold to someone who collects old PBs--someone who appreciates this tiny machine and will take care of it. Goodbye!

P.S. I'm being so overly dramatic! But really, I'll miss it though. One things for sure, Apple computers are well worth the price. No headaches over viruses (viri?) or what. :)

Elevator Etiquette 101: Mind your elevator manners

2010-07-11T11:19:00.004+08:00

I just came from church & my experience this morning at the elevator prompted me to write this. We were going in and the elevator was open & yet no one bothered to press the open button for anyone. There was someone who pressed the '4' & '5' but there was one (non)superman who was feebly holding one side of the door. of course, it slammed on me before I got to reach the open button. Uh, thanks folks!

One of my pet peeves are people who don't know how to behave inside an elevator. Here are some things one must know:

When getting in the elevator, make sure that you let the person/people who want to get out first. Don't barge in when there are still people coming out. Learn to wait for your turn.
When you get inside, if you can, press the button to your floor of choice. If not, perhaps the person near it can press it for you. Don't forget to say thank you.
If ever you choose or are forced by circumstance to stand by the elevator buttons, do press the <--OPEN--> button for those who are going out or in so that the elevator door will not slam on them. Holding the door will not do unless you are Superman or The Incredible Hulk and can forcefully keep the door open for an indefinite time. Pressing the button will suffice for ordinary human beings like us.
I think this should be number 1: give priority to people on wheelchairs or strollers, or the handicapped. Again, don't force yourself inside or going out and not giving them any chance to leave/enter the elevator. This rule goes for both able-bodied men & women. If you see someone in need of assistance, then pressing the open button for them is a small kindness.
If the elevator is already full, don't go in, just wait for the next one. It's not fun being squished next to a person you don't know. If it's not full, do leave some space in between other people. This is called personal space. Same goes for deep breaths, don't do this in enclosed spaces; I don't have to explain why.
Don't be so noisy inside the elevator. The person next to you does not want to hear about your problems with your boss. You can talk in a low voice or keep the stories for after the elevator ride. Or when talking on your mobile phone--keep the voice low (I guess this rule goes for anytime, anywhere).

How about you, readers, do you have any suggestions to add? :)

Lan Zhou La Mian

2010-07-08T18:58:00.002+08:00

This is my second time to eat here but I think I haven't blogged about this place yet. DH's friend told is about it and it's really worth the trip to Binondo.

They serve hand pulled noodles & dumplings. We ordered the beef la mian. It's braised beef with noodles in this beef broth. I haven't tried the other noodle dishes yet because this is what we had the last time and it was really good. It's their best seller, I believe. We also ordered some fried dumplings on the side (it's filled with kuchay, garlic & pork) and then you dip it in ginger/vinegar. The best thing about eating here is the price. A bowl of beef la mian is only Php90, while the dumplings are Php130 for about a dozen dumplings.

Here's an old photo:

Too bad they've disallowed bringing in food from other restos, as Wai Ying is just beside it and have excellent dimsum. But it's no biggie, as the noodles are more than enough for me. :)

Lan Zhou La Mian
Benvidez Street Binondo (beside Wai Ying & that fried siopao place)

Take a peek at their closet

2010-07-02T23:30:00.003+08:00

Bluefly.com has a series of celebrities and their closets. One of them is Johnny Weir, a US figure skating star. He has a Balenciaga tree! Check it out here. You can also see the closets of Nicky Hilton, Roxy Olin, and Mindy Yamamoto (uh who are they, really? hahaha. all I know is the Hilton sister.).

Edit: Oh-kay, so Mindy's the Bluefly's retail manager, Roxy's an actress & an actress's daughter, Johnny, as I've mentioned is a figure skater, 3-time National champ (wow.).

More Boracay photos

2010-06-29T12:01:00.005+08:00

on the speedboat to go to the resort

Hello Shangri-la!

the port

pics of the bathroom. I loved it! The toiletries provided are from L'Occitane.

our room

the balcony area. loved reading here.

not so fine white sand beach, but clean, non-smelly water.

the saltwater pool

the lobby area

entrance to Vintana (all-day buffet restaurant)

DT loved to walk barefoot in the beach

after dinner at Sirena, one of Shangri-la's restos (food was great!)

hanging out by the garden near the pool

byuti-pool! lol.

Boracay Trip

2010-06-29T11:23:00.001+08:00

My family and I went to Boracay last May for our summer (albeit late) vacation. We were quite lucky that last March, Shangri-la Hotels had a weekend sale at the Alabang Town Center (they also had one in Shangri-la Plaza last year) for package, room, and food vouchers for their hotels. Since we haven't had any summer vacation planned by then, we decided to get their Boracay package. We also included some food vouchers which were also discounted.

So off we went to Boracay on a sunny Tuesday. It was just the four of us (DH, DK, and DT). I booked us a flight to Caticlan via Cebu Pacific so that we don't have to travel from Kalibo to Caticlan (additional hassle).

Travelling can be stressful, especially when you have kids. Well, stress on me. I think the hubby never gets stressed out. The afternoon the day before we left, I'd already started packing for us. Two days before, I bought us our snacks & other beach things. So the night before, most of the things we need were all laid out in the bags, all ready for DH to fix/finalize the packing. I am quite good at bringing/thinking of stuff to bring, but I have very poor packing skills. :)

We arrived at the Caticlan airport at around 10am. I was telling DK that when I went to Boracay via Caticlan, it was in 1997/8 (?), the airport was just a little bahay kubo. Really. Now it is a little building. There's not conveyor belt for the luggage, just a rectangular table where they dump the maleta. Hahaha. There's even this desk up front that all passengers must go to and "register". Fortunately for us, we didn't have to lift a finger. Lucky for me, because I was going to be yaya for 4 days.

A guy from Shangri-la was there waiting for us, got our luggage stubs and whisked us to the hotel van (a Nissan Serena, not so new looking, a bit worn). When we they got our bags, we were driven to their waiting lounge at the port area. Gah, as soon as we stepped outside the van, I immediately smelled the odor (not so pleasant, I tell you. Not pine tree smells from the car nor even basura, more like dirty bathroom smell). Is that the way to greet the tourists? Mind you, it was not the hotel's fault, it's the tambays, drivers, or vendors who left that smell, I believe.

Getting inside the waiting lounge was a comfort. It was cool inside, there was juice and cookies for us. After a few minutes, our boat had arrived and we were brought to the port to get on the speedboat.

We passed by Stations 1, 2, and 3, and went around the side of the island. We saw Manny Pacquiao's fugly resort and a lot of other new developments. I was quite saddened to see sooooo many new buildings. Parang Boracay is going to sink from all the people. :(

When we arrived at Shangri-la's port, several golf carts were already waiting for us to bring us to the hotel lobby. Pansin ko, super kaskasero driver in Boracay, Shang is not an exception. We got to the lobby in one piece and checking in was super duper fast, our room was already prepared for us.

Coming in from a morning flight, we decided to just stay in for lunch and order room service. Then had a quick afternoon nap before going to the beach and pool to swim.

That evening we took the hotel shuttle and went out to have dinner at the main beach. We got dropped off at the back of D'Mall and we had dinner at this barbecue place. I forgot the name, but it was near the ~~chubibo~~ ferriswheel & FIC. The inasal was so good.

The following morning, it rained. Hard. But the rain stopped eventually around 8 or 9am and then we headed off to have breakfast at Vintana. Boy, was it good! The buffet was not like Spirals, but the choices were good. There were Filipino food, omelet station, dessert/pastries, fresh juices, homemade yogurt, etc.

So the rest of the day was play time at Adventure Zone & the game room, then swimming. The following days were like that too. On our last full day, we went to the White Beach so we could swim. We went in the afternoon after our naps. The clouds looked ominous, but thankfully it didn't rain.

We walked along the beach, but because we didn't stay in any of the resorts there, there were really no seats/loungers for us to stay in. :( So we sat/hung out in Hey Jude. DH & I shared a beer, DK had a mango shake. The waiter was friendly and didn't make us taboy when we sat there at first. He just handed the menu in a courteous manner and left. Later he made chika that Hey Jude's lease was about to end and it was closing! Sad.

We played in the beach for a while. DT wanted to borrow a skim board from one the rentals there. He called it "trisikol". hahaha.

I noticed that the water was full of green algae (?)/ moss (?) and it smelled funky too. I hope the local government will do something about the sanitation there. If not, then Boracay will become really polluted (don't forget that E. coli issue years back!).

When the sun went down, we had dinner at Hawaiian BBQ (excellent ribs!) & did what other vacationers do at Boracay.

On our last day, we just chilled and stayed in the hotel. Our flight was at 4pm so we checked out 2 hours before. Again, we were assisted by the staff. When we got to the airport, they took care of everything. They just handed us our boarding passes & handcarry. Then off to wait for our flight. Looking back, as I was telling DH, I think we should've stayed an hour longer in the hotel as the boat ride + check in didn't even take us an hour! Teehee.

I'd love to go back to Shangri-la. The service was excellent, the food was good, in-room dining was also good (and the servings huge!), their assistance post-arrival & pre-departure was flawless (naks!). Highly recommended resort. :)

Bags

2010-06-29T00:17:00.008+08:00

I realized that I haven't been posting anything about bags lately. Compared to when I started blogging, I was doing quite a few posts on bags that I like. Heehee. Well, looking back, I was liking Louis Vuitton. Then again, Louis Vuitton is Louis Vuitton, never goes out of style, and never goes on sale! lol.

Nowadays, LV is not on my radar. Come to think of it, it hasn't caught my fancy since last year. There's only been one bag brand that I'm really loving, and it's Balenciaga. How can you not love it? It's a leather handbag with studs. It makes it look so edgy/rock and roll! Not at all girly, which I am not. :)

Now look at these pictures, aren't Bals so pretty? Now being a member of this forum is no help at all. Reading the posts makes you want to buy the bags too!

from Imnotobssessed

from SammyDoll

Pag brown out, be resourceful

2010-06-28T21:07:00.001+08:00

Pag brown out, be resourceful, originally uploaded by MandyEC.

Blush Magazine

2010-06-28T20:49:00.005+08:00

Picked up this mag at Powerbooks this afternoon & took a chance. There was no open copy so I couldn't see if it was any good or what. I wasn't familiar with the publisher either. So I was quite happy to see the contents. It's been a nice read so far. The mag's about beauty: cosmetics, trends, etc. A bit like Allure magazine I guess. It's only Php140!

Marshmallow test

2010-06-25T22:37:00.000+08:00

Kids are so darned cute! We all know what happens to the kids who eat the marshmallow right away and those who patiently wait for the second marshmallow... :)

Vintage Printable Labels

2010-06-24T00:10:00.000+08:00

Vintage Printable Labels

Look at these printable labels! Aren't they so pretty? What's even better is, you can make it yourself! Thanks to iDIY for sharing this. :)

Birthday presents

2010-06-23T23:38:00.003+08:00

The other night I was up so late buying a couple of presents for DH for his birthday in July. You see, I am always late in ordering his gift. By the time I know what to give him, it's too late to order it online (yup, online, it's hard to think of what to give him really. Mall shopping for gifts for him is too generic for me, that's always my last resort). Once I ordered a Father's day gift for him, I did order it two weeks early (if only I'd known about B&Q online), but the seller flubbed my order, then USPS takes forever to get our shores. So to cut the story short, I received the package 2 months later!

Anyway, this time I am early!! My gift "lightbulb" lit early, so I knew what to give him. So at around 2am, I did some back-to-back-to-back online shopping; I was hoping I could use B&Q vouchers for those, but he is an avid cyclist, anything cycling it must be. :) I got two presents for him: one from Amazon.com (easy, right?!), but the other one (more expensive one, huhuhu), I had to order from the United Kingdom. Still, I was not able to use any B&Q discount codes because it's still a cycling accessory. Perhaps next time, as he is quite the handyman anyway.

Since I totally don't trust our local post, the UK package will be sent to Queens, NY to a forwarder, same with the Amazon gift, and a little something for me too. Heehee. I can't wait to receive them all. Hopefully soon, maybe a week or two from now. But I'm definitely sure that this year, I can give the hubby his birthday present on time and he will really love it.

As for my birthday present, DH almost always goes to buy my gift (be it birthday or Christmas), the day before. This time though, I had to order it myself. I love, love, love surprises though, so buying my gift was not much of a surprise. The waiting game though, is really agonizing. I can't wait to receive my package (I hope the tax won't kill me!). At least, though, my gift will arrive earlier than his gift.

My birthday week

2010-06-23T23:07:00.001+08:00

I turned 35 about a week ago. Five years from now, I will be 40! Five years from now, DK will be 16 & DT will be 7. Ahh. I'm really feeling it! Time flies so fast, no?

Day 1 & 2

We kicked off my birthday celebration by staying overnight at Sofitel. Yup, again. We love that hotel for get-aways not leaving Manila. We used our free room voucher from the membership card we got. When I booked us online, there were options to upgrade our ~~ordinary~~ deluxe room to a better/nicer room. But I didn't, the upgrade will cost me some $100++. I just kept my fingers crossed that when we check in, the upgrade will be cheaper there. And it was! we added Php3700 only to get ourselves a room in the Club floor. That means free breakfast, high tea, evening hors d'ouvres, free flowing drinks till 10pm, some internet time & a 4pm check-out.

We just stayed in the hotel, we didn't drive out for meals. We partook of the evening cocktails, dyahe lang to get a lot talaga because there were not too many people. Mga afam lang who were just drinking beer. Eh kami, we were really eating (early dinner eh!), having coke, champagne & juice pa. It was a lot of fun not doing anything with the hubby and kids. Around 10pm, we were hungry so we got room service. Yum. We ate, watched the world cup, cartoons, etc.

We slept in the next day, had late breakfast at Spirals then we went for a swim. Napped after that & then headed out for high tea. Yummy treats again. Then we checked out. We were supposed to go to Manila Ocean Park, but it was too late. Sorry kiddos.

Day 3

Mom treated us to lunch in Antonio's in Tagaytay. Thanks, Mom! As usual, Antonio's always delivers. It was DT's first time there as we never bring him because we are always too busy eating. Hahaha. This time, of course, because it was my birthday lunch, we brought him along. Good thing we had the enclosed dining room to ourselves so DT was free to roam (he's a good boy--never touches anything that is not his, nor break anything) and play on the floor. For good measure, I brought a few of his toys. Unfortunately, he doesn't have his sister's adventurous tongue--he didn't want to try our food. Adventurous ate had tenderloin cooked medium rare. Yes, she loves it bloody.

Day 4

My birthday itself. I was telling DK the day before that I didn't know what to do anymore on my birthday itself because I've done all the things I love the days before. :) We had a quiet day, DH and I. We had lunch at Phoenix Court in The Bellevue (their newest Chinese resto). Then we drove all the way to Makati to look for the hubby's present for me. :) I went home empty-handed though because I didn't like the stock they had at the store. Will take care of that via online "research".

Turning mid-30s was not so bad. I don't feel my age yet and hopefully, I don't look my age yet. At least this year, I didn't get sick, unlike last year; that my Antonio's lunch was foiled and ended up having lunch in a nearby mall so we can get home asap. Teehee.

I thank the Lord for another year, for His blessings he showered on me and my family, for good (sorta) health, for my husband and my beautiful kids. I cannot ask for more.

Sledgehammer workout

2010-06-21T00:18:00.005+08:00

I saw this in another blog and it's just so durn funny and ridiculous!

Ok folks, why don't you just work as a laborer & get paid pa? Hehehe. As for me, I will just stick to ~~running or cycling~~ thinking about exercise (look at my hubby oh, payat)...

Father's day

2010-06-20T23:21:00.002+08:00

We started the day by leaving a gift by the daddy's bedside. So even if I was still dead to the world, DH would have his present already. I heard him ripping the bag (fell asleep again after). DH woke me up again so we can attend the service together.

After the service, we met up with the grandparents & kiddies at the mall to have lunch at Amici. True enough, it was only about 11:30am, the parking was almost full, Amici was getting full. We were able to get a table right away but the pizza took forever!! All on all, it was all good. The food's good after all!

We were supposed to eat at Phoenix Court for their dimsum all you can eat. But it being Father's day (overly commercialized na talaga ha!!), we couldn't get a booking for lunch nor dinner. Boo.

After our long lunch, we parted ways. DT fell asleep while we were eating, so I was carrying him. Bigat!! DK decided to stay with Papi (Lolo) & make pasyal in True Value (yup, she loves to browse around that place). We on the other hand, did some shopping at Fino (love it when they're on sale! My chance to purchase cute leather accessories!), window shopping; when DT awoke, we had ice cream at FIC.

Then soonafter, we went home for some late siesta. Ahh. Fathers are now remembered & appreciated as much as mothers now. Thanks to many a restaurant promotions. Papi got a free glass of wine, btw. None for the hubby; maybe they thought we were all siblings (me, DH & kiddies)?! Hahaha.

Sent from my iPhone

Family planning

2010-06-18T00:23:00.006+08:00

Disclaimer: This post is based on my opinion, if you are offended then don't read it. If you are part of any fundamentalist religious group (that's against artificial contraceptives), don't read this. I advocate only family planning, not abortion. Thank you & keep on reading if you want.

I was originally going to send this as a reply to an e-group member's post on being responsible on your reproductive health, but I chickened out thinking it really might offend some people because there was a recent discussion on "(how soon) can one get pregnant after having a baby". I have edited my reply a bit because this is, after all, my blog; and I can say whatever I want.

There were several considerations I have observed among the people I have encountered--one is that even among educated families, they are still not pro-active in family planning; religion is not their basis for non-planning or non-use of contraceptives; and lastly, there are a lot of superstitious/unfounded beliefs about artificial contraceptives.

I have to agree with ____ here. We really should be responsible in family planning. It's part of planning for your future. Diba we plan our expenses, buying a car or a house, plan our vacations, so shouldn't we plan our families & how many kids we want/should have?

Parang advocacy ko to, hehe. It was even my thesis in my second course sa college. We had interviewed women in a barangay (depressed area) about family planning & we held a mother's class (it's like a teaching class). Then I remember my neighbor before, who had 4 kids sunod sunod. She said to me, para kaming high school ni mister pag iniintay nya dumating ang period nya, if dadating ba or hindi. I remembered thinking, no way I'm going to be like that. When we want to have a baby, gusto ko yung pinagplanuhan namin & ready kami.

My husband & I are not planning to have any more kids. (Pero kung manalo sa lotto, go!) So we discussed our options, do we go permanent (vasectomy or ligation) or the other artificial methods. Marami naman options available (pills, IUD, condoms, injectables, patch, norplant, etc.). Take note, I didn't include the withdrawal method, this is not considered as contraception at all. NOT AT ALL.

The first time we had contact after giving birth, some 2 months after I believe, we started to use contraceptives already. I've heard of countless stories of the failure of the Lactation Amenorrhea Method. There are conditions you have to fulfill in order to be successful with this method. So sa una palang, we used our choice of contraceptives na talaga. Para wala na kami iisipin na naku, safe ba, mabubuntis kaya ako?

This is also important for newlyweds, for some, they are eager to have babies right away. For some, they want to recover from the gastos. We attended this couples retreat and part of our group was a couple who had an unplanned baby right away, pero they weren't ready. Naging bone of contention pa ito sa kanila. Both of them (the husband especially), felt that they still had to recover from their expenses plus the fact that they didn't enjoy each other for a longer period of time. If only they planned for it, then they would've started off at a better footing, not fighting about money (which is so tacky). Then at the couples retreat, they would've been like us, happy, loving & still in the honeymoon phase. Hahaha.

Every now and then (because we have not totally shut our doors on having another baby & we've not gone whole hog & gotten myself a ligation), we discuss our options on what contraceptive to use (pills ba [no I don't want to gain weight], IUD [scared of a lot of bleeding]-- so we stuck to our method that we both agree on & works for us) do we still want one more child, why we don't want one more child, etc. etc. [Please excuse the way I write, so many side comments on my own commentary, hahaha.]

Family Planning sites that can be useful:

Family Planning
Planned Parenthood
Family Planning Organization of the Philippines (FPOP)

Daft Hands

2010-06-03T00:45:00.004+08:00

Dunno if you've seen this video before but I just saw this a while ago. It's amazing! Great hand work there, Hand. :)

50 Random Questions

2010-06-01T23:30:00.005+08:00

Received this tag from Chris, many thanks to my sister in Christ! :) Now passing this to Gracie, Joanne, Leslie, and Jean.

1. What time did you get up this morning?

7:20 am

2. How do you like your steak?

Medium rare or Medium

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?

Panday.

4. What is your favorite TV show?

I hardly watch TV series, but I do enjoy CSI or Martha Stewart when I catch them on TV.

5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?

I dream of living in Italy.

6. What did you have for breakfast?

Jollibee sausage pandesal. So good!

7. What is your favorite cuisine?

Dami!! Japanese, Chinese, Italian. (parang slum book ang sagot!)

8. What foods do you dislike?

slimy, weird textured food.

9. Favorite place to eat?

Cibo, Omakase, McDonald's.

10. Favorite dressing?

Caesar.

11. What kind of vehicle do you drive?

Innova.

12. What are your favorite clothes?

Right now, shorts. When it's not too hot, I love wearing my skinny jeans or leggings.

13. Where would you visit if you had the chance?

Japan, England, Spain.

14. Cup 1/2 empty or 1/2 full?

Half full!!

15. Where would you want to retire?

Here--maybe somewhere cooler (like Tagaytay).

16. Favorite time of day?

Night time, when everyone's asleep. :)

17. Where were you born?

Cebu City.

18. What is your favorite sport to watch?

Cycling (because I watch it with the hubby).

19. Who do you think will not tag you back?

No idea.

20. Person you expect to tag you back first?

Dunno.

21. Who are you most curious about their responses to this?

Everyone I tag!

22. Birdwatcher?

Nope.

23. Are you a morning person or a night person?

Night person.

24. Do you have any pets?

2 long coated chihuahuas.

25. Any new and exciting news you’d like to share?

none. ;)

26. What did you want to be when you were little?

A teacher.

27. What is your best childhood memory?

Playing with my sister & the one summer I spent entirely at my cousin's house in Batangas when I was about to be in 3rd grade.

28. Are you a cat or dog person?

Dog person. I hate cats.

29. Are you married?

Yes.

30. Always wear your seat belt?

Almost always.

31. Been in a car accident?

Yes, some taxicab driver scraped my bumper.

32. Any pet peeves?

Inconsiderate people. People who don't know how to line up. Petty, I know it shouldn't really bother me. :D

33. Favorite Pizza Toppings?

Mushrooms, bacon. :)

34. Favorite Flower?

Roses, lilies.

35. Favorite ice cream?

Vanilla, caramello (FIC).

36. Favorite fast food restaurant?

McDonald's!! Burger King!!

37. How many times did you fail your driver’s test?

Never.

38. From whom did you get your last email?

General Manager of the hotel we stayed in Boracay. :)

39. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?

Balenciaga! Heehee.

40. Done anything spontaneous lately?

No, not really.

41. Like your job?

Yes-- I love being a mom & wife.

42. Broccoli?

Yes.

43. What was your favorite vacation?

Ever? I'd say it was our honeymoon then next would be our Boracay trip last week.

44. Last person you went out to dinner with?

My darling husband.

45. What are you listening to right now?

The aircon's fan.

46. What is your favorite color?

Gray.

47. How many tattoos do you have?

Three.

48. How many are you tagging for this quiz?

Four

49. What time did you finish this quiz?

11:51 pm

50. Coffee drinker?

Occasionally.

US Visa Application

2010-05-19T20:02:00.002+08:00

DH's US visa will be expiring early next month. As of now, we are about to prepare whatever documents needed to prove his ties here. I am quite sure that he is nervous about this (even if he says he's not) because he's never had to face a consul yet. 10 years ago, when he renewed his visa, it was by drop box.

In my case, my 2nd visa expired in 2003 and they had already removed the drop box renewal option (after 9/11), hence my two-time application denial experience. (My third try, I was so nervous, my hands were shaking doing the fingerprint scan! I did share my experience here. This was in 2007.) Besides my pleasing personality (koff koff), I have to attribute my success to the great Aling Flor (ahh, I forgot the name of the travel agency in United Nations Ave. in Manila), she arranged my documents & wrote our assets at the back of the application form. Probably saved the consul time & effort to check on my "ties". Although I think it all depends on the consul's outlook/impression of you & what is written on the application forms.

I am deviating from my husband's visa... So anyway, I have found out a few things have changed since my application 3 years ago.

Fee: from $100 to $131 to be paid to Citibank or BDO (no more BPI--why?)
No more paper application forms (starting soon, end of May I think), just fill out the information online. Your photo is to be uploaded online too.
The United States' state (hehehe) of economy has been really bad--since last year, they've been quite lenient in giving out visas (chismis).

Here's more information about their new online application form.

Step by step procedure to applying for a non-immigrant visa.

Two ways to schedule an appointment:

through phone: 1-909-101-7878 or
by VisaPoint

Phone cases

2010-05-18T22:13:00.006+08:00

Because I have replaced my 2 year old phone with a new one, I've been on the look out for a new case to house my new gadget. Before even using it, I had my phone wrapped at Invisible Shield in Alabang Town Center (a stall in between CMG & Kashieca). A bit pricey, but it totally wraps your phone with this space age stretchy, rubbery, plastic wrap. The thing is, there are parts of course, that cannot be wrapped. So the edges of the wrap have some himulmol already because one time I stuffed the phone in my jeans' back pocket. Hehe. Basically, this invisible shield is more of a protection against scratches on the shiny, plastic parts of the phone. :)

So now I need to buy a case to cover the edges too. Because, next to my DH, I am runner-up to dropping my phone. A rubber or plastic case is in order. I've searched Mac resellers in Alabang and Makati, but I haven't seen a case I liked (nor the picky DH liked). Then I saw this site--Uncommon. They have cases designed by artists, and they look so cool! Not only that, you can customize your case too! I love it! Now I want 2 cases! One customized & one pre-made.

Other designs I like:

Not available as a pre-made case:

Pre-made:

They ship internationally although I am thinking of having it shipped to my SIL. :)

Edit: Tsk, tsk. Tried putting my phone in a similarly designed case & it won't fit. I have to decide if I will keep my invis. shield or remove it so I can use one of these cute cases... Boo.

Not blogging enough

2010-05-13T00:54:00.003+08:00

Mind you, I'm on my laptop everyday, surfing, FBing, checking my email, looking for the bag that I want (hahaha), etc. etc. But I don't know, I just can't seem to type out what else has been happening to me.

Several random thoughts:

I want to go where there is a Din Tai Fung. I want to eat xiao long bao, sauteed pea shoots, fried rice, pork chop. Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Shanghai, Japan, US... Their food is really, really good. Better than Crystal Jade, imo. (I just took a peek at their website--I can't believe there are actually FOUR branches of DTF in Indonesia. Please open here. PLEASE!)
Can't wait for our Boracay vacation with the kids. 12 more days before our departure. Does anyone know if Caticlan is open already? I don't want to land in Kalibo & travel to Caticlan. We (me & DK) are super excited for the place we will be staying in. :)
We are moving to a different direction, DH & I (well, more like DH) as he ends his career at the end of June. I wonder what the Lord has in store for us.
Moving to a province and living a simpler (cleaner) life looks appealing to us right now--what's a nice (near a city, still) place to "migrate" to. I was thinking Tagaytay (so it's just an hour away from Alabang, hahaha) but DH is thinking in terms of Cebu or even farther. It's a big step, huh? Another thing to consider is what business we can start there.

Ahh, so many things on my mind... Will update you again soon. :)

Gibo is my president: Account of my voting experience

2010-05-10T21:09:00.002+08:00

Voted this afternoon. Arrived at the Muntinlupa Elementary School at 1ish and looked for our room/cluster. We got our numbers: 728 & 729, and they were only calling 400-something. Oooh boy, we're in for a long wait.

[Side story: it's my 1st time to vote in my DH's district. I used to vote in the District 2 (San Beda Alabang) and last year, we transferred my registration to my husband's district. He doesn't have the same precinct as his family. Thank goodness, I was put in the same precinct as DH's.]

Four hours later, an almost dead battery, a new high score for Bejewelled, one Chowking halo-halo, we got inside the classroom. We showed our stubs & signed the precinct list (separate male & female list!); I think this was some kind of "attendance sheet" only. Then a few minutes later, we were given our ballots. We signed & thumbprinted the official list, got my prepared baby wipe to clean my thumb, further wiped my hands on my small handtowel, and blew on my hands to make sure my hands were dry & super clean.

Then I got my folder with the ballot, sat down & took a deep breath. Pota! Ang taba pala ng tip ng Smartmatic pentel pen!! Next time they should use a finer tip felt pen. I could barely see the oval, much less trace & shade it with that fat pentel pen. Gah!

I was so nervous shading the ovals, making sure I didn't make a lot of lampas. After shading & checking my kodigo, I covered my ballot with the folder. Ate PCOS machine person got the pentel pen before I had a chance to make it nenok. Hahaha. Then I fed the ballot in the PCOS machine; I'm glad that it was successful on my first try. Waited for "CONGRATULATIONS" and then got my indelible. Ate ruined my manicured finger, but it's oki. :)

As I write this, the person I didn't vote for president & vp are not winning. I'm really sad, I had such high hopes for our country. I felt that Gibo would've made changes to be able to facilitate long term progress for our country. I am very thankful, though, for the success of our first automated elections. Some machines may have broken down, some provinces have had some trouble, but over-all, it wasn't the failure I was imagining. Hopefully in the next elections (October 25, 2010 - barangay), the process will become easier for the teachers, BEI, COMELEC, and voters.

Handsome Men's Club (Jimmy Kimmel)

2010-04-13T00:49:00.006+08:00

I posted this link over at Facebook, but I thought I'd post it here too, to share with you. This short skit is a riot!!!

Smokey Robinson & Ding-dong

2010-04-13T00:33:00.003+08:00

Over at dinner this evening with the family at Rack's, I heard Smokey Robinson's song, "Just To See Her". I love that song. Smokey has such a wonderful voice. But you'll never guess why I love that song and when I first heard it.

I was in 6th Grade in CSA Makati and there was a Close-Up (toothpaste) campus tour (ahehe, uso pa ba 'to ngayon?) together with Ms. Dawn Zulueta. They were both just rising stars at that time (1987 or '88 I think). Of course, my classmates and I all watched. We were all so kilig with Ding-Dong! Hahaha. He sang that song and we were all shouting & screaming for Ding-Dong (pinagtitilian!!). And now, yipes, I can't believe we had a crush on him for that moment he performed for giggly gradeschool students (we weren't even teenagers yet at that time!).

Urban Decay Alice in Wonderland Book of Shadows

2010-03-28T00:25:00.004+08:00

When someone posted an ad selling this palette, I quickly grabbed the chance to get myself one of these. I'm quite late into the hype but I was too cheap to pre-order nor buy early on. Even up to now, some sell for twice the price of this palette on Ebay. I was lucky for the very good price I got it for.

I'm loving all the colors! It's my first time to have Urban Decay anything and now I really believe what they say about the eyeshadows. They are very pigmented and easy to blend. This is going to be my favorite palette for now.

I quickly used it as we went to DH's goddaughter's debut with a Rock & Roll theme. I used White Rabbit, Queen, and Jabberwocky. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to take a photo of myself as the hubby was hurrying me up. :)

See how excited they are...

2010-03-28T00:22:00.001+08:00

Amici finally in Alabang?

2010-03-17T01:01:00.002+08:00

I was in ATC (that's Alabang Town Center for you non-Southerners!) the other day & noticed that the Jollibee outlet (supposedly owned by Mr. Aga Muhlach) near the activity center has already closed and it was boarded up. I saw a name painted on it: "Amici". Could it be? I hope so! It's only my favorite pizza place ever! Cara Mia please come next. I love your Brazo!

Bobbi Brown's Make-up Manual

2010-03-13T01:56:00.002+08:00

Finally, I got myself a copy of this book. Thank goodness I read in GirlTalk that it is cheaper to buy it in National Bookstore (Php1235 ??) than Powerbooks (Php1615 ??). Imagine--a difference of 400 pesos!

I haven't read it page by page, but I've browsed the pages. It's true what they wrote in the reviews in Amazon.com, it really is a book to buy if you love make-up and it doesn't matter if you are a beginner or a pro. It's such a useful book. Of course, if you are in the caliber of Bobbi Brown herself, you will not need this book. Hahaha.

Last week, I also bought a Kevin Aucoin book. That's another post altogether. Aucoin is a make-up genius. No comes close to him. GENIUS I say.

Hotel bookings

2010-03-13T01:49:00.002+08:00

So sad, I wasn't able to make a reservation with Sofitel using our complimentary voucher for DK's 11th birthday. She was so looking forward to it pa naman. Instead, I made a booking at The Bellevue Manila for their Holy Week Promo and have a joint celebration with the little boy who is turning 2 on April 3. Goodness, how time flies. I feel old.

Since this April is not a good month for DH to go on any outing at all, I decided to use the Sofitel voucher two days after the May 10 elections. A quick R&R for the hubby na rin.

We'll celebrate DK's birthday on the day itself, she said she'll invite her classmates from her former school; perhaps in the evening or the day before that, we can celebrate with her cousins at my in-laws' place.

What can I say...

2010-03-05T00:43:00.003+08:00

It's been more than a month since I last logged in to check my blog and write a post. There's been so many things keeping me occupied that I lost my blogging groove. (Actually, I think I lost that last year pa. Heehee.)

Anyhoo, like I've mentioned in my past posts, running the salon & homeschooling DK has been keeping me busy; not to mention my, now super active toddler. He will be turning 2 next month. My tweener will be 11 this month. I just bought a hotel membership card because she requested that we stay at Sofitel to celebrate her birthday. We stayed there some two years ago before I gave birth to DT and she had a grand time swimming & having hors d'ouvres at the club lounge (dinner for us, as we became really full). She's not the only one who loves this hotel. It also brings me a lot of good memories. :)

DK was only 8 here! How time flies!

For the little boy's birthday, we haven't decided what to do yet. It'll fall on Black Saturday, so that's a bore. Hehe. One thing's for sure, we're not having a huge party. We're not big on big parties anyway. :) We might just go on an out of town trip, perhaps or have a small party at home with the cousins & grandparents.

Apple's new iPad

2010-01-28T10:04:00.005+08:00

It's coming out!!!! It's beautiful.

I've been waiting for Apple to come out with their version of a tablet. And now it's here! I'm so excited about it. :) The price isn't bad at all, starting at $499 (I think, though, here in Manila, it will sell for 30k? I hope not). It's even cheaper than an iPhone or a Blackberry!

Looking at it, it's basically a huge-ass iTouch. But who cares? You can definitely type on it better and it'll be much lighter than my MBP. I was kidding the husband that I want it for my birthday or maybe I want it for HIS birthday! Hahaha. We will wait for it's second release though. I don't want the kinks & bugs that they may have not perfected on the first release. The wi-fi version will be released in March, while the wi-fi + 3G will be released in April.

Tech specs are here. The 3G model will have a sim card tray so you can surf using your mobile subscription. I just wish they put a USB port on the iPad so one can have another option using the internet. Wi-fi, 3G or wireless broadband, right?

Coastal scents loot

2010-01-02T23:55:00.000+08:00

In the photo: dual-ended crease & fluff eyeshadow brush, angle fluff, duo fiber, push/flat-top eyeliner, badger crease, sable crease, and the super cute pink kabuki brush. ;) Missing is the shimmery brown gel liner (name of the shade: Ecstasy).

So far, I've only used the pink kabuki & the duo fiber brush. The pink kabuki is really soft to use on the face and applies mineral powder well. My only gripe is that it's not as dense as I'd like it to be. So when I use it for buffing, it doesn't buff as well as my Elf kabuki or my Blusche synthetic flat top. The duo fiber is also very soft. I've never applied foundation as fast using this brush. It buffs my foundation well also and applies blushes lightly. The duo fiber is a wonderful brush to have indeed--very versatile. I didn't like it when I washed it two times (so far) and it bled and shed (haha, rhyming!). Maybe the baby shampoo I used is too strong? Maybe I should use J&J baby shampoo next time.

Happy New Year!

2010-01-02T23:09:00.002+08:00

Happy New Year to all! I was so busy I wasn't able to post my holiday greetings. Well, better late than never. :)

Hope this new year will bring us better everything! :)

I Graduated!!

2009-12-22T23:54:00.003+08:00

Last Sunday, I had my portfolio day at La Salle College International, for my my Artistic Make-up class. I started at 8:30am and ended at 7pm. I had to do 7 faces/looks. Tiring, yes really tiring; but fulfilling. :)

Will post a few pics soon, but for now, here's a link to my album in Facebook.

Does your child believe in Santa?

2009-12-22T23:49:00.002+08:00

Okay, before I get on to my "main topic"--I apologize again (and again and again and again...) for my lack of posts. I have been super busy. Super busy to the point of tears, yes tears, but that was me PMS-ing I suppose. Teehee.

********

I read Chuvaness' post about this and it reminded me of when my own child realized there was no Santa. It wasn't even her finding out from some other kid. One day it just dawned on her that *I* was Santa. I think she was about 6 years old at that time. But then again, I wasn't too much of a "you'd better watch out, you'd better not cry... Santa's coming to town". She just went up to me and said, "You're Santa, no?!" and I didn't deny it. But I did tell her not to tell her classmates. Kawawa naman ma-disillusioned sila at such an early age. :D

Salon Promo

2009-12-10T22:30:00.003+08:00

Southern gals (and guys too!)--hameless plug for our new biz: we have a hair dye & hot oil promo.

Artistic Make-up classes

2009-12-10T21:08:00.001+08:00

I've been attending artistic make-up classes at La Salle College International every Saturday.

Have been, for some 3 or 4 weeks already. Our first meeting was just the introduction, we were given a loooooooong list of what we needed in our kit. Zoiks. Spent more than what I spent for the tuition fee for this class. And still spending... Make-up shopping can be quite addicting. :)

Our second meeting was for the neutral look. My first model was my friend, V, who gladly obliged to my request despite coming in from her graveyard shift at nearby PS. She was my first ~~guinea pig~~ model and I think I didn't do badly. :) In fact, she texted me a week after to say that her "discerning" gay friends complimented her for her new look (eyebrows). :)

My second model, who again could not say no, was my younger sister. I was doing a lot better, and working a bit faster compared to my first hands-on. Still not fast though. This class, I had to do the netural look on her (for evaluation) and then a four-theme concept.

The third model was my sister-in-law, whom I did a colored four-theme concept plus 2 kinds of smokey eyes. I had another model that day, but I cannot post photos of him (yes him) because he will kill me. Haha.

Next week, I believe we will be taught how to apply false lashes (makes one look great in photos--I had falsies on my wedding) plus an evaluation on the smokey eye. I will have to practice on the smokey eye; it's tricky because it's super easy but it has to be neatly applied, otherwise, it will look dirty. Dirrrty.

Paper-Source find

2009-12-01T10:01:00.005+08:00

I love this store Paper-Source. I wrote about it last year, when I mentioned the few things I bought from them. I don't get to look at their site anymore but a few weeks ago, I saw that--a home letterpress machine! :) Then there's additional printing plates with different designs & fonts. Love it!!

I did ask the hubby to give this to me for Christmas, but it's backordered until January next year. They didn't expect what a hit this product will be. Check it out here. Maybe either this or a gocco machine will do for me. Or even both, hehe.

Beauty salon adventures

2009-11-10T23:31:00.005+08:00

Since last week, my mom and I have been taking turns managing the salon--albeit a tiny salon with just 5 employees. Teehee. Still learning the ropes and seeing how everything goes. We're lucky that the head stylist (ahehe, what else to call him?) is quite helpful.

Tomorrow, we're going to Wella in Makati to attend a salon management seminar. Hopefully, it'll help us a bit. I'll also drop by La Salle College International to enroll in a make-up class that will start this Saturday.

Poor hubby has to do my errands for tomorrow as the seminar will take the whole day. He has to:

open the salon,
make bantay the carpenter (doing some repairs) & the salon,
drive DK to her swimming class,
and quickly run back to close the salon.

Back from the blackhole

2009-11-05T00:25:00.006+08:00

Hello! It's been quite a while since my last blog post. It seems like I start off my post like that. I've just been too lazy to log in and make a post. It's not like that I'm too busy. I just don't feel like saying anything... Today, though, I've been out the whoooooollleee day. I've been in and out, just a few minutes at home, then I'm off to do something.

I haven't shared this yet, but my mom and I are, well, have taken over a beauty salon in our neighborhood. My mom is a suki at this place for her mani-pedi--one of the employees mentioned that the owner was selling. We prayed about it, waited, and this morning, we paid for it. So now it's ours.

Mom and I are a couple of business noobs. My mom has this monthly bead biz at the American Women's Club Bazaar (World Trade Center, Dec. 1 is the next one ::shameless plug::), but it's just a very simple sideline that she does. Apart from that, we do not have any business experience at all. *I am* a business management graduate (sob sob), but I KNOW NOTHING about running a business! So please, please, please, pray for me & my mom as we undertake this enterprise.

I will be enrolling myself in a make-up class to equip myself with some skills to help out in the salon. We will also attend a salon management seminar, so we don't go into running the biz blindly. :)

Seminar day

2009-10-16T15:51:00.004+08:00

It's been quite a while since I've had a day to myself. (well, I had more like half a day to myself today, went home at 2pm to avoid the traffic.) I attended a seminar at DK's homeschool, The 7 Laws of the Learner. The speaker was knowledgeable and our workbook was very good. I sneaked out though, when lunch break was called. Hee. I had some things to buy at nearby Megamall and did a little window shopping too. Didn't really stay long as it was suuuuuper crowded because it was their 3-day weekend sale.

I bought some personal effects at Watson's and mineral make-up for my mom and friend (as her birthday present). Then I ate lunch at Kebab Factory over at their new wing. I liked it! The minced chicken was cooked in a tandoori oven and they served it with some yogurt sauce and spicy dip. I also ordered buttered rice, but I think I should've ordered saffron rice. The serving was big so I brought home half of it for the hubby. I've been looking for minced chicken for the longest time; ever since I tasted them in Queens, NY. The one in NY was definitely better, but this is a good enough substitute.

It's called a chicken seekh kebab. Usually cooked in a long skewer in the oven. They don't look like anything, but they are oh, so good. Actually they do remind me of something, but it's not something pleasant. Hehe. (photo credit)

"Catch up"

2009-10-12T12:44:00.003+08:00

A family of tomatoes is talking a walk...the family consists of a mother tomato, father tomato, and a child tomato. The child tomato is going a bit slow and is behind. The father tomato sees the child tomato is slow and kicks the child from behind...he replies..."Catch UP!"

Hahaha, catch up--catsup. Anyway, I am playing catch up on my daughter's extended first quarter of her homeschool. In a couple of weeks, we should be submitting her portfolio (a compilation of her quizzes, papers, grades) to her level consultant. Ack, I don't even want to think about it. Hayyy.

Wine Depot's Restaurant Week

2009-10-07T20:53:00.008+08:00

Wine Depot is tied with (my) memories as it was where we got our supply of wine for our wedding. The Wine Depot in Alabang is really nice--they have a huge selection of wine, and they always have some bottles open for customers to taste. When we bought cases of wine, I left it in their store so it'll stay in a dark, cool place before we picked it up for the wedding reception.

I went there a few days ago to buy a bottle of white for our osso buco (nope, I didn't cook it, our cook did. Haha.) and picked up an flyer for their Restaurant week this week. There's some 3 days left so we are heading to Aubergine for lunch tomorrow to try their RW special menu. I chose Aubergine as DH and I have been meaning to eat there, but we never got round to going (going to Makati & thereabouts is "luluwas kami ng Maynila" kind of trip, with the traffic and all that, haha).

Aubergine
P990.00 per person

Special Lunch Menu

Asian spiced tuna tartar with avocado and shitake mushroom, accompanied by assorted salad greens tossed in citrus dressing

Or

Cream of green asparagus with croutons and mascarpone foam

************

Pan fried fillet of Norwegian salmon, gratinated with herbs and horseradish, served on spinach risotto with carrot-honey froth

Tulloch Verdelho, Hunter Valley, Australia

Or

Oven roasted US Angus beef top blade, served with port wine sauce on garlic mash potatoes and glazed vegetables

Angove’s Vineyard Select Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon, South Australia

************

Chocolate soufflé with amaretto sauce and nougat ice cream

Santa Vittoria Still or Sparkling Water

Vittoria Coffee

You can look at the loooooong list of restaurants participating in their Restaurant Week here. For the restaurant's other menus, look here and here. Imo, the menus of Sala Bistro (too bad they hosted only for ONE DAY! Daya...), Lolo Dad's, Je Suis Gourmand, Prince Albert, Tin Hau, Pepato, Acqua (nyak, in Shang Mactan!), Restaurant Ciçou, Pepato, Apartment 1B ,and Le Soufflé Rockwell are the best and best in value. Okay, okay, that's a lot... Too bad I can't eat at all of them. Even if I eat lunch and dinner for a whole week, I won't be able to ~~afford them all~~ go through the list of restaurants participating. :)

Not to forget is the culmination of this week's activity, The Wine & Food Festival at the NBC Tent on October 10, 2-8pm. Wine tasting and food tasting galore. Tickets are Php1000.

Picking up the pieces, moving on, hoping - INQUIRER.net, Philippine News for Filipinos

2009-10-04T13:30:00.001+08:00

After Pepeng has passed...
Picking up the pieces, moving on, hoping - INQUIRER.net, Philippine News for Filipinos

Shared via AddThis

Random thoughts...

2009-10-02T22:41:00.004+08:00

As I type this, I am in my bedroom with my husband and little boy fast asleep. The typhoon, Pepeng (Parma), will be making it's landfall in around 3 or 4 hours (according to the weather bureau's estimate). Late this afternoon, my mom, DK, and I gathered round to pray for this typhoon to cease or slow down. Even my toddler bowed his head to pray.

I logged on to post a stress-relieving youtube video and I looked back at my past posts--particularly those before Ondoy hit and ravaged our country; and I saw how trivial and frivolous (some of) my posts were. One thing Ondoy taught me was to truly realize how unimportant material things (passports, birth certificates, photos, ~~bags~~ etc) are and if ever that kind of flooding happens to our home, there is nothing here that must be given importance, except for our loved ones (non-human living things included). Passports, papers, etc. can all be applied for. Other material things can be saved up to be bought again. But really, when we die, we can't bring them with us, right? I do not want to sound so preachy, I've not lost anything yet; but I want to keep this in mind all the time.

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." - Matthew 6:19-21

Marshmallow test

2009-10-02T22:37:00.001+08:00

Kids are so darned cute! We all know what happens to the kids who eat the marshmallow right away and those who patiently wait for the second marshmallow... :)

Typhoon Ondoy: How you can help

2009-09-29T00:43:00.005+08:00

For those based in Muntinlupa/BF Homes area, you can get in touch with me for your donations. I will course them through Christ Commission Fellowship (CCF-Alabang) and the City Governement of Muntinlupa for the flood victims of Muntinlupa City (some 1000++ families in evacuation centers). Or you can also go directly to the CCF Building in 3/F CCF Bldg., Prime St. Madrigal Business Park, Muntinlupa City.

Here's a comprehensive list put together by friend Ri & her sisters:

Friends in the US and Canada who wish to help in the rescue/relief operations,you may donate through the American Red Cross. Call 1-800-435-7669.

ABS-CBN HOTLINE: 416-36-41

SAGIP KAPAMILYA: 413-2667 / 416-0387
You can drop off donations at No 13 Examiner Street, Quezon City, Look for
Ms Girlie Aragon
Bank: Banco de Oro, Mother Ignacia branch
Acct name: ABS-CBN Foundation Inc.
Acct no.: 5630020111

Routing code for international cash donations
BNORPHMM ABS-CBN Branch

ABS-CBN Foundation US Office: Toll-Free 1-800-527-2820

GMA Kapuso Foundation calls for donations for families affected by Typhoon “Ondoy”

The following donations are needed:
Monetary Donation
Rice
Canned Goods
Noodles
Clothing

you may drop your donations at:
GMA KAPUSO FOUNDATION, INC.
2nd Floor GMA Kapuso Center
GMA Network Drive cor. Samar Streets
Diliman, Quezon City 1103
Telephone Nos.: (632) 982.7777 loc. 9901 & 9905
Telefax: (632) 928.9351 / 928.4299

METROBANK

Peso SavingsAccount Name : GMA Kapuso Foundation, Inc.
Account Number : 3-098-51034-7

Dollar SavingsAccount Name : GMA Kapuso Foundation, Inc.
Account Number : 2-098-00244-2
Code : MBTC PH MM

BANCO DE ORO (BDO)

Peso SavingsAccount Name : GMA Kapuso Foundation, Inc.
Account Number : 469-0022189

Dollar SavingsAccount Name : GMA Kapuso Foundation, Inc.
Account Number : 469-0072135
Code : BNORPHM

More numbers and information from Manolo Quezon's site

Those who are abroad who want to donate funds to the typhoon victims in the Philippines, please send money to Citizens' Disaster Response Center (CDRC) (a reliable NGO) or the Philippine National Red Cross. Please note that using Paypal is still the safest option.

More information on how you can help:

Businesses/ Commercial Establishments

1. Aranaz Stores in Rockwell & Greenbelt is accepting donations of any kind for Payatas communities affected by Ondoy

2. The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf will be accepting canned goods, water, clothes, blankets, towels, medicine, and emergency supplies (no cash) in all our branches on behalf of the victims of Typhoon Ondoy starting today until Friday. Your generosity will be much appreciated during this difficult time for our brothersand sisters in need.

3. Luca stores (Rockwell, Shang-rila, Eastwood, or GA towers): Send your old clothes & donations (no cash pls).

4. Manor Superclub, Eastwood City will accept goods and other emergency items starting Sunday at 10 am.

5. Ministop IBARRA (Espana cor. Blumentritt, Sampaloc Manila) is also accepting relief goods, Food (non-perishable goods only) Clothing, Medicines, Beds, Pillows, Blankets, Emergency Supplies to help Typhoon Ondoy
victims.

6. Moonshine boutique in Rockwell also accepting relief good to help Ondoy victims in Marikina and Cainta.

7. Papemelroti stores in 91 Roces Ave. / Ali Mall Cubao / SM City North EDSA / SM Fairview / SM Megamall / Glorietta 3 in Makati / SM Centerpoint / SM Southmall are accepting relief goods (canned goods / milk / bottled water /
clothes – NO CASH pls.)

8. Power Plant Mall accepting donations for ABS-CBN foundation. Drop off at admin office, P1 level.

9. Team Manila stores in Trinoma, Mall of Asia, Jupiter Bel-Air and Rockwell shall be accepting relief goods (Canned Goods, Ready-to-drink Milk, Bottled Water and Clothes) for distribution by Veritas.

10. Whitespace 2314 Chino Roces Ave Ext as a Makati drop-off for relief goods.

Government/ Civil Society/ Others

1. Victory Fort is opening its doors to those affected by the typhoon. Call 813-FORT.

2. ABS-CBN through Banco de Oro account number 56300-20111 account name: ABS-CBN Foundation Incorporation

3. Akbayan’s taking donations, call 433-69-33/433-68-31 to donate or volunteer.

4. Citizens Disaster Response Center (CDRC): Relief goods for typhoon
victims being accepted at 72-A Times St., West Triangle, QC. Tel (+632-9299820/22)

5. Sen. Kiko Pangilinan is accepting donations @ AGS Bldg Annex, 446 EDSA Guadalupe Viejo. Contact Vina Vargas at (+632917-8081247)

6. Luzon Relief: Donations can be brought to RENAISSANCE FITNESS CENTER, 2nd Floor, Bramante Building, Renaissance Towers Ortigas, Meralco Avenue, Pasig City starting MONDAY (Sept.28) / 9am – 7pm Contact Person: Warren Habaluyas
(+632929-8713488) or email at luzonrelief@gmail.com

7. Miriam Quiambao drop off points: One Orchard Road Building in Eastwood, or message http://www.twitter.com/miriamq for more details.

8. Move for Chiz is asking for volunteers and donations at Bay Park Tent, along Roxas Blvd., beside Max Restaurant and Diamond Hotel in Manila, or at Gilas Minipark at Unang Hakbang St., Gilas Q.C.

9. NoyMar relief Operations: Clare Amador (+639285205508) or Jana Vicente at +639285205499). Drop off for relief donations is at Balay Expo Center across Farmers Market Cubao.

10. Operation Rainbow (Zac Faelnar Camara) at Ayala Alabang Village needs Canned Goods, Ready-To-Eat Food, Bottled Water, Ready-To-Drink Milk/ Juice, Clothing, Blankets, contact (+632-4687991)

11. Philippine Army Gym inside Fort Bonifacio or GHQ Gym in Camp Aguinaldo are now distributing donations for Ondoy Victims.

12. Philippine National Red Cross‘ different ways to Donate.

13. Red Cross Load Donations: Right now the easiest way to make donations from the seat of your chair is via mobile phone load. The Red Cross Rescue and Relief Operations. Text: REDAMOUNT to 2899 (Globe) or 4483 (Smart)

14. Relief Efforts for Pasig at Valle Verde 1 Village Park, contact (+632916-4945000, +632917-5273616)

15. Sagip Kapamilya hotlines (+632-4132667, +632-4160387) #13 Examiner St. West Triangle, QC.

16. Tulong Bayan hotlines for donations and volunteers are (+632908-6579998) Marilyn, (+632939-3633436) Jenn (+632-9137122, +632-9136254 & +632-9133306).

17. TXTPower now accepts donations via SmartMoney 5577514418667103, GCash 09179751092 and Paypal http://is.gd/3GvuN

18. World Vision partners with Phil Coast Guard and kind individuals for relief distribution to 3k families. Call (+632-3747618 local 242) or text (+632917-8623209) to help.

19. Worldvision Foundation is also accepting donations/volunteers to pack relief goods in QC. For $-donations, BPI:USDacct #4254-0050-08

Schools & Universities/ Religious

1. Ateneo de Manila University is now accepting donations for the victims of Ondoy. Donations can be dropped at MVP Lobby. For those stranded/those who need help: To all students who need help or know of people who need help. Please text the name, location, and contact number to (+6329088877166). ATENEO, which is now an open shelter, accepts refugees. Call
(+632917-8952792)

2. DLSU is accepting relief goods by 8:30 a.m. today. For volunteers please be there by 8am in southgate benches.

3. Caritas Manila Office at Jesus St., Pandacan Manila near Nagtahan Bridge (+632-5639298, +632-5639308)

4. Hillsborough Village Chapel – Water, blankets, shoes, and clothes may be sent to Hillsborough Village Chapel in Muntinlupa City. These will go to families whose houses were washed out in the nearby sitios.

5. La Salle Greenhills for Greenhills/Mandaluyong/San Juan Area, if you want to help out with the rescue and relief operations, you can drop off your donations (clothes, food, etc..) at LSGH Gate 2 or volunteer from 9am to receive, sort, repack the donations.

6. Our Lady of Pentecost Parish (+632-4342397, +632-9290665) per Gabe Mercado, donations are very much welcome. The Parish is located at 12 F. Dela Rosa corner C. Salvador Sts., Loyola Heights, Quezon City.

7. Playschool International in Better Living is open to receive relief goods. Feel free to drop it there for your convenience. No Cash Pls.

8. Radio Veritas at Veritas Tower West Ave. Cor EDSA (+632-9257931-40)

9. Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan Task Force Noah, a disaster response arm of the Jesuits, is accepting donations. Please drop it off sa Ateneo Cervini Dorm.

10. Katipunan Avenue. Contact Erica Paredes at (+632917-4741930) — they need bread, packed juice, sandwich filling (tuna, chicken, anything) You can help her make them, deliver the sandwiches to her house, or help her distribute! Call for more details.

11. Xavier School in San Juan is now accepting donations, please bring to Multipurpose Center (MPC).

Please disseminate these information as much as you can. Prayers are most welcome. Thanks.

***

On 26 September 2009,Typhoon Ondoy (international name Ketsana) passed through the Philippines. Nearly a month's worth of rain fell in just six hours, which triggered the worst flooding here in 40 years. According to Philippine weather bureau PAGASA, the metropolis received 42.4 cm of rain in just 12 hours, exceeding the 39.2 cm average for the entire month of
September. Typhoon Ondoy dumped 455 millimeters of rain in Quezon City alone in 24 hours, compared to the 250 millimeters of rain that Hurricane Katrina brought to New Orleans, Louisiana. A State of Calamity was declared in Metro Manila and 25 other provinces in Luzon (this is the northern portion of the country). Roughly 80% of Metro Manila was underwater yesterday. In some areas, the water reached even the third floors of people's houses. A lot of homes were completely swept away. As of today, 73 people are dead, and over 300,000 people are displaced.

"The Ongoing Battle"

2009-09-28T23:49:00.005+08:00

I am reposting one of the newsletters I receive daily about homeschooling, Daily Focus (from the publisher of homeschooling materials, Alpha Omega Publications). Homeschooling has been becoming more popular these past few years. However, the drive to also put a stop to homeschooling has been steadily rising; take for example, the law in Sweden to ban homeschooling by 2011, the scare on banning homeschooling in California last year, some Nazi-era law in Germany that bans homeschooling.

The Ongoing Battle

Is homeschooling here to stay? According to recent statistics, over two million children homeschool in the United States. Organized state associations, local support groups, and Internet forums, blogs, and websites give homeschoolers a sense of security that the public accepts home education as a viable educational alternative. Recently, even Justice Clarence Thomas of the U.S. Supreme Court listed homeschooling as a viable educational option in a ruling in Morse v. Frederick.

However, those who oppose homeschooling are still alive and well. Like Tobiah and Sanballat's opposition to Nehemiah's rebuilding of Jerusalem's wall (Nehemiah 6), there are those who war daily against homeschooling and its philosophy. In case you doubt this fact, let me share some comments I've recently read on blogs about homeschooling:

The education of our country's children is too important to be left in the hands of their parents.
The idea that only the parent can teach the child and abandon the public education system is normally the sign of a deeply threatened, controlling personality.
There are more kids doing this homeschooling stuff than ever before. How can they ever compete in the modern world when they grow up with strict brainwashing and medieval attitudes?
All homeschooling will do is guarantee your kids are as stupid as you are.

Christians, too, must realize our war with Satan never ceases. Until Christ returns, we will face daily battles against evil. We may think that once we've received Jesus as our Savior, we'll never deal with adversity again. However, nothing is further from the truth. In 1 Peter 5:8, we are warned to "be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour."

Although Christ has already defeated sin and death, we must earnestly stand against the wiles of the devil to remain victorious in our Christian life. Like the opponents of homeschooling, we must be aware that Satan is ever out to destroy us. Only as we stand strong in God's truths and the Holy Spirit's power will we be able to overcome evil with good. "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil" (Ephesians 6:10-11).

Relief for Muntinlupa residents

2009-09-27T15:58:00.006+08:00

Hi everyone! Anyone from the south of Metro Manila (BF Paranaque, Alabang, Las Pinas), I am asking for your help. If you can spare us some of your old clothes, household items, and some food; so we can distribute them for those who were stricken by flood in their area. Those who live near/beside Laguna de bay (Tunasan, Putatan) were affected. A lot of families (some 200 I think) are in evacuation centers or staying with neighbors/relatives.

Please get in touch with me for arrangements to pick up/drop off the relief goods. Thank you!

amandaeustaquio [at] yahoo.com

*Edit: it is estimated to be close to 1000 families in the evacuation centers.

Family

2009-09-26T22:42:00.000+08:00

Saw this posted on my friend's facebook. Very touching. :)

Flood & rain

2009-09-26T15:44:00.002+08:00

The weather report yesterday did not say this was going to happen! It hasn't stopped raining at all!

Our area does not really get flooded. It happened once and it was because some pieces of wood and trash blocked the drainage in our street. This morning we had a slight scare because of the strong rains, the drainage could not drain water anymore. Add to that the fact our house is the lowest portion of our street. So all the water drains to us. The hubby moved his car that is parked outside to a higher level so that it won't get wet inside. He also went into the baha and poked the drainage in case it got stuffed with leaves or whatnot. Before lunchtime, the water subsided a bit and it's now better. There's some flooding, but only foot(as in level lang ng paa)-deep.

Nearby San Beda Alabang was said to be flooded (they also received draining flood from the nearby Tierra Nueva & Pacific villages). Tsk tsk.

I'm praying for those who are experiencing flooding in their areas. Hope you are all safe and sound, despite the damage you have to deal with. :(

HMG + Bleach Catastrophe

2009-09-24T23:56:00.003+08:00

I always read the blog, Chuvaness and when Ms. Van Straten announced a special edition of clothing for BC, I got super excited because I love, love, love t-shirts! :) I didn't go and buy right away though, I live here in the south of Metro Manila; although I was really itching to go to Greenbelt to buy. The following Friday after arriving from Bangkok, I dragged DH to Greenbelt so I could buy my HMG pieces.

I was so lucky! It was the day they delivered new stocks. When I got there, there was a lady trying on some shirts already. I tried on the shirts I liked--that was over in, like, 5 minutes? I went to pay and another lady was getting shirts too. So in a span of 10 minutes, 3 women had bought HMG pieces! I got 2 (I want more!) and they probably got at least 2 each. No wonder the stocks go really fast.

I got the long dress with the ribbon & printed birds, and the taupe shirt with the victorian print at the back. I want to get the gray victorian (I think the sleeves are different and the print at the back is also different) and possibly the short black tee with the reindeer/moose/horned animals (?). I got a text last Wednesday that some shirts have become available. :)

Balenciaga Limited edition Stardust handbag

2009-09-23T00:48:00.005+08:00

Received this on my email a few moments ago... I like the color, but I don't like the gold hardware...

Stardust

Online Exclusive Limited Edition • Shiny calfskin • gold plated metal hardware • top zip closure • hand stitched handles 4.3'' drop • removable shoulder strap 8.2'' drop • front zip pocket • leather framed hand mirror • fine textile lining • interior zip pocket with Balenciaga embossed leather tag • 15'' x 3.5'' x 10'' • lightweight 2.5 lbs • made in Italy.

$1,695.00

Tag on Relationships

2009-09-23T00:05:00.003+08:00

Swiped this from Chris' blog, she didn't tag me but I thought it looked fun to do.

What are your middle names?
my middle initial is E while DH's is A.

How long have you been together?
almost 3 years married, but we've been together (through thick & thin) for 9 years already

How long did you know each other before you started dating?
a couple of months

Who asked whom out?
he did

How old are each of you?
I'm 34 while DH is 33

Whose siblings do you see the most?

DH's siblings

Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple?
since we've been married, none. But as bf-gf, at the very beginning of our relationship, we had a "touchy" situation.

Did you go to the same school?
Yes! We even became thesis mates. I chose him to be my thesis mate so I can be as honest & frank as I can be. LOL.

Are you from the same home town?
nope

Who is smarter?
in some ways, he is smarter; in other ways I am smarter. :)

Who is the most sensitive?
moi

Where do you eat out most as a couple?
Cibo (though, not as often as I want. hehe), Burger King, Pepper Lunch, etc etc. We like to eat out a lot.

Who has the craziest exes?
DH, hands down, definitely!!

Who has the worst temper?
Moi. But he can get pretty scary when his temper is pricked (which is not often, though).

Who does the cooking?
Me, he can't cook.

Who is the neat-freak?
He is.

Who is more stubborn?
Both of us.

Who hogs the bed?
neither

Who wakes up earlier?
He does. I'm not a morning person.

Who is more jealous?
Neither?

How long did it take to get serious?
About 2-3 months? I was cautious. :)

Who eats more?
Can't tell. DH eats fast so you can't track how much he ate. I eat slow & almost the last to finish. Heehee.

Who does the laundry?
Neither of us.

Who’s better with the computer?
Me.

Who drives when you are together?

He does. I hate to drive. I am spoiled.

Circle of Friends Award

2009-09-22T23:58:00.003+08:00

Thank you, Chris, for this lovely award! :)

I'd like to pass this on to my other blogger friends: Pat, Gracie, Kelly, Nikki, Joanne, and Yvonne.

Do toddlers still need to be given milk?

2009-09-19T00:07:00.002+08:00

Here's another piece of information on milk intake for toddlers. I think I mentioned here that I do not drink milk--and when I was one year old, my mom made me use a sippy cup for milk; which in turn, made me dislike the taste of milk. Milk is not a "super food". For toddlers, it is a good source of calcium. However, milk is not the only source of calcium that is available. Here are other sources of calcium:

cheese, yogurt, ice cream
green leafy vegetables (like malunggay, kangkong, pechay, kailan, broccoli)
fruits (orange)
tofu (silken & firm)
white beans, chick peas
almonds
sesame seed
gelatin (if made from agar-agar/seaweed gelatin)
other "milk" products such as rice milk, soy milk (readily available in our supermarkets), almond milk

When you give anything with calcium, it is important that you also give food that is rich in Vitamin D (other than morning sunlight):

egg yolk
fish (sardines, salmon, tuna, mackerel)
mushrooms
liver (ew. I don't like liver)
cod liver oil (in gel capsule; is also an ingredient in the supplement Scott's Emulsion)

Now, I'm not saying cow's milk is bad. It's just that the belief that milk (after the child turns one) is more important than regular food is a common belief among parents. So much so that the child drinks a lot of milk in a day and eats less solids.

***I'm rambling here... I can't organize my thoughts yet. Hee.***

But here's what I do, I still breastfeed DT, and he has a good appetite for solids. He's not a baby anymore and he needs solids more than my milk (even though it's breastmilk). I breastfeed around 3x during daytime and breastfeed at night & when he wakes up at night (I'm still trying to figure out how to lessen his middle of the night feeds). When I stop breastfeeding, I will still give him milk, but no more than 3 glasses a day (more than that, it can affect his appetite). I can still give him other sources of calcium and vit. D. :)

Fifi is here!

2009-08-28T18:21:00.000+08:00

Yay! Used it right away. :)

Etsy loot

2009-08-25T23:20:00.002+08:00

Etsy loot
Originally uploaded by MandyEC

After 2 months of waiting, the stuff I got from etsy is here. The black bicycle printed tee was supposed to be a father's day gift for DH. The two robot printed tees are for the kids (an inside joke) and the french crown tee is mine. The two canvas bags came for free for buying the 4 t-shirts. I'm using the Vespa bag right now. When DT saw my bag, he said, "bites (bike), daddy?" Heehee. The dinosaur/godzilla bag went to DK, although I wanna use it too. :)

The girls' t-shirts were printed on really nice t-shirts (alternative apparel, American apparel's competitor), so it's really soft and nice fitting. :)

I got these from Etsy seller, Happy Family. I was unhappy with them at first, they forgot about my purchase. They said they were about to ship it, turns out they forgot. They made it up to me by refunding the shipping fee. I'm sure it got here by the last week of July, but customs/Philippine post held it I'm sure. The plastic bag it was shipped in arrived with a slit on one side and it was stapled. Boo!

Giselle Sanchez & LV

2009-08-22T00:17:00.002+08:00

Giselle Sanchez on how she acquired her first LV bags. She is hilarious!

Mineral make-up

2009-08-21T15:10:00.000+08:00

Because I live under a rock, it's only now that I got hooked with mineral make-up. Well, not really, I've been using L'oreal mineral foundation these past few months, and I never tried to find out how to apply it properly. I haven't gone into the world of minerals until two weeks. I bought myself a foundation, concealer & the flawless full applicator brush from Bare Escentuals (they have a stall in Rockwell--2nd floor beside Topshop).

A few days after that, I ordered some free samples from Ellana. I tried both shades (I guessed that I was more of an olive undertone than yellow, although now I think I am in between). The toffee mocha was too dark for my face, and the cafe mocha seems okay. I like the finishing powder (espresso con panna).

I also ordered free samples from Joppa, but it's based in the US, so I have to wait for its shipment to arrive here. (I received a notification from the post office, but I'm not sure which package it is, my bag, stuff I ordered from Etsy, or this one... I hope it's the Etsy stuff because I ordered those darn things last June pa!!)

And just this morning, I ordered another BE brush-- maximum concealer and an eyeshadow from Ebay. Yay. I'm sure to receive that next week. After I pay for it, of course. Heehee.

How's that for getting addicted to minerals? LOL.

Fifi Lapin Le Sport Sac bag

2009-08-16T23:08:00.002+08:00

fifi lapin field trip duffle
Originally uploaded by MandyEC

I blogged about Fifi Lapin's stint as LSS's "Artist in Residence" many months ago. I planned on getting one of her bags but I thought that Rustan's wouldn't have it in stock. Turns out they did (not in Al@bang though) and I was too late. I saw a lunch date sac but it's too lunchbag-y to be used as a regular bag. I looked around Ebay and found some resellers, but the sale didn't push through as Paypal Phils sucks because of the unverified address problem. Luckily, I found another reseller in Ebay Sg. The seller seems to be okay and has several feedback on selling other bags.

I hope it looks the way it was described.
I hope it arrives soon & the post office will not take forever to send me the notice (or it'll be like my lumix leather case, it will be delivered to my house--yes, EMS sometimes does that!).

Cheeseburger Cupcakes

2009-08-15T11:20:00.002+08:00

Cheeseburger Cupcakes
Originally uploaded by KateDW

As you all know (or not!), I have a Flickr account; and here's what I saw this morning while checking my account. A slideshow of how to make hamburger cupcakes. The best of both worlds!! I love cupcakes & hamburgers! It's just too cute! :)

Another funny ad

2009-08-13T22:11:00.002+08:00

Whole milk vs. Formula

2009-08-13T18:15:00.003+08:00

I will be travelling with my mom for a few days next month to Bangkok and as early as now, I have prepared a typewritten schedule and list on DT's feeding and naps. I have also computed (more or less) how much milk he will need in a day (including middle of the night feeds), so that I can pump an ample amount to store for the 4 days I will be away. DH has been getting apprehensive over my trip and has been encouraging me to bring the kids. What and be yaya to my kids on my 1st vacation ~~by myself~~ with my mom in ages (okay, okay, I've never gone on a vacation all by my lonesome, but I will. In this lifetime)? Selfish, yes, but I need this break (waves fist in the air)! I said, yes I will bring the kids, if he comes along and be yaya to the kids. Heehee. So demanding. Anyhoo, I was telling him not to worry, I will leave milk and I've been training the little boy's taste buds to the taste of cow's milk (mixing it with breast milk first and giving it when he's a bit groggy from sleepiness). Hopefully by the time I leave, he will not be averse to the taste of pure cow's milk.

I have been thinking of whether we should give him formula or whole milk. After all, in the US, after the baby turns one, they give whole milk (if there are no allergies). I think that kids here in the Philippines are over-formula-ed. Hello, formula for kids who are 6 years old?! Too much! With my first child, she had formula until she turned two. I didn't think she needed special milk after all, she was eating well. Special milk formulations will not make my child smarter, healthier, nor give her a stomach of steel. So for this 2nd one, it's whole milk. I would prefer to order fresh milk (I can order Holly's fresh milk from distributors here in Alabang or buy Magnolia fresh milk.) Both brands cost Php85 +/- per liter; a little more expensive than UHT treated 1 liter tetra paks that cost around php65. The less "treatments", the better, right?

Do read this post from a fellow N@wie, Jenny, on why formula is not necessary for our toddlers. Formula has more sugar and more calories than whole milk. Our toddlers do not need that much milk anymore, as compared to when they were still babies. What's more, toddlers must get their main source of nutrients from their meals, not milk. Milk is merely just a supplement. 16-24 ounces of milk is enough per day. (whoops, must recompute my milk schedule for DT! It's hard to determine though how much DT takes from me, bec most of the time he feeds directly from me.) Drinking too much milk is the reason why kids do not have any appetite for solid food. Then pediatricians prescribe high caloric formula for kids who don't eat, making it a vicious cycle.

Funny commercial

2009-08-08T13:45:00.002+08:00

Here's a funny ad from Thailand (??I think). It was World Breastfeeding Week this past week, btw.

Happy tummy

2009-08-07T00:01:00.003+08:00

I just got home a couple of hours ago from a date with DH in Makati. We ate at Elbert's steak sandwich place in the Powerplant Mall. We got caught in EDSA's horrible rush hour traffic from the tunnel (Pasay Road) until the Rockwell flyover. We were really hungry when we got to the mall.

We ordered a steak sandwich (no cheese, DH doesn't like cheese), cheeseburger, fries, coke light, and chocolate mousse. We split both sandwiches (compromised on one sandwich having cheese). They were really good and filling. The best, best part there (besides the beef fillings) is the bread. The steak sandwich hoagie roll is soft yet chewy; even the hamburger bun was out of this world! DH was wondering why the burger bun had that crackled look at the top. I guessed that maybe their bun had a shiny brown glaze at the top and when it was toasty, it cracked. :) For dessert, one must not miss ordering the chocolate mousse. We have tried this at Elbert's Steak House and they claim that it is the best in town. It truly is. One order is not enough for sharing. Next time I will order one--all for me, me, me!

My daughter's homeschooling materials

2009-08-06T22:31:00.000+08:00

As a follow up to my guest posting, I'd like to show you what materials we are using for DK's homeschooling. She is enrolled in The Master's Academy (in St. Francis Square, Ortigas) as a 5th grader. Before enrolling, we were required to attend HS101, an orientation for parents as to what homeschooling is and what its advantages are. The next step was for DK to take a diagnostic test to ascertain her knowledge and determine what her real grade level is in the different subjects. This is also for the level consultant to know what books to recommend to her.

Here are her materials (some recommended and some we chose):

Science - Exploring Creation: Botany (by Apologia); this is an in-depth study of only Botany for the entire schoolyear and includes discussions on how God created all these living things. We chose Swimming Creatures at first but the book is not available; so Botany was the next choice.
Math - AOP Lifepac 600. It comes in a box with a teacher's guide/answer key and 6 booklets for seatworks & lessons. We are also considering Math-U-See for her. DK doesn't like Math so much.
Reading - Total Language Plus Study Guide for "My Side of The Mountain" by Jean Craighead George. We choose 1 novel for 2 quarters for DK to read and the study guide contains worksheets on reading comprehension, vocabulary, spelling and other activities. This also injects some lessons from the bible verses and how these relate to the story.
Language - Speak, Read & Write
Civics - One Country, One People
Character - The Power of Character Building (?)
Additional non-academic book: The Family Book of Manners
MAPE Guidebook