Amber Has An Accent! :-(

O-oh! Amber is suffixing everything (well, mostly everything) with “man”, imagine that with a Visayan accent. It’s like “ala eh” of the Batanguenos or “lah” for the Singaporeans.

I don’t have anything against the Visayan dialect. My Nanay is Ilongga and I would love to have learned of the dialect if I was only given the chance to. Pero hearing it from Amber is a whole different story because she is only beginning to talk!

I heard her say, “wawa man!”, “takot man!”, “tago man!”...

At least she is only suffixing on Tagalog words but that is no consolation still. Tita Renee by the way is Bisaya though you wouldn’t hear her speak in their dialect nor have the accent, Amber must have picked up the expression from her, who and where else?

Am I over-reacting? Or can this really be a cause of concern?!?

Movie On Board: Priest

I commuted to work again this morning because the Hubby has an official trip to Pangasinan. Same old story – left the house at 6:30AM, got in the office at 10AM. 3 ½ hours of travel, nothing new.

Except that my bus ride seemed so quick even though I heard some passengers complaining that they are getting late to work because the driver took so much time at the bus stop hoping to get more passengers, blah blah blah...

Why the ride seemed so fast and short to me? I wasn’t able to finish the movie being shown on board!!! I was so engrossed that I even got disappointed when we reached our destination.

The movie – Priest.

The movie was just starting when I hopped inside the bus. It looked promising. The Hubby wanted to watch it when it was shown but I didn’t want to. Now that I’ve seen a part of it and was totally engrossed, I have to find a torrent of this!!!

Manong kunduktor again called out for those passengers getting off at the South Station. I was already on the part where the Priest was fighting against the weaker-but-super-duper-ferocious vampires! Saka I’m so intrigued about the Priest’s real relationship with the kidnapped girl and his supposed sister-in-law who was killed by the vampires. 

**sigh! can I joyride with the bus back to where it came from? wut? I have to pay for the fare? ok, fine, bababa na ko! hmpft!** 

I am so watching this!!! ^_^

*searching torrent file... bwahahaha!* 

A.D.D.I.C.T!!!

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Travel, I Wish!

If there is one thing I regret not doing before we had that cute little girl is to travel a lot.

Please don’t be misled by thinking that I regret having my darling baby girl because she is undeniably the source of my happiness and pride.

What I’m saying is that we should’ve taken advantage of the little time that the Hubby and I shared after we got married, or even before we got married by travelling and exploring places we haven’t been to.

At least then, travelling is still guilt-free. Nowadays, even a few hours of a movie-date makes us feel a little guilty for leaving Amber at home.

I like the idea of travelling... of exploring new places... of seeing breathtaking sights!

I have been dreaming of that since I was a little girl. Di ba nga I even aspired to be a flight attendant so I can travel incessantly. But that dream just went down the drain because I was such a scaredy cat and just didn’t have the guts to pursue anything I wished for in my early life.

I still wish to travel with the Hubby and see new places. I hope we can do that in the future.

Perhaps when Amber is old enough to join us or understand why Daddy and Mommy have to go away alone at times.

Perhaps when we are no longer too tied up in our jobs that taking a few days off is excusable.

Perhaps when we are financially capable to finance the trips without taking away funds from the family’s budget or savings.

I'm hopeful and I know it will happen sometime, I trust that it will!

At the moment, I’ll just indulge myself by reading travel blogs until I drool over the keys of my lappy-toppy. Oh! And yes, keep tab on the places that we should go. It is never too early to have an itinerary, isn't it? ;-P

Hey, airline companies, please do me a favor by keeping the low-fare flights available until the time we can travel, okay? ^_^

The Little Girl Is A Meat-Lover

Pretty much like her Dad!

What’s For Breakfast?

In my how many decades of existence, I have never ever tried making myself or haven’t gotten the taste of that famous Peanut Butter-Jelly Sandwich, ever! I’m so kawawa! Kasi naman, I imagine it to be icky!

But here comes curiosity... I hope it won’t kill me like it did the cat!

I braved myself and made this...

Well-well! It wasn’t that bad and no wonder it’s very famous among the kids and kids at heart. My version wasn’t naman that bongga pero I can see how it’s a big hit! Adventurous palates would enjoy the bursting flavors this simple sandwich can offer. You will not be umay because you get to taste the sweetness of the jam, the saltiness of the peanut butter and everything else in every bite.

I’d like to try this using different jams naman. Can’t wait to pack this snack for Amber when she starts schooling. ^_^

This One Is For My Crazy Friends!!!

Ladies, gentlemen and in-betweens, allow me to introduce my beloved highschool barkada... the Crazy Girls!!!

TGIF, ATC - 2008
L-R: Ate Liza, Pitse, Yes-yes, Jhulie Anne, Mabee and Me.

Yeah, I know... it’s baduy naming barkadas nowadays but what can I do? I was born in that age and time when people gave names to their barkadas to identify them easily. Parang Sigue-Sigue Sputnik Gang ba. But shempre, we were a generation after that naman, ano!

I was inspired to talk about them because one of the founding members, Mabee, created a Facebook group for us yesterday. Thanks, labs for the initiative! Now, we can chat with the group to our heart’s content!

Warning!!! This is a very very very looooong read! I can’t make it any way shorter. L

I love how we are still intact after all these years. We still get to see each other especially if there are occasions like weddings, birthdays, our kids’ parties, etc. But apart from that, no matter how seldom it becomes, we try to see each other for dinner or coffee just to catch up on lost times and have that endless reminiscence of our highschool years.

We laughed. We cried. We got mad at each other at some point. We talked. We ironed out differences. We shared special memories. We have been always there for each other at any given time!

I am glad that I have been with this group of friends during my adolescence. Each of us has different characters that when put together, created the perfect mix!

Know more about them...

Ate Liza is the matriarch of the group. The craziest of the crazies! The boldest one! She is like a lioness. She is so tender and protective of her cubs but can be very vicious if anyone of them has been hurt. Gera kung gera!

Her a few years our senior didn’t affect her closeness with the group. In fact, I think she took the responsibility of looking after us and made sure that we are properly guided and not being taken advantage of.

We look up to her. We even tell her first if we want to meet up with the group kasi we know that if she will be the one to call for a meeting, tyak lahat pupunta. ^_^

She is married to Kuya Abner (for the longest time! With emphasis talaga to, teh. Haha!). Her eldest Alexis have already graduated from College and is now probably a Registered Nurse. Awww, I still remember her when she was 3 years old. She often comes to school with Ate Liz and we are just enamored of her!

Allison, her youngest is now a young man at 17 (I’m guessing the age ^_^).

Mabee is the most charming girl among the group. Everybody is so drawn to her. Everybody likes her. Do I need to run down your suitors during that time, labs, to validate my statement? Haha! Seriously, she is very likeable. A friend through and through. Being the only daughter, she enjoyed the privilege of having her own stuff and own room, that we turned into the barkada’s den. Yes, we are almost part of their household because we eat, sleep and almost lived there! We are not just sure if Nanay Lagring minded that we are there almost all of the time (hope not though). ^_^

She is now residing in Dubai with her husband Roy and cute kids Riane, Mikayla and Moana.

Jhulie Anne is one of the sweetest members of the group. Well, lahat naman yan sweet pero I find Jhulie, the sweetest. She is the type who will hear out your concerns and really listens if you need to pour your heart out. Someone who will console you when you need comforting. 

She is very diligent. If we miss a lesson, we go to her. Kasi sha lang ang kumpleto sa notes. Ang sipag magsulat nyan! Kopyahan-material, haha!

She is now a doting mom to 1 year old Jhana. We can’t wait for her to be back in town again. She’s a Medical Technologist working out of the country at the moment.

Pitse (Prescy) may be the tallest among us but she is like the babiest of the group. She’s the youngest kasi. A very obedient daughter, she always observes her curfews. She never cared if we sometimes tag her as KJ basta she will go home the time she tells her parents she will. Bait-bait no? ^_^

She is now married to her long-time boyfriend Don and mom to cutie Zoie, who is almost 2 months now.

Yes-yes (Imelda) is one of the smartest. Well, I’d say again that everybody is smart but shempre someone will really exude that aura especially when we were still in high school. Consistent honor student yan! She added a perfect balance to the group. Why? Kasi, kung anong ingay namin, shang tahimik nyan! She is very soft-spoken. I never heard her get mad. Or baka di ko lang talaga narinig?!? Haha, peace labs!

She is married to Jon, and has 2 beautiful children, my inaanak Yvonne and newborn Ynakee.

Mailyn is the pinaka-happy-go-lucky among the group.

I haven’t seen her for the longest time. She has been out of the limelight ever since she moved to Mindoro (I think) with her family.

Calling Mailyn, kelangan mo magparamdam! Hehe.

And ako... well, you should already have an idea how I am like if you’ve been following my blog. If not yet, please feel free to read my blogs! Teehee!

Those are the original members of the group. We have honorary members who I will talk about some other time. ^_^  

And you've read it right, each of us are mommies now and have reached that certain level of maturity (I hope!^_^). Yet, when we are all together, we always seem to be pulled into a time warp that brings us back to high school life. We become possessed by 16-year olds who have shrieking voices! We laugh so hard, we shake like we are having seizures!!! Hay, kaloka! 

May I just share one incident at school that I will never forget for the rest of my earthly life?! A measure that our barkada will stick together through thick and thin! All of us (all that is present during that time, at least) experienced kneeling outside the classroom. Capital punishment yun di ba? Bawal yun di ba? Ewan ko ba, galit ata samin yung classmate namin who was assigned to list down the names of the very talkative ones while the teacher is away. Nilista kami lahat! Bitter! Ayun, when the teacher came back, she was really mad that we behaved daw inappropriately kaya para kaming nagumpisal ng wala sa oras.

I love high school life! One of the best years of my life! ^_^ It is where and when all the fun began!

Here are some of our photos in the present times. Just regret not having or keeping pictures of us all together in our uniforms back then. Anyways, here we are now believing that the 17 years that have passed didn't change us at all, especially on the looks department, heehee! (weh!)...

Pancake House, Festival Mall  -  March 2011
Not present were preggy Piche who needs to stay rested and
Mabee who is on the other part of the planet.

Pregnant Yes-yes and yours truly.

Jhulie Anne and Ate Liza.

Have I said that I love these girls?!?! ^_^

Hubby, The Weatherman

I thought I have published this already, naiwanan pala sa draft. ^_^

This happened last Sunday...

Hubby: Partner, sa tingin mo uulan bukas?

Bunay: Malamang, may parating na bagyo e.

Hubby: Ah, may live satellite feed ako ng weather condition sa cp! Tingnan ko!

Then checks his cp and showed it to me.

Hubby: Mukhang hindi naman. Tingnan mo oh, clear naman yung image.

Puti nga naman yung parang clouds ba yun? Pag red-yellow, yun daw yung ma-bagyo.

Hubby: Magpapa-carwash ako!

For those who do not know my husband, he is a car freak! Mas malinis at makinis pa yung sasakyan nya kesa sa sapatos nya!

Not after 20 minutes he was gone, I received a text message that says...

“Nice timing. Lakas ng ulan dito sa bandang bayan!”, his car is already being washed.

Me: WAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

^_^

Parents & Child-Care Providers

It used to bother me that Amber might prefer her yaya or whoever that she is with most of the time over her working mommy. I worry that it would hurt my feelings if she runs after somebody else than she would to me. I imagine the pain that I would feel if she calls out to someone else than to me.

I’ve heard a lot of these from fellow moms and how they were hurt from the experience.

I began to worry about it, too.

Until last weekend... Tita Renee had to leave earlier so she could attend an anticipated mass. As she is about to go out of the gate, Amber looked for her and went out of the house. When she saw that Tita was outside the gate, she called for her. I sensed the panic in her voice. Then she started to wail when she realized that Tita is indeed leaving.

I couldn’t pacify her. She was crying so hard despite my hugging her. She wanted Tita Renee back.

Tita, upon hearing Amber’s cries, went back inside and held Amber. She instantly stopped crying.

I stopped and assessed my feelings. Was I hurt? Did I feel the pain of rejection from my own daughter?

............

Surprisingly, I was not! Instead, I felt glad.

In all honesty, I can say that I felt good about it because seeing how Amber cried for Tita meant one thing to me... that Tita is giving Amber the love and proper care that she needs. Di ba nga, she went back for Amber when she heard her cry?

I learned from somewhere that children have keen senses. They know if a person cares for them or otherwise. Thus, they react similarly towards that person.

This incident made me feel better leaving Amber with Tita when the Hubby and I are at work. At least I know that my baby is in good hands and is properly taken cared of. Because of that, I appreciate Tita Renee the more!

And don’t I feel threatened that Amber would want Tita more than me? No, I’m not. I am and I will always be her Mom. No matter how close she is to someone else at the moment, I’m sure she will always turn to me when she needs her Mommy. That, I am very certain of! ^_^

El Pollo Loco

It was El Pollo Loco that saved me from my maddening hunger last night! I’ve been wandering around Megamall looking for a place to settle while I wait for the Hubby to finish his meeting. Nakailang balik din ako sa Building A and B! Feeling ko kasali ako sa walkathon of my life!

Kung bakit naman kasi, all of the coffee and yogurt bars that I passed by didn’t appeal to me. Parang may off. Either it’s crowded or the lights are too bright, feeling ko masa-sunburn ako!

So ayun, dumating na si Husbandry yet di pa ko nakakaupo and worse, I haven’t found a place where we can have dinner. Good thing he already had a restaurant in mind.

It was my first time to try this Mexican flame-grilled chicken. For a change, my order came with tortillas.

The Hubby still prefers rice.

Each of these costs Php165.

Instead of gravy, they pair their flame-grilled chicken with salsa, which you can choose to be spicy or not. I opted for the spicier one. It’s refreshing! I liked the taste of the fresh tomatoes with a hint of spice combined with the chicken and tortilla.

The breast-wing combination is sizeable enough to fill one’s appetite but the leg-thigh combi seems bitin. But the chicken is flavorful. I enjoyed that I can eat even its skin which is almost oil-free from grilling.

I’ll be trying their taco and burrito on my next visit and perhaps their other appetizing side dishes, too!

Just a little comment on the staff though. I don’t know if it was just me but I find them unfriendly. Let me check them again on my next visit.

El Pollo Loco is located at the Upper Ground, Building A of Megamall.

Peez, Mommy, Peez?

Yay! Hearing this from my 2-year old makes me uber happy! She now knows how and when to say “Please”.

When she asked me to open the TV, she said, “Watch teevee, peez?”.

When she wanted milk, she said, “Dede Mommy, peez?”.

When she saw Yakult in the ref, she said, “Ult, peeeez?”.

When she liked to read, she said, “Buk, peez?”.

When she wanted me to turn off the TV, she said, “Patay na teevee, peez?”.

I’m beaming with joy! ^_^

The Best Wipes for Me

Every Mom’s must-have is wipes! So I hoard as much as I can. ^_^

I’ve tried so many brands from the most inexpensive to the fancier ones, leaning towards of course to the cheaper brands. But most of the cheaper brands are just too thin,... too gauzy and dries up really fast.

There is one brand that I have been using ever since I’ve gotten my hands on it – the Baby First Baby Wipes! It’s just right for me and Amber!

It’s unscented, alcohol-free with the right texture and thickness and most importantly, it does not hurt my budget. A bundle of 3 60-pcs wipes costs PhP142.00, that’s PhP47.33 only per pack and PhP0.79 per piece.

I first found this 3-pack bundle at Puregold but they no longer have this. I was glad that Landmark Trinoma never runs out of stock! So I make sure that I buy at least 2-bundle packs everytime I go there.

The Hubby laughs at me for doing this kasi para daw akong mauubusan. Aba, you never can tell! Just last week, I panicked when I learned that we only have 2 packs left at home! 2-packs?!?! That’s almost none to me (yeah, I know, exage much!)!

So I took home another 3-bundle packs when I passed by Trinoma last Friday! I could’ve bought more but that and the rest of what I took home is quite heavy already.

Amber shares my love for this product. See, she even modelled it around...

Amber with her new haircut and
new batch of Baby First Wipes.

So happy with her latest stash!

Recipe: Sunday Nata Dessert

The Hubby and I share our liking for Nata De Coco. So instead of the common fruit salad, I whipped up a dessert that has Nata De Coco as the star of the recipe.

Ingredients:

How to:

-Just mix everything in a bowl. I used only half pack of the Nestle All-Purpose Cream.
-You may add in diced cheese to reduce the sweetness. :-)

I topped my serving with a spoonful of Good Shepherd’s Ube Jam.

Yum-yum!!! Sweetness overload!!!

Recipe: Sweet and Sour Fish Fillet

Months ago, I successfully copied this Fish Tempura recipe from Carmelyn (try this, it’s very good and fun to make! Just follow the simple steps and you will never go wrong!). Yesterday, I took it to the next level. I tried to make a Sweet and Sour Fish Fillet using the Fish Tempura recipe and here’s the finished product:

Before the sauce.

After the sauce!

I'm not that excited to share my recipe because it didn’t turn out to taste like how I hoped it would be. I think it still needs a lot of tweaking. I even forgot to put in onions. Hay! Tsk-tsk!

What I did was very simple. Hope someone out there would share with me their Sweet and Sour sauce recipes. ^_^

Ingredients:

1 Can Pineapple Chunks

1 Tbsp Tomato Paste

1 small Red Bell Pepper, diced

1 small Green Bell Pepper, diced

1 medium-sized Onion, diced (that I forgot, would you believe that?!?!)

1 Tbsp Vinegar

1 Tsp Sugar

Salt and Pepper to taste

How I did it:

1. Simmer the pineapple syrup from the Pineapple Chunks and Tomato Paste.

2. Add in Pineapple Chunks and Onion. Simmer for about a minute.

3. Then put in the vinegar and sugar. Allow the vinegar to cook before adding the Red and Green Bell Pepper.

*I suggest adding the bell peppers when the sauce is almost cooked because if you add it in earlier, the sauce will have an overpowering taste of bell peppers!*

4. Top the Fish Tempura with the Sweet and Sour Sauce and it’s already meal time!

I used half kilo Cream Dory Fish. Half of the Tempura, I served as it is with Mayo-Garlic Dip (not in the picture though).

Happy eating!

Amber's Gang

Ladies and gents, meet Pong...

Haha! So Batibot his name, noh? Pong Pagong... Pong Turtle!

He is Amber’s newest house buddy.

He will be joining the gang –

Mimi (Minnie)...

Teddy Laki...

Mumble...

Mumble requested that his picture be taken inside the freezer. This is to let his family know that he is doing good and is well taken cared of. Here's another shot of him...

Elmo (he’s injured, suffering from locked-jaw. He got this when Amber accidentally stepped on him. Poor Elmo!)...

Angel 624...

Froggy...

Choo-choo...

Julia...

Ceb...

Beatriz...

Teddy Liit (oops, he wasn't available during the pictorial, Amber was asleep and it was his turn to be her bedmate that time)...

See what lack of sleep can do to you? You start thinking they come to life! Tsk-tsk! I have to get that very needed sleep!

By the way, Pong Turtle is Amber’s pasalubong from her Tita Eyt.

I must not watch Toy Story in this state of mind.

Happy Monday everyone!!! ^_^

Masterchef Australia 2

...is my new favorite TV show!!!

It’s official! I’m addicted! I felt bad that Marion was eliminated in this morning’s episode. Well, I will also feel bad if it has been Aaron. Either ways, I’ll feel bad. I like them both.

Photo courtesy of smh.com.au

Kakatawa reaction namin ni Hubby when the host declared that Aaron get to stay. Parang si Pacman yung natalo. Haha!

I enjoy watching the show. I may not be able to taste the dishes or copy the recipes (kasi naman,  intimidating the ingredients most of the times!), but I love seeing how the foods are made and how they are creatively plated. I also get to learn names of spices, nuts, herbs and what they’re for. Oh di ba, nalilibang ka na, natututo ka pa!   

I think this is one of the reasons why I enjoy being in the kitchen lately. ^_^

It was Junior Masterchef Australia that first got me so hooked up in this show. 

Isn’t it amazing seeing kids 8 to 13 years old cook and plate dishes? Grabe, pakakainin ako ng alikabok ng mga ito pag hinamon ko ng lutuan (masarap na alikabok!). The way they move around the kitchen, pro na pro mga kapatid! The kids are not just adorable, they are bad-ass cooks! Kitchen divas! 

Anthony (in yellow shirt) is my crush! Ang cute-cute!
But he was eliminated  in Episode 7. :-(

ABS-CBN will soon air the Philippine edition of the Junior Masterchef. I’m excited to see this! 

^_^