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Dilemma

...albeit a happy one.

Last January, I was contacted by a headhunter for an interview with a competitor. Out of curiousity, I went. Boy, was I surprised that I didn't have to go through all the paper work of HR (and the initial screening with them), but also, I was practically offered the job already... right on my first interview. Anyhoo, that was way back in January. Then come June, they start calling me again because I need to go through a briefing but since I was busy then with board and stockholders' meetings, I told them I couldn't make it.

Finally, they're able to catch me at work today and they want to see me on Monday. I have to be briefed before the Chairman (yes, the owner of the Company) interviews me.

My colleague here at work, whom I've confided with and whose previous employer is the one that's getting me, nearly fell of his seat when I said that the Chairman has to see me. My colleague also feels that if I accept this job, it will open so many doors for me.

But as I told him, I've pretty much made up my mind. I don't want to be an employee forever. The perks that will come with the lofty title and monetary benefits will mean less time with my family. And besides, I'm starting my own business. Never mind that it's still so small and can't even sustain my family.

Now how do I tell them of my decision?

After 1 Week

While everyone seems to have watched “Transformers” already, the husband and I were only able to go to the cinema last night.



But it was worth the long wait. I loved it! And I would like to see it again.

photo courtesy of moviegoods.com

No More Aching Feet

With all the bazaars I've been joining lately, I am always on my feet and it's really a pain. I've tried Naturalizer but standing in them for 9 hours still makes my feet ache. (But I love Naturalizer for office and travelling). I don't dare use flip flops because I'm sure they'll be worse. Then I discovered that these Crocs are the best for my feet. I've tried both styles and they haven't brought on my plantar fasciitis.

So I've already bought several pairs of these and they're worth every peso I paid.

*photos courtesy of crocs.com

Zzzzzz....

All I want to do now is to go home and sleep. I am so exhausted from this weekend's bazaar. Although I am getting the hang of it from the prepping to the long hours on my feet, I still feel so tired.

Usually, I go on leave the day after the bazaar. But at the rate we're joining bazaars, I'm going to run out of leaves. While, bazaars can be extremely tiring, I am fulfilled at the end of the day (which is more than I can say about my day job). ; )

It's Not Convenient Shopping

As I do online selling too, I don't want to rant about other online sellers. It's just that I am pretty pissed right now at one online seller, although I won't share the name or link.

I read about good reviews about their "store" and clothes sometime last year. And since I liked the tops I saw, I ordered. Then I re-ordered and I pretty much, have gotten several pieces already.

There was a time last year that this top I got came with a belt. When I opened the package, there was no belt. She apologized and said she'd have it sent asap. It took around 4 days before it got to me. Usually, it would only take a day or two. I didn't really mind that incident.

More than a month ago, I ordered two tops. After I sent my order form, I didn't get any response from her. Some days after, I texted her and that's the only time I hear from her. And she only tells me then that it will take two weeks for my order to be ready. I didn't mind much, but I wondered why she didn't post that bit of info on her site. She's quick to follow up on payments, but when it comes to delivery, she takes a while. After I pay, I text her immediately. But since I was so busy that day, I didn't get to follow up on my text. Around two weeks after, I noticed that I still didn't get any package. I text her and she asks me if I paid already. What the?!!? Good thing I kept the transaction slip from the bank so I text her all the details of my deposit.

I can be quite stubborn. When I saw this really nice dress on her site the other week, I placed an order right away. Two days after still no reply from her, I text her because I wanted to follow up on my request to customize the length of the dress. I paid her last week and I asked when can I expect the dress? And she replies "tom." I instruct our helper to wait for a package that should have arrived Wednesday or Thursday. By Saturday, I still didn't get any package so I ask her what happened. She asks if I have paid already. Then she said she'll send the package on Monday. I hope that this time, it gets to me as scheduled. And the dress better be worth it.

But even if she has great looking tops and dresses, I don't think I will order from her anymore.

Spotlight on Tuxxy (and the little girl)

Tuxxy has been part of our family for over two months and I haven't even posted much about him. He's an adorable feline and so much like Garfield. All he does is eat, sleep and eat some more and sleep even more. But the little girl loves Tuxxy and having him around is teaching her a lot too. While she gets a little rough with him from time to time, she generally loves to hug Tuxxy. She likes to watch him eat and can't wait to play with him when she wakes up in the morning.

Just this morning while I was getting ready for work, I decided to peep from the bathroom at what the little girl was doing. And I saw her hugging Tuxxy and telling him, "lab u tussy boy." She can't pronounce the letter 'X' yet. Often times, I hear her calling to Tuxxy, "Tussy, sit down" or "Tussy where you?" or "Tussy up."

When she thinks no one's looking, she "converses" with Tuxxy. Sometimes you can understand what she's saying, but most of the time, she's just blabbering.

While I was hesitant to get a cat, I'm glad I gave in to the little girl. We were offered a siamese cat yesterday by my uncle, but I think we can only handle 1 cat for now. Because my gosh, this feline stinks up the house, despite his kitty litter. ; )

I Don't Know

More often than not, I hover around the delete button of this blog. I don't know, I just feel that it's the same thing over and over. It's the same old kind of thing.

Some days I feel like writing and writing, while there are also episodes of several days passing by with hardly anything to write. Writer's block, is it? I don't know.

And it creeps me out when I meet strangers or some distant acquaintance who has read this blog. This has happened a couple of times already. Yes, I know that this blog is on the net, hence, it's open to everybody. So notice why I don't post much personal pics anymore? And I've more or less decided to end this blog when the domain name expires.

What Sundays Are Made Of

• lazing around in bed
• enjoying my cup of brewed coffee while talking with the husband
• a quick lunch out
• an afternoon nap
• watching DVDs
• eating chocolates in bed with the little girl
• running in UP
• eating taho in UP
• a leisurely trip to the grocery

Of course, all these with the husband and little girl.

Friendship Tag

It took me awhile to post this tag, but I am grateful to Mandy for passing this on to me. : D


Passing this on now to everyone here. :D

When The Sun Is Out

...we go swimming!!!



The little girl had been bugging us everyday (as in everyday) to take her to the beach. My dad even told me to book tickets for Cebu already. As if it's so easy for me to do that.

So the next best thing we did was to bring her last Saturday to my lola's place and swim. It's just a couple of blocks away from our place, so once the sun was out, all we had to do was get out the little girl's swim suit and go off. Now why didn't I think of this earlier?!

My 8s

thanks Gracie for this tag :D

8 Things I’m Looking Forward To
- new products at IB
- more bazaars
- renovating our terrace (but it’s not happening in the near future)
- baby #2 (hopefully this year when the doctor gives me the go signal. I’ve had some vaccines in the past months, that’s why)
- travel plans this year (but feeling ho-hum about it because of the swine flu going around) - getting my new tops (their supposed to arrive this week)
- another spa treatment (next week, maybe?)
- making the payment on an investment

8 Things I Did Yesterday
- went to work
- did my banking transactions online
- checked my emails and multiply sites
- paid my credit card bill
- fed Tuxxy
- followed up on my online order (no reply till now)
- prepared the little girl’s clothes for school today
- slept early

8 Things I Wish I Could Do
- sing and dance
- drive (I don’t drive anymore)
- cook without looking at the recipe
- draw
- be a WAHM
- be more organized
- make time stand still (hahaha!)
- take a long and luxurious hot bath, with all the works (bubble bath, scrubs)

8 Shows I Watch
- Because the little girl monopolizes the TV, I hardly watch TV nowadays. But when I do, it’s usually tuned to the Lifestyle Network

8 people to tag
I think everyone has done this tag already. But feel free to snag anyway : )

Blame It On The Cat

Last night, the little girl was off to dreamland by 10pm. I swore that this would be the night that I would sleep early. No more working, no internet, no reading, no chores. By 11pm, I too, am off to dreamland.

I suddenly woke up, from an already deep slumber, because Tuxxy is inside our room and he was purring so noisily. I call out to the husband to take Tuxxy out of the room and I was surprised that the husband was still at the laptop at that late hour. Anyway, he gets Tuxxy and I try to go back to sleep. I rarely touch Tuxxy nowadays because I discovered that I'm allergic to cat hair.

Sometime after, the husband comes in and goes to bed. When I finally get drowsy once more, I hear incessant scratching and meowing at the door. Ugh! It seems like Tuxxy wants to come in but I tell the husband not to let the cat in because his he doesn’t have a kitty litter in our room. But the scratching gets so annoying that the husband finally gives in. Then the little girl gets restless so I give her milk. There goes my sleep.

When the little girl is done with her milk, and once again I am off to dreamland, Tuxxy starts to meow and play with the cord of the electric fan. It is really annoying. This happens several times, no matter how the husband tries to shush him. I don’t know what happens between 3 and 4am. I don’t really know if the husband finally booted Tuxxy out of our room or if Tuxxy decided to sleep too.

When the alarm goes off at 7am, it was so hard to get up from bed. I am still so sleepy and nowhere near on catching up with my lost sleep. Darn it.

Post Mother's Day Weekend

Well, that's what I like to call it since we were at the bazaar the other weekend.

Anyway, last Friday, the husband and I had dinner at my favorite place, Cyma. Of course, I had to order htipiti (I don't remember if I got the spelling right). Then watched the last full show of "Angels and Demons." I won't go into detail, but I loved it! I read the book a couple of years ago and I could hardly wait for the movie to show here. You just have to realize that Dan Brown's books are a work of fiction and nothing more.

On Saturday, I did some work for IB but the afternoon was spent pampering myself at the spa. After a week of sore and tired muscles, I looked forward to this massage. The husband and I went to the opening of our friend's art exhibit, then we ended the night with dinner at Amici. Even if I was too stuffed from the pasta and pizza, I still managed to eat 1 scoop of gelato.

Sunday was spent lazing around at home and of course, taking care of the little girl. Lunch was at my parents' place and we had turkey, with gravy or cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and veggies. While lunch was relatively healthy, our dinner was sinfully delicious as we had roasted duck.

I wish I had more weekends like this. How did your weekend go?

Visit to the Dentist

Last Friday, I brought the little girl to the pediatric dentist for the first time. It was a long overdue visit which I've been postponing because I feared the little girl's reaction. My bad. But our pedia insisted that we schedule the visit before the summer is over.

Trying to get a slot with this dentist was difficult already. She's so busy and her appointments are back to back. Good thing that there was an opening on the same day that I was on leave. When we were waiting for our turn, I saw the dentist's credentials and I was impressed with all those certifications she had hanging on her wall. I liked the look of her clinic which was very kid friendly. Before she saw to the little girl, she talked with me first. She went over the form I had to fill out and asked some basic questions about the little girl. Hmmm... So far so good, I was beginning to like the dentist at this point.

The tricky part was getting the little girl to cooperate with the dentist. I was already prepped by the dentist on what to expect. But while I expected the worst, I was relieved that despite the little girl's screams and cries, the dentist managed to clean her teeth, show me how to properly brush her teeth and she applied flouride, as well. Then she called me again to her office to discuss in detail how to brush the little girl's teeth, weaning her from the bottle, even her milk and food intake. Now I was impressed. This was not your usual dentist who cleaned your teeth and collected payment. What I paid her was money well spent. And I'm even looking forward to our next appointment in 6 months.

What The?!?!

I am so infuriated with the little girl’s former yaya. I thought that everything was settled amicably already. Then yesterday, she texted my mom and she was seemingly in a bad mood.

Brief background, this yaya was all set to go on a month long vacation by the end of March. I already paid for her tickets, both ways. All of a sudden, when I went down for coffee one morning (sometime third week of March), she said that she had to leave that same morning because her grandfather was sick. Ok fine, we understood her situation and let her leave that day. My dad even got her ticket and she made a cash advance from the husband. After a week or so, she texted one of my parents’ helpers that she’ll be back sooner than expected because she doesn’t have money anymore. So we make plans that she can go straight to Cebu and we’ll just meet up. This was during Holy Week yet. Then those plans didn’t materialize because she extended her leave because according to her, she has appendicitis. The husband asked her if she’s sure about that condition because appendicitis can’t be cured with just rest and medicines. But she was sure, so we just left it at that.

She texts our helper that she’ll be back by the end of April. Ok again. And we didn’t say anything. Then come May 1, we learned her grandfather died so obviously she can’t come back. I was expecting her to be back sometime this week, but she called another helper of my mom and said that she’ll be back on May 15. Finally, we put our foot down. The husband called her up and said that why can’t she even tell us about her sudden change of plans herself. Why do we have to hear it from other people? And why can’t she come back right away? She even made sumbat that she informed him that she has appendicitis which she has to get cured first because she’ll be taking care of our child. My face starts getting really red at this point. But one little birdie told us that she doesn’t really have appendicitis but she worked at a store first to earn enough money for her ticket to come back. When we learned that, I told the husband, don’t tell her we know about it anymore. At least she’s making an effort to come back and she shows signs of “hiya”. But because of her lack of respect and over extended vacation, the husband told her off. He told her that he knows she doesn’t have appendicitis. And if she had said the truth in the first place, we would have understood. But lying is a no-no to us because she can do it again. And she left us hanging all this time. We realized that we can do without her and we managed perfectly well. The little girl doesn’t even look for her.

Anyway, back to the present. She texted my mom and asked her who was the person who told us about her working in a store. My mom said that she should ask the husband. The yaya replied that the problem with us is that we listen to hearsay. My mom forwards all those texts to the husband, who, in turn texts the yaya. He told her not to bother other people about her concerns and the issue was more on the extended leave which is an abuse already. She finally texts, “abuso kung abuso.”

I was even willing to offer to look for a job for her. I’m glad that I didn’t because her true colors are coming out. And she just said goodbye to her chances of coming back to us. When we decided to let her go, we told her that when the time comes that we have baby #2, we will give her a call.

Oh My Aching Feet

The Baghag recently wrote about her own woes with plantar fasciitis. In the past months, I’ve developed the same thing and it is really a pain. When I googled for shoes best for people with plantar fasciitis, I came across some facts about this from www.healthyshoestore.com.

The symptoms of Plantar Fasciitis are:
· Pain on the bottom of the heel
· Pain that is usually worse upon arising
· Pain that increases over a period of months

People with plantar fasciitis often describe the pain as worse when they get up in the morning or after they've been sitting for long periods of time. After a few minutes of walking the pain decreases, because walking stretches the fascia. For some people the pain subsides but returns after spending long periods of time on their feet.Causes of Plantar Fasciitis The most common cause of plantar fasciitis relates to faulty structure of the foot. For example, people who have problems with their arches-either overly flat feet or high-arched feet are more prone to developing plantar fasciitis.Wearing non-supportive footwear on hard, flat surfaces puts abnormal strain on the plantar fascia and can also lead to plantar fasciitis. This is particularly evident when a person's job requires long hours on their feet. Obesity also contributes to plantar fasciitis.

I know my plantar fasciitis came about because of my penchant for flats. And flats without any heel support at that. I’ve already stopped wearing flats and I’ve been using all my high heeled shoes now. I also try to avoid standing for long periods of time so that I don’t put too much weight on my heels. And it’s a good thing that I tried to remedy the situation because the pain has subsided considerably.

I still wanted to research on the proper footwear. But when I checked out the proper shoes that I should be wearing, they’re all so er.. ugly. They’re all bulky and clunky. What’s a girl to do now? Like any other girl, I like pretty shoes. Hmmm… hmm…

Time To Get The Boot

Our little girl’s yaya is still on a grand long vacation and we already feel that it’s an abuse on her part. She even left earlier than the agreed date and it’s been over a month since then. She keeps on postponing her return trip and gives all kinds of excuses and while we’ve put up with it, we need to put our foot down already. She probably thinks that she’s indispensable and we’ll simply tolerate her whims, not to mention that we’re also paying her generously. Never mind that she’s a good yaya and gets along well with the little girl. The husband and I discussed it this morning and we will not hire the yaya anymore. And along with that, we will also write off her cash advance.

Summer Class for the Little Girl

This morning, I enrolled the little girl in summer class in the same school where her Kindermusik classes are held. At least, the surroundings will be familiar to her. Classes will be for 1.5 hours every Wednesdays and Fridays and there will be lots of activities each day. I’m particularly excited to see how the little girl will develop in this environment. Activities include recreational games, story-telling, and arts and crafts. It will also give the little girl an outlet for all her energy.

I also inquired about their play group come June, although the teacher said the little can actually enroll for a full year already. But I learned that classes are everyday and a curriculum is followed. I feel that it’s too early to let the little girl go through that. For now, I just want a couple of hours each week outside the house and to interact with other children her age. And I'm pretty sure that we will continue to enroll in Kindermusik classes since the little girl enjoys the sessions.

Mana sa Mommy

The little girl loves to swim and I know she got it from me! hahaha! Until now, she keeps on saying "beach." And when we were in Cebu, she wouldn't want to be pulled out from the pool or beach.

Here we are are at the City Sports Club in the Ayala Business Park. It's so convenient for us to go there because it's just 5 minutes away from the house.



Here I am giving the little girl her first swimming lessons. Sayang naman all those years of my training.

Eating Out in Cebu

When we arrived in Cebu, we ate at Laguna Garden Café in Ayala Center. It’s typical Filipino food, so expect there’s nothing really new. But I liked the crispy tadyang that we ordered. It was crispy and very flavorful, even without the dipping sauce. Then for desert, we went to Gelatissimo. The servings here are huge! I liked that they had some uncommon flavors, not just the usual flavors of hazelnut, chocolate and pistachio.


On the same day, we had dinner at Hola Espana since we also celebrated the husband’s birthday. I liked the tapas we ordered. Well, I’m always partial to Spanish tapas that’s why. Of course we had the requisite paella, a squid dish and another chicken dish. Since I was busy with the little girl, who was cranky after a tiring afternoon of swimming, I didn’t get to fully appreciate the meal. : (


Of course, we also ate at Vienna Kaffeehaus which has always been a staple in all of my Cebu trips since I was a kid. I was surprised that they expanded their menu to include Italian meals now. We tried their pizza, and being the pizza lover that I am, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I go for thin and crisp pizzas, which is exactly what we had. I love their coffee and on my dad’s trips to Cebu, he sometimes buys us big bags of coffee beans.

When we were in Mactan, we had dinner at La Taverna. We dined alfresco and we enjoyed the fresh night air. Once again, we ordered pizza, but I didn’t like the crust at all. It was like store bought crust. Nonetheless, the pasta dishes and the salad nicoise we ordered were pretty good.


On one of our lunch outs, my dad brought us to Neo Neo which served superbly good chicken inasal! The chicken alone was so tasty! Till now, I can’t get over that meal.

On our last day in Cebu, I brought the husband to Ayala Center, while my parents stayed at home with the little girl. Good thing that Ayala Center is just 5 minutes from home so the husband didn’t have any difficulty driving to the mall. To cool us down, I brought the husband to Orange Brutus. We had an immense brain freeze from our fruit shakes. When I was a kid, I could just walk to the Orange Brutus branch near my grandparents’ home.

Most Of The Time, It Doesn't Feel That Way

You Live an Exciting Life

You are anything but a bore. You make sure that life is full of excitement. You have an adventurous spirit, and you don't like to sit still for too long. If you feel like doing something, you don't think about it. You just do it. There's no way you could ever live a boring life. There's too much to do and not enough time.

Is Your Life Boring?

New Addition To Our Family

Like I had blogged some days back, we are adopting a cat. Just the thought of it fills me with apprehension and dread. Honestly, I've never been a cat person, quite the opposite in fact. But the husband loves cats and had several before. Since we got married, he's been asking me for a cat but I've always told him no. Now, the little girl is so like her dad, in that she loves cats. I've given in, only because of the little girl. What's a mom to do, right?

I am not ready to have a pet inside our home. I am not ready for the probable mess the cat's going to make on our couches, floors, in other words, the whole house. But if it will make my little girl happy, so be it. I just hope I don't regret this decision.

Anyway, a month ago, when this cat was rescued, we were among the first who saw it. It was purely by chance that we happened to be in the same area. The husband talked with our neighbors who are from the animal welfare coalition and who handled the rescued cat. It was love at first sight for the husband. It's not a pusakal (pusang kalye), but some kind of breed which I honestly don't know. Since then, no one has come to retrieve the cat, but the list is growing for those who want to adopt the cat.

Here's an update from ACC which I got in my email:
"To those who are tuned in to this cat story, or even those who are reading about this subject for the first time, Tuxxy is leaving us, his foster home, in a few days.

This "formally dressed" cat was rescued by a resident last March 29, and immediately turned over to the ACC for assistance in locating his original guardians.

To this day, no human has come forward to claim Tuxxy. Instead, friends and other residents (who either saw Tux temporarily caged for 2 days or his online pictures) wanted to adopt this adorable feline.

ACC decided the most suitable match was a young couple whose little daughter has been watching and petting all feral cats outside their house. They've been waiting patiently and excitedly for Tux to join their family all these weeks.

It didn't take long for this unique cat to feel "right at home" in our house. He befriended all the other cats. He loves to drink, fiercely guards his water dish (must have been a labrador in his previous life), and savors the refrigerator's cold air.

Tuxxy has been checked by Doc R, nursed back to health by his foster moms and will move to his permanent home this week. Oh, we will miss him terribly!!"

Now, we've already bought a whole bunch of toys, feeding bowls, bed, scratching mat and all things that we think a cat might need or want. Tuxxy will be brought to our home on Sunday. It was supposed to be much earlier, but I just asked for an extension to get the house ready. It's worse than preparing for a baby!

Here are some pics emailed to us of Tuxxy:

Beach Bums

During our trip to Cebu, we stayed overnight at Costabella Beach Resort. It's been around for 20 years and we've been going there since I was a kid. Despite all the new beach resorts around Mactan, we still keep on going back to Costabella. I like how everything is near our bedroom, from the cafe to the pool, and of course, the beach. Costabella has kept up with the times. Its constantly renovating and reinventing themselves. And it's a favorite among the Japanese and Koreans.


L-R The lobby, the little girl, our room



The view from our balcony



My parents' suite and the view from their balcony.



It's all about the little girl




And some other shots

Weekend Ramblings

It's Tuesday already, but anyway, how was your weekend? Ours was hectic, as usual, but we still managed to spend quality time with the little girl.

• Saturday morning was spent running around the metro for our errands. Argh, it was crazy but at least we got everything done.
• On Saturday, we got an inquiry from ABS CBN that they would like to shoot one of their shows in our home. Without hesitation or without even asking for details, we just said no. They probably thought we're crazy for declining.
• Saturday night, the animal welfare society went to our house to inspect it. Basically to see if it's suitable for a cat. This will be another separate blog entry altogether.
• We had lunch at my BIL's house since he was celebrating his birthday. The menu was so yummy! For starters, we had salad with a strawberry vinaigrette, main course included lengua, camaron rebosado, caldereta and something else which escapes my mind right now. For desert, we had a kind of pudding using broas made by my MIL, while we brought baklava (my favorite) and food for the gods.
• The husband and I went to the mall after lunch. I had to get new blush powder because Ms. Butterfingers that I am, I dropped my old one and the blush crumbled into itty bitty pieces and it's just so messy. I went off to Beauty Bar and I ended up with not just 1 but 2 different kinds of blush.
  

The Perfect Beach Bag

When we went to the beach, I brought along this beach bag and it was so handy! It was perfect to tote along to the beach since it had so many pockets. Too many, in fact, that I always had to scrounge for our room key. It was big and roomy enough to fit our towels, the little girl's robe, her pail and shovels, sunblock, after sun cooling gel, digicam and so much more. And because of the material, the sand is so easy to dust off. And it's foldable and flat that it didn't consume a big space in our suitcase.

The M Family of 3

Got this fun tag from Vina. : ) thanks, vina!

Make your Stick Figure Family at FreeFlashToys.com

Let's see you do your own stick figure family. : )

Ceboom!

I'm so busy and I can't find the time to properly blog about our Holy Week escapade. I'll just let the pics do the talking.

Making The Most of My ME Time

The little girl left for Cebu this afternoon and I had the whole afternoon to myself. So I made another appointment at the spa. The sauna felt so good and despite the heat, it was somehow refreshing. Then the massage... it's beyond words! After a long and tiring weekend at the bazaar, a massage was exactly just what I needed. 

Then I watched "Bride Wars," although it wasn't fantastic or anything to rave about. It just made me reminisce a bit about my own wedding preps. But I managed to get teary eyed during the movie. hee hee... 

I still need to pack our clothes for tomorrow. And it's freaking me out because I can't seem to figure out what clothes to bring. Do you ever get the feeling that there's nothing in your closet? I have piles and piles of tshirts, but I can't decide what to bring. 

I hope you all have a blessed and meaningful Holy Week. 

Getting Ready for the Beach

This time around, I'm packing light and summery clothes for the little girl.

For the beach and her other swimming activities, I've already prepared these. I can't wait to see her reaction when the little girl sees the beach for the first time. She loves the water just like me.

Have Time to Shop?

If you've got free time this weekend, drop by the NBC Tent at the Fort for the Karl Edwards Bazaar. We'll be there, just look out for us. :D

Summer Retreat

We will be spending our Holy Week in Cebu. I can't wait to hit the beach! I love the beach. Must be all those years spent in the beaches of Cebu and the fact that I love to swim.

I'm excited because it will be the little girl's first time to go to the beach. She'll be going off to Cebu earlier with my parents, while the husband and I will follow a day later. But before all that, I need to pack her stuff. Anyone with a kid will know that you practically need to pack the whole house. I've already set aside some of her clothes, swimsuits and toiletries.

On top of what I need to do, I'm so preoccupied with the bazaar we're joining this weekend. We're so busy preparing all our goods, sticking on labels, printing leaflets, and the list goes on.

But I'm happy, never mind the late nights and the mess our house is in right now.

WW 04.01.09 Dusk

Things That Keep Me Sane at Work

When work gets hectic and crazy, these are what keep me sane...


A picture of the husband and the little girl and a hot cup of tea :D

It's a Crazy Morning

The little girl's yaya is supposed to go on a 3-week vacation on Monday. I'll be on leave on some days during this period so that I can watch the little girl. But this morning, as I was making my coffee, the yaya tells me she has to go home TODAY because her grandfather is sick. While I can understand and sympathize with her, it also leaves me with a problem. I was all set for her to go on leave on Monday, not today! It's a good thing that I've already told the other helper to do a general cleaning of the house.

What bad timing! We have our board meeting today and I had to rush out of the house this morning. Thank goodness for the husband who adjusted his schedule for the day so he can be with the little girl for the most part of the day.

The thought of being yayaless is stressing me out. I've just grown accustomed to having a yaya around, and one who's very capable at handling the little girl, at that. I'm very hands on with the little girl, but I worry when the husband and I will be out of the house. *sigh*

Retail Therapy Is Breaking the Bank

From Friday to Sunday, I was at the mall. After a long time away from the mall, it was like I was back with a wicked vengeance! My wallet really took a beating!

I bought toys, clothes and several flip flops for the little girl. Just when the mall was about to close, I managed to buy some tops for myself too. Good thing I wasn't able to find a decent pair of shoes for myself or I would really hate to get my credit card statement next month. There was also a tunic that's so perfect for summer but it didn't come in my size. Bummer.

During my lunchbreak today, I still did some shopping online! Ugh! This. is. bad. But it makes me happy. *big silly grin*

Kreativ Blogger Award

While bloghopping, I saw that I received this award from Vina. Thanks, thanks!



The rules that go along with this blogger award are as follows:

Name 7 things that you love then pass this onto 7 other kreativ bloggers. In no particular order, here are my loves:

1. my family and friends
2. books
3. blogging (well, it's a love-hate relationship)
4. shopping, especially when I get a good bargain
5. my home
6. my latest hobby (more on that next time)
7. cooking/baking

Passing this on now to Gracie, Issa, Monet, MM, Jacqui (who I'm always bumping into at work), Eper and Mandy

The Little Girl Now

We had a reunion with my dad's side of the family at my lola's house last Sunday. It was so much fun to see all my cousins, aunts and uncles. Here are a couple of pics of the little girl while we were waiting for the guests.


Tina frolicking in the garden at high noon

Guess whose house is over that wall? Next time, I'll try to eavesdrop and take some pictures. hee hee

The Heat Is On!

It’s summer and it’s time to bring out all those summer outfits!

For the little girl, it’s time for me to haul out her inflatable pool, floaties, goggles and all those other swimming accessories. She’s got several bikinis (yes she beats her mom at this) and I’ve to choose which one to bring out first. But a quick trip to the mall is needed because I need to get her some flip flops. I already bought her sunblock last weekend. I'm planning several trips to the pool with her this summer.

While traipsing around Trinoma during lunch today, I saw adorable floaties with a fun Nemo design at Toys R Us. I’m thinking of getting this for her since she’s hooked on Nemo. Then they have some nice water games that you hook up to the hose. I bet the little girl will have so much fun with those, never mind my water bill. I didn’t bring enough cash nor my card with me so I’ll have to drop by again soon.

I saw some nice strappy sandals for myself which would be so perfect for the summer months. Hmm… I’m still debating whether I should buy them. I might need to get myself a new swimsuit because I doubt if I can fit into the ones I have at home. I’m in need of some shorts and sleeveless tops for the coming hot weekends. That means shopping for me! Woohoo!

My First Rant for the Week

I was reading the Inquirer this morning while I was having breakfast. And right there on the front page were some grammatical errors. Then I moved on to the inner sections and I was surprised to find the same grammatical errors.

Doesn’t the Inquirer proofread its articles before going to print? I’m not saying that I am an expert on the spoken and written English language but those were blaringly loud errors. Given their caliber, I am quite disappointed in them. Naturally substance is important but if you’re going to do something, then do it right.