Team Edward

Can’t wait for Eclipse? It’s only..

Eclipse Movie and Breaking Dawn

Now showing: UP

Joshua’s night routine includes:

• Playing
• Eating dinner
• Brushing his teeth
• Taking a bath
• Drinking his milk
• Watching UP

It has been two weeks now that the little boy, err, kuya has been watching this movie. He loves it to bits. Often times when we are all sleepy, we let him watch it all by himself. He would wake his dad then (around 11pm or 12mn) to remove the laptop on the bed – no need to shut it down as he knows what to do. He knows the story very well and even lines from the movie itself.

• Good afternoon, my name is Russel, a wilderness explorer in tribe 54…
• Snipe (clap three times), here Snipey Snipey..
• The wilderness must be explored, caw, caw, roar! – with matching actions
• Cross your heart, cross it!

It’s the time of the year

of gift giving, that is. Wherever I go, I can see and feel that Christmas is around the corner. Long queue of cabs, long queue of free gift wrapping, traffic everywhere. This is the time of the year when cash out is bigger than cash in. Nevertheless, this still makes people festive, I included.

Been very, very busy this past few days going to different malls scouting for perfect gifts for my loved ones. Never mind that I’ll be stuck in the traffic afterwards. I am almost complete with my Christmas shopping, the only thing that lacks is the watch I was looking for my mother.

Good thing, online shopping has been invented and I saw right away the Seiko Ladies Coutura Diamond Watch my mother loved to have. Thanks to ShopWiki for making my shopping less stressful. Now, all I need to do is to click Add to Cart. Got to go now, still has plenty of gifts to wrap.

God’s reminder

Me and my babies

Joshua’s Christmas Party

The little boy had his first taste of Christmas party in school. All three levels were merged into one and had it held at Jollibee Lianas Alabang. Joshua had all fun and even join the games. There were no exchange gifts but instead, the parents bought gifts for their own kid. He has giddy happy when he was called for his gift (a robot). After the party, off we went to Shopwise Santana Groove to have dinner at bought milk for him and diapers for Claire.

Gingersnaps Sale

Fire Power

The husband will definitely stay home on Sunday morning. And I will have to do all the chores by myself while he is busy watching TV. God bless Pacquiao!

Ondoy, etc.

Many of our countrymen lost their homes when Typhoon Ondoy hit our country. Others even lost their loved ones. Because of this, many have been aware and became extra precautious every time a typhoon has been forecasted to hit us. We are one of those lucky people who was not been affected by the previous typhoon. My in-laws though are not spared as flood entered their homes. My husband was with them during those time while I was waiting home with a newborn and a toddler praying for his safety. Until now, the flood hasn’t subsided yet. With such experience, we have been thinking of getting Real Property Management.

Tell her

Richwell sale

Just a few more days and it’s already November. Everybody would be so busy with their Christmas shopping. Start shopping by going to Richwell sale.

5-cent coin

I have a three year old son who has been super active, super playful and hard headed. I let him play hard with his tito or else I’ll hear his loud wail as if somebody died, LOL! At an early age, we let him handle coins which he usually puts on his pocket or even on his piggy bank. We have trained him not to put anything on his mouth especially coins. But kids will always be kids. Lately, he had an accident that made our world turned almost upside down. He accidentally swallowed a 5-cent coin and he only told us the two days after. Holy cow! We can’t even tell whether he’s telling the truth or not. I even confirm if it was those rare coin he usually sees. Being the worried parents, the husband (I can’t come with them as I am nursing a little girl) immediately rushed him to his pediatrician. Since it was days already after that, we weren’t able to monitor his poop. The pediatrician checked on his lungs and did some tests to make sure that the coin didn’t reach his lungs. Now, he is banned of handling money especially coins. Lesson learned the hard way for the parents. Tsk tsk tsk.

I’m back

Yes, I’m back but still in hiatus in blogging. I still have to learn to juggle my time as a new mother (for the second time), a mama cow and an employee. It has been almost a month now after tropical storm Ondoy has flooded our country and I bet, many people like us needs to buy used cars temporarily most especially those whose cars are flooded. Good thing there are a few stores who offers them in reasonable prices. The husband is actually off the car hunting right now, and since we still can’t afford to buy a brand new, a second one will do.

Mommy duties

I will temporarily be absent in the blogosphere for a few months so I can focus on my mommy duties to the little princess. Please also pray for a successful operation as I'll be admitted tomorrow morning in Ospital ng Muntinlupa. The operation (caesarian delivery) will be on August 18, 2009 at 10 am.

Tita Lai

We first met when I started to work at SMPHI. She was ever bubbly and full of life. We instantly click. She’s just few years older than me but I fondly called her Tita Lai. We shared secrets and I thank her for covering me up with our boss during those days. She has been promoted several times during my stay with the company but that didn’t change her of how she treats us. I got her as Joshua’s ninang although they haven’t seen each other for quite some time now. I thank God for allowing me to be friend with such a wonderful person inside and out. And on her special day, I prayed that she would finally find the right man for her and that she would forever be happy.

Happy birthday bru. I miss you and see you soon. San ang treat mo? Hahaha!

PGMA is dead

Oh no! Someone is in trouble? Manila Bulletin that is. Their issue yesterday (August 6, 2009) showed a picture with caption WITH UTMOST CARE that had the biggest mistake of writing coffin of President Arroyo instead of President Aquino.

How will Malacañang react? Hmm…

I was wondering though, didn’t MB proof read before publishing the news? Also, as far as I remember in HS, our teacher told us that MB is usually pro administration when it comes to news. Now, will they still be like this?

As always, abangan ang susunod na kabanata…

08.05.09

Yesterday, the country has finally bid their last farewell to the queen we never had, the democracy icon, President Corazon Aquino. PGMA made the day a non-working holiday beforehand. And since the duty calls, I drag myself to work at 7am.

Thanks to ANC’s live streaming, we were able to watch the requiem mass in Manila Cathedral all the way to the funeral march to Manila Memorial Park. Past 3pm, nearing my shift’s end, the march was still not in Nichols Interchange. I live in Sucat so there’s no way I can go home but to wait until everything was done. Past 4pm, the march has just passed Nichols. I texted my husband that I won’t be able to come home yet. He volunteered to fetch me as the north bound lane is traffic free. Half past 5, he was already in SM Makati.

He had his merienda/dinner first and since I still feel full because of water overload (I’m on a diet, you know), I just watched him eat. Afterwards, we went window shopping both in SM and Glorietta. I was supposed to buy a flip-flops but the designs available in All Flip Flops are not too cute for me. The husband however was able to buy a Sandugo slipper.

Past 7pm, I received a text from a colleague that the march has not arrived yet in Sucat. So the husband insisted to watch a movie instead. I was not keen of seeing a movie lately but since I haven’t watched the latest Harry Potter(I know, I am so, so, so late about this), I obliged. The husband bought me Wendy’s salad for my dinner. What can I say about the story? Too bitin. Of course, I was like comparing the whole story again and the book itself. I heard, Book 7 will have 2 parts for the movie. I just hope it’ll give justice to the book – without cutting important scenes.

Anyways, to cut the long story short, we were home at 11pm. The little boy is already asleep and I was so dead tired that I immediately hit the sack right after I my nightly ritual.

It was one tiring day for me? Where were you yesterday?

Democracy Icon

After more than a year of battling colon cancer, our President Corazon Aquino passed away today. It was his only son, Senator Noynoy Aquino who announced her passing.

The official statement states: “Our mother peacefully passed away at 3:18 a.m. August 1, 2009 of cardio respiratory arrest. She would have wanted us to thank each and every one of you for all the prayers and your continued love and support. It was her wish for all of us to pray for one another and our country. Hinihiling po ng aming pamilya ang konting panahon para makasama namin ang aming mahal na ina."

Read more here.

Corazon Cojuangco – Aquino (1933-2009 )

Goodbye nappies?

My mom started to potty train my son before he turns one. He didn’t even use his potty trainer as he prefers to poop in the toilet. Before he turns two, he doesn’t wear nappies during daytime. The hardest part of potty training him is whenever we go out of the house, i.e., going to the mall or groceries and during the night. We had several accidents inside the mall and groceries.

Before I got pregnant, we already told him to stop wearing nappies. We even told him that instead of buying nappies, we can buy toys for him. When I got pregnant, we openly discussed to him that he is already a kuya and he should do this and that - including not wearing diapers anymore. We have attempted it several times (including the time he has to go to school) but we failed. He had accidents in school and shows he was ashamed of what happen. He doesn’t want to sit down even on public vehicle if he is wet. I guessed he is still not prepared to say goodbye to his nappies.

Last Monday though, we run out of nappies. We don’t have time to go to the groceries so we thought of letting him sleep through the night without a nappy. Before that, we remind him that he isn’t wearing a nappy and that he should advise us if he wants to pee. The first two days, as I usually had the urge to pee at 12 midnight, I have to wake up the husband to take the little boy to the comfort room to pee. Lately though, the husband is too tamad to wake up at midnight so I let it pass. I can’t carry the little boy, you know. It has been 4 straight nights and he didn’t have any accidents at all.

Is it goodbye to nappies now? Or it’s still too early to tell?

H1N1 virus severely affects pregnancy

A colleague of forwarded me this article. It was scary and I fervently prayed that me and my preggie friends will be spared from the virus.

Study: H1N1 virus more severely affects pregnant women ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Pregnant women infected with the H1N1 virus are more likely to be hospitalized from it and perhaps even more likely to die from it, according to a federal study released Wednesday. The authors of the study suggest that pregnant women infected with the virus, commonly known as swine flu, take antiviral drugs to protect themselves and their fetuses. "If they feel sick, they need to call their health care provider and their health care provider needs to prescribe antivirals promptly," said Dr. Denise J. Jamieson, lead author of the study and a medical officer at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some doctors are reluctant to prescribe the drugs to pregnant women because they are concerned about their possible effect on the fetus, but Jamieson urged them to put aside those concerns. "We know, in this situation, the benefits very likely outweigh the risks, because pregnant women could get pretty darn sick with influenza," the obstetrician-gynecologist told CNN. In fact, they could get more than sick. Of the 45 H1N1 deaths reported to the CDC between April 15 and June 16, six (13 percent) were among pregnant women. All of them had been healthy before infection, and all went on to develop viral pneumonia, leading to acute respiratory distress that required them to be placed on ventilators, Jamieson said. She acknowledged that the numbers are small, but said data collected since then are still reason for concern. Of the 266 H1N1 deaths investigated by the CDC to date, 15 (6 percent) were among pregnant women, she said. That's six times the percentage of U.S. women who are pregnant at any given time. In addition, pregnant women infected with H1N1 were four times as likely as sick people in the general population to be hospitalized for it, she said. But the study cautioned that part of that increase may be because of doctors being more likely to hospitalize a pregnant woman than a nonpregnant person with similar symptoms. Still, the apparent disproportionate impact of H1N1 on pregnant women is not surprising, given the body changes that occur during pregnancy, she said. As the uterus grows and pushes the diaphragm up, there is less room for the lungs," affecting a woman's ability to breathe, she said. Pregnancy's impact goes beyond structural; it affects the body's ability to fight off illness, she said. "A pregnant woman has to accommodate this foreign body of the growing fetus, so there is an immunological shift that occurs in pregnancy," she said. Though it is not clear whether that immunological shift translates into a greater likelihood of contracting the virus, there is no doubt that it can result in more severe illness among pregnant women who are infected with it, she said. "They are more severely affected, and that is consistent with what we are seeing with this H1N1," she said. Still, Jamieson said she is not recommending that pregnant women avoid crowds or take any other precautions that would affect their daily routines. She said she hopes to continue to track what happens to the H1N1-infected pregnant women in the report, though the details have yet to be worked out.

Dinner with my college friends

Dou (with her husband Allan) were here in the country and called for a get together just last Monday. I received a text from Cathy at 3pm that we’ll have to meet in Megamall for dinner at 7pm. Went to Muchos for a night of fun and KTV.

Until next time guys! I hope that time Erika could come.

Joshua updates

* He loves going to school now. Every single day  (even weekends) he would get up early and say he'll go to school. His teacher always asks the husband if the boy is really three years old only. He behaves well daw kasi. Only in school though.

* He is one of the few kids I knew who doesn't love hotdogs. He prefers chicken (loves to eat soft bones) and fish (eats even the eye part of it).

* He loves to talk to my tummy and his baby sister needs to talk back to him. He once said “gusto ko din dyan sa loob.”

* He has fascination with big things. He wanted a big house, big television, etc, etc. So when the husband and I needs to go to work, he’d ask us when we got home if we have money na to buy a big house, blah blah blah.

* He seemed to understood what death means. He doesn't want us to die as he would bluntly say "wala na siyang mommy or daddy."

* He still needs to be lulled to sleep, even for just a few minutes. This started when we introduced his little sister (inside my tummy).

* And lately, I guess with the near arrival of his baby sister, he would want me to cuddle him to sleep. He can't sleep on his own now.

Random thoughts

• In 4 weeks time, I can safely give birth na. There is still no definite schedule but my OB has advised me that it can be as early as 16th of next month to the 21st.
• All the while I thought I was scammed by a multiply seller where I ordered Born Free bottles for the princess. We were able to talk yesterday and was advised that after waiting for almost 3 months, the bottles are already on her house. Sad part, the bottles had scratches daw so instead of sending me 4 sets, 1 set lang yung for shipment. She has to return the others daw. To cut the long story short, I refunded the excess. I don’t want to get stressed out by this. My problem now is where to look for such bottles online na on-hand na.
• I hate the rain. It makes me weak again. I’m praying that this time, I’ll be spared by any flu. Been having flu on and off during my pregnancy.
• Finally was able to buy a few baby items yesterday. The husband had no choice but to allow me as we had a fight early morning.
• Today is the finals game of PBA. Praying that the husband wins the “ending.”

One win away

Tonight will be Game 6 for the PBA Motolite Fiesta Conference. Team standing is 3-2 in favor of the Ginebra Gin Kings. They are one win away to be the conference champion against the San Miguel Beermen. For sure the husband will be hooked watching it as he is an avid fan of the Ginebras. In short, bawal istorbohin. He also has a bet in their place’s “ending” so I wish he wins. Hehehe! The money will definitely go straight to my pocket, bwahahaha!

In his PE uniform

Let me just share with you my son wearing his PE uniform. Pardon the picture, this is the only decent picture he has wearing it.

Thank you

It has been a week now. I wasn’t able to celebrate my birthday on the day itself. I haven’t celebrated it yet.I’m still thinking whether to still celebrate it or not.

Thanks to my friend Jhong who made a post about me on my birthday itself. Thank you so much! You really made that day even more special. Now, I still believe there are still who love me beyond distance.

You can read the post here.

Collecting coins

I’m not in to collecting rare items and so is the husband. But whenever we see rare coins around, we don’t usually spend it and instead put it aside for other purposes. But I knew someone who really into collecting coins and goes out of his way to really find those old coins that are very rare. Some are older than him, can you imagine? Speaking of that old acquaintance, I just remember that he’ll be celebrating his birthday the same date as Tita Lai. I have to scout for those collectible items on the net  and look for something rare that he still doesn’t have for his gift. Bye!

Top ten Filipino blogs

I got this information from Spot.PH

These are the top ten Manila’s best-known money making bloggers.

1. Byahilo.com – owned by Enrico Dee. He earns around P20,000 to P40,000 a month.
2. Jehzlau-Concepts.com – owned by Jehzeel Laurente. He refused to divulge his online earnings, but rough estimate is P10,000 to P15,000 a month.
3. Micamyx.com – owned by Micaela Francesca Rodriguez. Estimated earnings is about P5,000 to P6,000per month.
4. YugaTech.com – owned by Abe Olandres. He earns around $5,000 a month for this blog.
5. Baratillo.net – owned by Juned Sonido. His first earning is around $40 to $70 a month. He now earns about P5,000 to P6,000 a month.
6. FitzVillafuerte.com / ThirstyBlogger.com – owned by Fitz Villafuerte. He earns at least $1,000 a month.
7. BatangYagit.com – owned by Winson Almendras. He earns an estimate of $50 to $100 a month.
8. OurAwesomePlanet.com – owned by Anton Diaz. He usually earns P10,000 a month.
9. ABuggedLife.com – owned by Jayvee Fernandez. He earns P6,000 a month.
10. ByranBoy.com – owned by Bryan Boy. He earns $1,000 a month.

To read more of the details, go here.

Officially

Today is officially my 32nd week of pregnancy. In short, I’m already 8 months pregnant. One more month and it’ll be most awaited and grand arrival of the little princess. I just hope she’ll still stay until my 38th week.

As I hit this phase in my pregnancy, I am getting easily irritated with simple things. I want everything done in pronto. Of course, my nose is a little picky with what I smell. The only perfume  that I used now is the Warm Vanilla Sugar line of Bath and Body Works. This is my favorite Scent, as of the moment. I love that I smell like doughnut, like what my sister-in-law exclaimed when I used it, LOL!

Now, I’m getting busy with planning all the things we still need to buy for the baby. The hospital bag isn’t packed yet. I’m still preparing for my 100gm oral glucose test for tomorrow. I fervently pray that the results become negative of diabetes.

Yesterday

Our small family went to Alabang to celebrate Nanay’s 80th birthday and the blessing of the husband’s family business.

Sneek peak  of what happened yesterday:

    

Busy, busy bee

Today is the most hectic day of all the days in the week. Me being busy is an understatement.  I have tons of to do’s lined up in my desk right now. That doesn’t include my personal to do’s which reminds me to go to the nearby drugstore later as I forgot to bring my medicines again, for the nth time.

Our weekends were spent at home, at least for me and the little boy. We had the whole Saturday spent inside a clinic. The morning was spent for the little boy’s vaccine while the afternoon was spent for my prenatal check-up. Just few more weeks and our little princess will have her grand entrance.

The husband spent his Sunday in Alabang helping his cousins in preparation for the soft opening / blessing of the family’s apartelle on Wednesday, Nanay’s birthday and grand opening the day after.

I need to write down things to do as lately, I’ve been forgetting a lot of things. Gawd! I’m not sure though if this is because of my pregnancy or is it a sign of aging. LOL! Which reminds me, I’ll be turning a year older next week.

Anyways, I have to go now. The husband is bugging me to look for Automotive Marketing which I have to write down on my long to do list. Ciao!

First star(s)

Joshua finally wore his school uniform last Monday and he went home giddy happy as his teacher gave him not just a 1 star but 3 stars.

He really enjoys school now. I just hope this will not end soon though.

 

Endurance Athletes

Endurance training and racing requires quite a commitment from athletes ... the commitment is for time and money ... they put up with pain, they eat for the event and buy supplements that cost a bundle ... their equipment is specialized to their events (shoes, high performance clothing, bikes, skis, wet suit, heart monitor, exercise equipment, etc., etc.) Some of the athletes are in the professional ranks, but most are age-groupers. Why do the age-groupers do it?

SpitzTunes -- Working My Way Back to You!

I've been away for a while .. not because of lack of interest, but because I've been away ... wanted to get this convo going ... in coming convos I'm going to do themes ... for example, politics in music, sports in music, sexuality in music ... if you have any suggestions, please let me know in the last question. And yes, the first question came about because I just did exactly that, with The Best of the Four Seasons!

What Makes a Dad

God took the strength of a mountain,
The majesty of a tree,
The warmth of a summer sun,
The calm of a quiet sea,
The generous soul of nature,
The comforting arm of night,
The wisdom of the ages,
The power of the eagle's flight,
The joy of a morning in spring,
The faith of a mustard seed,
The patience of eternity,
The depth of a family need,
Then God combined these qualities,
When there was nothing more to add,
He knew His masterpiece was complete,
And so,
He called it ... Dad.

 

   

Three men

I won’t be able to go online tomorrow so I’ll be posting this a little early.

Meet the three men who had played important roles in my life.

1. Papa Boy – hubby’s father 
2. Papa Alex – my loving father who is in Qatiff right now 
3. Daddy – of course, the world’s #1 dad in our lives, my husband

Happy Father’s Day!

Joshua, me and the little princess love you all!

Tokyo Cafe experience

Ok, I’ve seen this resto way back when I was still connected with SM. I never had the chance nor the courage to try this out. Talk about being on the safe side when it comes to food, as always.

However, since I’ve heard a lot of good feedbacks about it, I told the husband that I’ll be treating him to dinner last Thursday, his birthday. So after work, the husband and the little boy fetch me and off we go straight to MOA.

Here’s what we had:

       

Afterwards, the little boy and the birthday boy had a blast playing in Timezone and riding the carousel.