Greetings!!!

Merry Christmas to you all!!!!

Have a pleasant time with your love ones this Christmas :)

I Hate Traffic

I know, traffic really worsens during the Holidays but it really becomes more unbearable every year. Trying to analyze what's causing it is a futile effort.

Coming from the house, I decided to drop by my store at Shaw before proceeding to Rockwell to meet up with my friend. Lo and behold or I was just unusually unlucky, it took me almost 2 hours to reach my store. Imagine that!!!! Normally, it would only take me 15 minutes or at most 30 minutes to reach my store not 2 hours!!!

I am just thankful that I have a driver and I didn't have to endure that. Nevertheless, I was in a bad mood and I didn't want to go to Rockwell anymore because it might take me another 2 hours to get there.

So my friend and I decided to meet up at Serendra instead. Due to the horrible traffic I encountered, I was no longer in the mood to shop. I was actually dreading my travel time from Serendra to my house.

I was right, my normal travel time of 20 minutes was prolonged to an hour. Imagine, I spent more time in the car than making chika with my friend!!!!

Attention MMDA, will we ever resolve our traffic problems????

Oh So Yummy......

I have a new friend who I met through my other blog. She dropped by the house early this morning to give me the cupcakes that she baked herself.

My diet for today went berserk because it was just so yummy.

Even if its straight from the ref would you believe that it's still moist!!!! Unlike the regular cupcakes that you buy around wherein you need to thaw it a bit to make sure that its a bit moist when you bite into it. And the chocolate is so heavenly, its not too sweet at all even if its double chocolate (icing and cake). She gave me 8 cupcakes and as of 11 pm, only 3 cupcakes are left. Yes, I consumed 5 of it starting at 2 pm.

Thanks a lot Emily :)

I'm just crazy over anything chocolate.

Diet, diet, diet its just impossible during the holidays....

Running Out of Ideas....

Its practically Christmas and I still don't have a gift for the "Love of My Life" (ha-ha, so cheezy). Why is it so hard to buy men their gifts, waaahhhh.......

Hubby is only into 2 things, video consoles and fishing. When it comes to video consoles, he practically has all the nice stuff. From Playstation 1 to 3, Wii, PSP and Xbox. I don't see him playing with his video consoles so I'm a bit apprehensive in buying him an Xbox 3. So, no ideas from here.

Fishing, I don't know anything about fishing. The way I look at it, he doesn't need anything here either. He has so much stuff that I am already going crazy where to store them.

What else?? Think, think.....

Worst case scenario is to cook for him if I really don't find anything for him. The reason why I didn't want to cook for him is because I wanted to surprise him on his birthday next month. I'm planning to throw him a surprise party and I will be the one preparing everything (with the help of my maids, of course).

Hmm, stressful....

If The Shoe Fits....

Finally, I was able to buy some shoes after more than a month of looking for something that would fit me.

I think I was whining a whole ago that its so hard for me to find shoes that would fit because I have such small feet. Normally I need a shoe size 4 or 4 1/2 or 5 and most of the time the size 5's are still too big.

So I focussed on looking for some shoes last weekend. I went to Bonifacio High Street last Saturday. I went Back to Mia Bella despite the bad experience the first time.

Anyway, since it was the only store wherein I found some nice designs and most importantly, shoes that would fit me. I bought 2 from Mia Bella, a Melissa Night + Lorenzo Merlino (black with white design) and Cole Vintage bronze ballet flats. Last pair was a white flats from Charles and Keith.

I also bought a dress from Peppered Cherry but I didn't get to take a picture. It was similar to the dress a bought before but this time in black with white hand painted design.

I'm super happy :)

Garlic Dip.....

I had some craving for chips so I decided to make my infamous garlic dip. Yup, I also have some tricks up my sleeves despite the fact that I am so undomesticated. So might as well share my recipe.

My friends super love this and I always prepare this whenever we have a get together at our house.

Here's the recipe:

1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
add chopped garlic (diced); add as much as you want, I normally add one whole piece because I want it a bit spicy
add pepper and salt to taste

If one cup is too much, half cup will do as long as the sour cream and mayonnaise are of equal parts.

I guarantee that you'll love this :)

Long Hiatus

Yes, I got caught up with the Christmas rush and frequent get together with friends.

As the designated social coordinator of the group, I was scheduling our get together every week and sometime twice in a week. I am also busy preparing for our Christmas party. On top of that I was also doing my Christmas Shopping.

Still have a few more gifts to buy and hopefully I'll finish everything this week.

On the side, I still managed to squeeze in some shopping for myself. Here's what I bought for the past 2 weeks. I bought a bag from CMG, shoes from Crocs, eye glasses from Mango, a dress and a blouse from Kamiseta.



I also bought some other stuff that I feel are useful: toilet seat cover (this is a must especially here in Philippines wherein some public restrooms are really unbearable), travel john (was thinking to try this when I join hubby in his fishing trips but I'm thinking that it may also be useful in the car for emergency cases especially during the Christmas season wherein traffic is extremely bad), my stash of Bath and Bodyworks lotion (I know I'm suppose to go organic already but this one thing that I really couldn't resist) and a brush for the dogs.

Whew, its just shopping, shopping and more shopping for the Holiday's :)

How to Cook Tuna?

Hubby went fishing a couple of weeks back and he caught a tuna. I was asking him how are we suppose to cook it?

Being me, the only way I know how to eat tuna is the way Japanese restaurants prepare it - raw or as sashimi. Since it was not fresh anymore, it was stored in an ice cooler during their travel time, it can no longer be prepared as sashimi.

So, I told him I'll look for a recipe. I completely forgot all about it!!!! Then tonight, my cook prepared it by frying it. Hmmm, hubby was frowning when he saw it. He said, what a waste in frying the tuna. I didn't say anything and I just tried how it tasted. Good thing it was tasty and passable. Whew, what a major boboo for me. Of course that's why I'm an undomesticated housewife.

I should really take note of these things. After 6 months of being a housewife, I'm slowly trying to learn the ropes.

Christmas Shopping...DONE!!!! (Part 1)

Guess what Ricky and I ended up doing, well as stated in my title we decided to start our Christmas shopping. Originally, we were planning to watch a movie but this somehow was forgotten because we got so engrossed in our Christmas shopping.

We agreed that we should finish shopping for the kids first. Since we have countless nieces, nephews, godsons, goddaughters, etc. in different ages, we thought this would be tougher and would need more time. We dropped by Toy Kingdom and bought everything there. It came with free gift wrapping so it was a major plus, plus for me.

We also came up with an idea to give educational board games or any board games for siblings. Especially the children of our friends, we bought one game board for each family. This way it was cheaper for us and at the same time we were able to give a really nice gift. For our godchildren, we had to give individual gift and there were a lot to choose from. All in all we bought 13 items for 18 kids. Not bad.....

Next would be for the adults which I think is easier because there are a lot of stuff to choose from. We're planning to finish everything within this week because realized that its already December by next week.

Time really flies....

Lola Day

Today was another "lola" (grandma) day for me with my good friend Tracy. Ha-ha, we call it our "lola" day because ever Saturday we always meet up either to go the gym, go to the parlor, shop, eat out and of course the never ending chismisan (chit-chat)....This is normally my day away from hubby....

I fetched her at around 2 pm and then we went to Rockwell to watch a Tagalog film "One More Chance". While she was paying for our tickets, I was buying our popcorn and drinks. Butter popcorn for her and cheese for me. I just looove cheese popcorn .

We really wanted to see this movie not because we were fans of the actor and actress but we are really suckers for any good old romance movie.. Overall this movie was great except for the ending. It was very realistic and not too cheezy which is very rare for Tagalog Romance Movies. It just goes to show that in any relationship, giving each other space or time to be alone as very important for it to last long. Controlling your partner will never work and will only lead to the other party being suffocated.

After the movie, we had our manicure and pedicure at Beauty Bar. Highly recommended at a very affordable price. I love seeing my nails so clean and buffed. I just miss having nail polish since this is one of the things my doctor prohibited me from using until I find one that's organic as well .

My quest to find new shoes is still futile. Oh well, there's always tomorrow...

Dinner time, met up with a couple of our friends and had our chika time. Went home at around 10 pm because I was a bit tired after waking up at 8 am for my blood test.

Tomorrow, Ricky and I will be having our usual date. Hmmm, I wonder where we'll be going ?

Oh Christmas Tree...

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree! How are thy leaves so verdant! O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree, How are thy leaves so verdant!

Yup its Christmas once again and what better way to start off the holiday season but by setting up the Christmas Tree and Christmas decors.

That's our tree...Yup, I just decorated it so I know it may not really look perfect but I'm happy how it turned out. My theme this year is still red and gold. Next year, I'm planning to change my theme into white and orange .

I also bought one Christmas decor that I fell in love with while browsing some stuff at Gourdo's. Its a singing Snowman family, promise they are really cute ...They are singing We Wish you a Merry Christmas while dancing

Last Weekend....

Didn't get to blog that much since last weekend, mainly because I was too lazy to do so....

Last Saturday, I attended the baptism of my godson Ben. He's really cute and he was crying the whole time. We were laughing so hard because his parents couldn't make him stop crying, when his grandma held him that was the only time he stopped crying.

After the sumptuous lunch at Richmonde Hotel, we all decided to meet again at around 5 pm at Bonifacio High Street. I couldn't help but browse around the shops.

Of course, I bought some stuff for myself and hubby. Hubby and I bought one tempur pillow each. One our friends recommended this pillow, in her words its really "fabulous" because it follows the contour of your head, minimizes snoring and removes neck or back pain. We were actually able to try the pillows and the mattress in the shop. What a pillow.....here's their web site http://philippines.tempur.com/. In my opinion its worth it even if its expensive at P7,150 each.

I also love pottery. I've been to this shop by a famous ceramic artist and I started falling in love with pottery. Here's what I bought from Serendra, 6 coasters and 2 jars. They are also expensive as well but to me they are worth it.

Then I dropped by several shops and I unfortunately got turned off in one of the shops named Mia Bella. They had really nice stuff but very rude sales assistants or ladies. I tried on one style of shoe and unfortunately it didn't fit me but another style did. So I wanted to try another style but this very rude sales lady told me that I don't think it would fit you. Talk about a lazy sales person, she was just too lazy to get me the size that I wanted. I was not in the mood to stoop down to her level, so I just ignored it. I continued browsing in their shop and I found another shoe that I wanted. So I requested if she could get me a new stock. After a few minutes she came back and told me that the display was the last stock. I requested for a discount because the shoe on display was a bit worn out already. Then when they said they couldn't give me one I left and my parting words were "Sorry na lang kayo, wala kayong benta!!!". To all those planning to shop in the store, beware of these rude sales ladies.

Anyway, I moved on to another shop called Peppered Cherry. Oh, I love their stuff and they are reasonably priced. I was able to buy just one item because I was really in the mood to buy some shoes. So I ended up with the jumper dress...

Last stop was a newly opened shoe store called Aldo. After waiting for several months for the shop to open, to my dismay their smallest size is still too big for me. I wanted to cry, the sales assistant was nice enough to get me several stocks and I even tried it with a cork, but it was still too big for me :( So I ended up buying a bag....
That was my adventure last weekend...

Shopaholic Pinay is Back

Yup, after a two week hiatus from shopping I came back with a vengeance today....

First we went to Toys R' Us because I had to buy a gift for my godson who will be christened tomorrow.

After my doctor's appointment, my husband and I went to Podium. While he was having coffee, I went to three of my favorite shops Warehouse, Dorothy Perkins and Gingersnaps. By the way Gingersnaps sells maternity clothes but I really like the designs of their clothes so I just buy from their shop...

All in all I bought 2 dresses, 2 capri pants and 1 top. Hmmm, it satisfied my craving for the moment. Next stop will probably be or bags.

Nov. 2 at Manila Memorial....Never Again

November 2 was All Souls Day and we Filipinos normally celebrate it by visiting our loved ones in the cemetery.

Previously, my family and I would go a few days before or a few days after the actual day. This time we decided to go to Manila Memorial on November 2. All the while thinking that traffic wouldn't be that bad since it was a very long weekend.

We were wrong!!! It took us 1 hour just to get to Manila Memorial compared to about the normal 10 minutes travel time. Traffic was horrendous and it was really bumper to bumper. Upon reaching the entrance of Manila Memorial, we saw that traffic was not moving as well. We decided to abort our plans and just have dinner.

I was so hungry....We didn't wait for My Mom and my brothers to arrive and we decided to eat ahead of them....Hmmm, it was yummy!!!!

We all agreed that we'll just visit next Sunday.

Quiet Week

Last week was a quiet week for me.

Went out with my friends 3 times. Mostly dinner and some coffee afterwards.

My shopping has been on halt as well mainly because I really couldn't find anything I liked. Bought a few stuff but mostly knick knacks that's why I didn't bother to write it in my blog.

Pole Dancing, Anyone???

I tried pole dancing with my friends last Saturday and it was hilarious. Well, for us anyway . Oh man, was it hard...Watching other people do it seemed like it was pretty easy. But no, you had to literally be able to lift yourself in the pole, swing around it and hang on to the pole, try to climb the pole using one leg as an anchor and especially using a lot of skin.

My friends and I were laughing so hard because we had a hard time doing it. Among the five of us only, one managed to enjoy the whole thing. At least it was a good workout for us.

After 2 days, our body is still aching . Our thighs, legs and triceps are in pain....We were all saying that this king of workout is not for us. We also had some bruising in our knees...

So we will try again a new workout either capoeira or cardio strip tease.

After our horrendous try at pole dancing, we had dinner at cafe ysabel. We all went home at 10 pm because we were all tired.

I'm Bored....

Oh the past 2 days have been pretty boring for me. Not in the mood to fix the house, no driver, hubby is lazy to go out so I've been stuck in the house bumming around.

Look what I found, smiley central. Its so easy to use and its compatible with blogspot.

Hmm, makes me want to use all of the smilies

I'm really enjoying this

Going back to the Office

After more than 5 months, I went back to my former office to have lunch and to visit my former colleagues.

Admittedly, I felt kinda weird while on my way and while entering the office. I somehow missed it but at the same time I didn't miss it all. Sounds weird.....

Anyway, I was really happy to see them. Especially when I got the chance to talk to my former subordinates. They updated me on all the projects that we were working on. I also got the chance to get a sample of the newly launched product that we were working on while I was there. I was really glad to hear that all our hard worked paid off because they were able to hit their budgets last fiscal year.

They all said I lost weight, ha-ha-ha. This made me all the more happier because I felt that I really didn't loose weight. But, I'd take their word for it
It was a fun experience but after thinking about it, I am happy being a housewife. Just hearing the stories on what's going on and all other "unpleasant" stories, I all the more felt happy that I am out of the rat race.

Our 4th Wedding Anniversary

We woke up pretty late despite the fact that we slept early. The weather was so nice that it was really conducive to sleeping. This is really the best time to be in Tagaytay :)

Had breakfast at the main restaurant then we decided to drive around. There's really nothing much to do here but to enjoy the weather and the fresh air.

I wanted to go back to Ilog ni Maria so we decided to go there first since it was the farthest. We wanted to go to this furniture shop as well along Silang but the it was close already.

From Ilog ni Maria, we dropped Bag of Beans. They really have yummy coffee so we bought about 6 bags :) Hubby loves drinking coffee that's we we buy a lot whenever we're in Tagaytay.

Then we decided to drop by Cliffhouse Tagaytay. They have about 6 restaurants/cafe's here. We decided to grab some coffee at Cafe Breton and just enjoy the view and the weather.

Went back to T house to rest and watch a bit of TV. We had reservations at Antonio's and it was about 30 minutes away from where we were staying. Unfortunately, we left the camera at the hotel. We were not able to take pictures. It would have been a great place to take pictures because the ambiance was really great.

Oh, the food...What can I say???It was superb....I had the salad w/ foie gras, soup and the steak. It was superb....I am at a lost for words because the food was really great, the service and the ambiance. Anyone who visits Tagaytay should really try Antonio's. Although its on the pricey side but its all worth it....

Got back at the hotel and T House staff had a bit of a surprise for us.
They were so sweet but I was in the bathroom when they arrived so it was just hubby who received the cake in our behalf. Most of the staff were there and they wanted to greet us. We were so full after our sumptuous meal at Antonio's so we didn't eat the cake yet.

But, oh man it was heavenly. Just the right moistness, texture and chocolatiness. If I was not too full I would have devoured the entire cake. Whew, just describing how it tasted makes me crave some more.

That's how we spent our 4th wedding anniversary