Wednesday, December 24, 2014

"Tour de Manila" on our two-wheel machines

So we have been discussing this for quite some time now. Since I've been bugging hubby that we should bike more often, he finally relented. Actually in hindsight, its probably just the case of right timing - us waking early enough to warrant a morning bike ride. But where to? Our old route was CCP-MOA; we'd drive to the area, park the car and unload our bikes (travel + loading and unloading took all of an hour) and what for, to bike for a measly 20-30 minute elliptical ride? If you ask me, it'd be worth the trouble if we at least had my favorite (FAVORITE!) Aristocrat Breakfast Tapa with Eggs and Hot Chocolate (salivating nowwww) but for him? Nah...so he made a proposition. Why not bike all the way to where we want to go?

As an amateur biker/cyclist, the thought actually frightens me. Living downtown, there are already PUV's immediately outside our gate! But what scares me most was going through the Quiapo / Quezon Blvd. underpass..yikes!!! Jeepneys and buses stopping abruptly without much of a signal, heavy smog, dubious people, but most of all - I wasn't sure I had the guts to traverse the underpass itself - baka major 'semplang' moment! I was kind of rusty and still re-learning the gears and the proper braking and as hubby said, "gliding" gracefully as I prepared to descend the bike versus my normal screeching halt!

So off we went, making our way on the fly. The route became P. Noval near UST, Morayta, Recto, an obscure street leading to San Sebastian Church, another obscure street leading to Ayala Bridge, Finance Road, and then finally got to the walled city that is Intramuros. All the while calling to Jesus and Mother Mary to keep us safe, and to keep other motorists aware of us and especially safe from me! Not only were the wheels in motion, my nerves were also on major overdrive! How fun it was and yet, how dangerous! As a parent, I try my best to remove myself from very risky situations and it's only now that I fully realize how truly dangerous it could have been. There were times I almost fell off, when I couldn't stop as I was waiting for the motorists to give way (what a principina! lol!) - and hubby would say, "you really couldn't stop even for a bit?"





When we reached Intramuros, it was another very beautiful moment - like the ones straight out of a post card. We made a quick stop at the San Agustin Church, then made our way to the ruins and then around Muralla Street. Of course, of course, the obligatory Taho drink (yum!). Then we made our way to the fort nearby Bayleaf Hotel. We met a Kiwi with his wife. He complimented our bikes, especially hubby's. And how he enjoyed that feeling. We also saw a pedicab driver - tour guide, hopelessly trying to convince a foreigner to be taken around the area - to which she vehemently said no. And because we only brought his iPhone as camera, I will forever commit to memory the scene that almost takes me back to my childhood - days of freedom when I didn't have a care in the world. There before the newspaper office, five kids aged 4-7, riding their tattered bikes as if it's the most natural thing in the world, as if they have given their everything to that small race of theirs, the burst of energy was almost almost magical. Even now, it's just there in the corner of my mind, something I could replay over and over and would definitely make me smile :) 


Then we made our way back and decided to do a Binondo route. From the Mexico ferry station we took some more pictures but had to make a detour and a shortcut across a park because of the closed road. Counterflow on the bridge's side walk then we crossed to Escolta. Ahhh...another beautiful place evoking memories past. Just then, we saw Carlos Celdran also biking around in the area, but we were too shy to approach him for a picture. Again to the streets with furniture shops, then left to Sabino Padilla then right to a street by the new condo, right to Ongpin, left to Salazar and we found ourselves in Johnson's feng shui shop. We said our hello's. While hubby went inside, I just took in all that that Sunday morning had given us - while I tended to my "saddle sored" bum! Finally, Benavidez, right to Recto, left to Masangkay and off we went to the direction of our home.



So many things we have seen and learned and I guess the most important part, aside from exercise, aside from removing the dust that gathered on my bike - what I truly appreciated was us going back to our roots. Simple people who love the simple things. Take away the car, take away the fancy gadgets, take away the mall and you might as well take away Aristocrat too. What was left was a nice, bumpy, happy ride, the Old Manila feel, and us with taho in hand (hopefully? haha) feeling in love (the kilig love like when we started dating), feeling young, feeling happy, feeling content.



Yes, we live for moments like these :)

Merry Christmas everyone! :D

Thursday, December 11, 2014

How do you train your child's yaya?

Not all yaya's are built the same. Some come with years of experience and are quite experts in their field of childcare while some are barely out of their teens and are children themselves. So how do you make sure that the person you will entrust your child / children with are well-equipped for the task? 

As a first-time mom I've been generally lucky in the yaya department. Even at 20-ish age, Z's 'ate' really knows a lot about taking care of babies as she has cared for her younger siblings in the past. She would always draw knowledge from how they do it in the province and at times would also advise me the kaugalian ng matatanda (practice of elders) in their place. Baby is grimacing? Oh, she's finding it difficult to poop. Baby is still crying after being nursed / fed, burped, changed, rocked, etc? She probably has gas! Baby is teething? Pin a dried squash bottom on her shirt. ...And things like that.

However - I also know that I shouldn't expect her to be perfect in every sense. And it wouldn't be fair to expect her to know how to deal with every scenario with child care, same with myself. And there's the baby factor too! No matter if you're on your first or your tenth child, there's no guarantee that you'll be breezing through with the next one. All babies are different, but there are basic needs that are the same across the board nursery. 

Take for example when my baby bumped her head, on a wall. On a wall! And she shrieked and shrieked in pain. My hubby saw it first hand, the yaya heard it (the thud) while washing dishes but no one rushed to get an ice pack. Whaaat?! Another would be about food safety. Coming from having to refrigerate / freeze my expressed breastmilk, I had to learn how to handle my milk to keep it safe for Z. How long it should stay in the ref before going to the freezer, the maximum time it could stay in the freezer, how long it would be good after thawing, etc etc. And because breastmilk is essentially food for the baby, then these would also apply to regular meals we cook. Oh just imagine my surprise when I found out that for a couple of days, the squash she boiled and fed Z was just kept there on the saucepan the entire day...hello bacteria! I shudder at the thought. I explained the dangers of bacterial contamination if we keep doing that to which she replied, "nakatakip naman po. (it is covered)" ay caramba! 

So there, since I figure we both will get a lot out of trainings, we will be investing in this one sponsored by Medela Moms on Toddler Care from 9-11 am and Basic First Aid from 1-4 pm this Saturday, December 13, 2014 at the Medela House. 


I thank God for initiatives such as this. Super sakto ang timing and it's just what we need. Additional practical information for yaya and peace of mind for me, knowing Z is in good hands while I'm at work. Naks, level up ang yayas! :) And because we bought our pump from them, we'll enjoy discounted rates pa!

Okay so this is marketed as 'for yayas' but as a mom I know that there are times that yayas will come and go. So I'd rather attend with yaya and gain additional knowledge myself, be better equipped too to take care of my child (and future children) and give my hubby peace of mind too that I'm getting better with this aspect of mothering. Hahahahaha :) See you there! :)


Monday, November 17, 2014

Wrong Ramen at Burgos Circle BGC

Another food blog post...yesss!!! :) After spending our afternoon viewing a condo unit listing at Forbeswood Parklane in BGC, our feet naturally gravitated (rightly of course!) to Wrong Ramen. Well, upon my brother's suggestion too! 

It was a Friday so the place wasn't as packed. I assume the younger ones (gulp! I'm about 30 in a few hours after all) are busy making the rounds in their gimik circuit! Oh what am I saying? Forgive me dear readers, I was a 'diretso uwi' lass in my adolescence. 

A quaint and cute place, I should say. I would've taken more pictures but I had a mildly cranky and very sleepy baby with me so I just satisfied myself with shooting from where I was seated, mostly. That, and I was quite famished as well :)

Thankfully, the food did not disappoint. We were easily full in minutes and we finished our meal in between taking care of Z alternately. Though the place is not humongous, there were still a lot of wonderful and quirky deets I haven't shot, too bad! Well then let this serve as a mental note to go back and try the rest of their WRONG RAMENS :)

Thanks to my brother, A, for the treat! Enjoy the pics folks! :)



Galit galit muna mga 'teh? A and V busy choosing their wrong ramen.



Of course, MMM and Z have got to join the photo-op! Here we are, breastfeeding baby inside the Tula. Ssssshhh, do not disturb!



I haven't mastered the baby bag yet! Can't believe we ventured out without a single toy on hand. Good thing Z is easily amused with everyday things. She just kept going at it, doing the Harry Potter swishing of her giant fan, ala magic wand!


Uh oh, someone is hungry! I think she's wondering if they have baby ramen too. Sorry my love, maybe next time :)


Wrong Ramen Tantanmen for V.



The F.U. Ramen for the rest of us. Because how could I say no to bacon? Bacon!!!



Just one of the artworks on their walls :)

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Wangfu Dinner at Tomas Morato

Finally, after a good 2-week planning via Facebook, we were able to push through with this dinner! Well, more of dimsum, actually. We were initially eyeing Kapitolyo food finds or even Makati but decided it's quite far from where we are all located. But there's no stopping us from trying out new and farther restos, right?

Going back to dimsum. Whenever I hear the word, my mind kinda always goes back to the Veronica Mars scene where she was casually teasing her boyfriend with a box of Chinese take-out, "...dimsum, and then some?" I think I was already in college back then, wondering when will I ever get to utter those words..Tarey, strict kaya ang parents ko! hehehe :) Nope, I wasn't able to use it on my Chinese boy...instead of being sexy-cute baka corny-cute na lang ako hahaha... :)

I was actually afraid for my appetite, that I wouldn't quite get my fill (regardless the promise of UNLI dimsum). I'm a rice and ulalam girl and without rice, I'd definitely go hungry! But not with this one. Stacks upon stacks of dimsum and then some and then some and then some...were served to us (see what I did there? I told ya it would be corny-cute bahahahaha). Grabe lang! Super nakakabusog and we ended up doing our darnest just to finish everything. 

Of course being the "dimsum snob" I only wanted SIOMAI! But I'm glad I was able to try new stuff too; although I didn't get their names (Update: See below image). So just enjoy our pictures and watch out for our next pig out sesh! :)

This was definitely a fun night for us, and a (short) welcome breather from mommyhood. Thank you Daddy A for making sure we were able to have a mini-date. And of course, Happy 10th month our Baby Z! :)

P.S. Sana next time we eat here, I can finally get Sir Chief's photo and autograph....ay, katabi ko na ba? Hahaha... :D

Salivating right now! :) Yes we had Siomai, Japanese Siomai, Hakaw, Bird's eye, Chicken feet, Seafood roll, Beef ball, Spareribs, Sharksfin siomai













Monday, November 3, 2014

Zara's Ninth Month

Oh my, dear Z! It seems mommy has been forgetful lately...yikes!! Belated happy ninth month to you our dear love love!! :)

Updates, updates. So far one tooth has cut through your gums already, right now, 3 more are about to pop! And may I just say that you don't like the feeling very much. Now if only we can share a bit of cake with you to alleviate your misery? 

Mommy met her University colleague (and former professor) and was called back to the fold. Kakayanin na kaya natin? Looks like mommy will be back teaching part-time! Don't worry anak, it is really super part-time..mga at least 3 hours, two days in a week...pwede na right? Much as mommy loves doting on you 24/7, sometimes mommy also needs to take a break (i.e. work) to recharge. How weird ba? Hahahaha :)

You're really growing into a fine beauty every day and add to that you're every inch a baby scientist! Always curious with your new world, always testing out new things. I was kinda worried you did not like the toys we gave you or given to you by family and friends. But surprise, surprise! You're finally taking to Sophie and Teddy Bunny! Yeah, and "teddy mommy"! After all, you do love sleeping on the crook of my arms or sometimes even right under my kili-kili!  We still wake up at night and I'm kinda relishing this stage...as they say, "the days are long yet the years are short."

That's it for now! Mommy needs to take advantage of the time you are happy to be left with daddy while I tend to your first birthday party! :)

Love you very much our little princess! :)







Friday, October 31, 2014

Happy Halloween!


Boo!

Haunted library with skeletons, witches with boiling cauldrons, broomsticks and bones, ghostly interiors with golden candelabras, spiders, bats and mice on stairs too!

Did that scare you? Sharing with you some out-takes from Manila Hotel. Photos taken by me and hubby with the Fujifilm X20. Enjoy! :)















Planning for a First Birthday Party

...is like planning for a wedding! Except this time, I'm taking control. Yes you read that right! Without going into details, suffice it to say that back in 2012, getting married was the biggest *SURPRISE* of my life! (in less than 100 days..it's a Chinese tradition which I may have to blog about at a later time)

I'm thankful that I have friends who helped me tremendously with the preparations because back then my mind was truly, truly chaotic. I wouldn't be able to handle it by myself. My then-fiance A must have been scratching his head and tsk-tsk-tsking. There I was, a 20-something bride-wannabe who really wanted to get married but was adamant to do it on such short notice. Parang, "ano ba talaga, ate?"

And I thank God in His infinite grace and wisdom for that test of character, of patience and for the blessings and direction He has given. O sige na nga side-kwento ng konti..I felt that it was a message from God when our officiant (Fr. Allen De Guzman) said something to the effect of, "Sometimes there are times in our life when we are called to do something. It may not be in the way we expect it to be. Or the way we want it to be. We may be scared. But we follow."

Okay back to regular programming. Next to our daughter's baptism which we did on her 4th month, our task is to plan for her first birthday celebration. Of course as a stay at home / work at home (SAHM/WAHM) mom, I feel it is my duty to conceptualize, plan and prepare for this major milestone. And this I am doing diligently!

Here are the 5 things I've learned so far:

1. Plan well in advance. In short, do not cram!

I don't know if I should be embarrassed to tell you this. I have been thinking about this and been doing my share of supplier research as far back as 6 months prior to her birthday. Is that super early? Hahaha..Well in terms of booking suppliers (and depending on who you want to get) it might be a bit late na! It's not only the venue and caterer one must think of, even the highly-rated magicians and photographers get booked way way waaaaay in advance. Yikes!! But I'm really glad I got my top picks for suppliers...Dibs! Yehey!! :)

First we chose a date. Once that was set, I contacted the caterer I wanted and inquired about their packages and rates. After choosing our birthday lunch set, we scheduled a food tasting. Normally my husband and I can decide on this already but we also invited my in-laws. We wanted to ensure that the taste will also be palatable to their 'age group' hehe. This was a non-negotiable supplier for me so I did not bother to check with others na...tralalalala :D

Ulalam!!! My favorite dish! I'd probably order an extra serving of this good for 10 pax? Hahahaha :)

Discussing food choices at the food tasting with Ms. Melissa of Passion Cooks

Z having fun too with her Amah and her favorite board book! :)
Then we looked for a venue. One that was near. Like, very very near! Hahaha!! Luckily we found one that's right about 10 minutes from our home! We like it because it's near, relatively cheap and looks neat, fresh and lovely! Even if we scrimp on 'styling' it would still look decent :) Thank God for Arch. A and my father-in-law who lovingly took the dimensions  and made the floor plan for the caterer to use!

While out of town trips and events are much fun, I can't imagine us having a first birthday celebration with a location outside Metro Manila. This is such a huge deviation from a wedding which we had in Caleruega (Nasugbu, Batangas). Not to mention, suppliers will charge anywhere from PHP 3,000 to upwards of PHP 10,000 for out of town fees. That's huge savings my dears!








Now at almost 2 months to go before our event, I can be more relaxed as I'm just doing "detailing" and planning for the small stuff. I'm also truly happy to have booked my suppliers of choice :) They have positive ratings and I'm sure that should there be glitches (as they are unavoidable), it would only be minor ones and will not cause me stress and heartaches.

As my college professor (Sir Harvey Ong) used to say, "Cramming is bad for your health!"

2. Set and agree on a BUDGET, choose suppliers based on VALUE and choose your party planning CONFIDANTES.

For most folks, even some dads would nod in agreement, it's just a big G-A-S-T-O-S. Really! And I do agree that expenses could easily go out of hand with all the new things cropping up for parties! That's why early on, we have set a budget. Yes we do have our "dream suppliers" but we always always look at the big picture and do our best to balance our wants (i.e., the party look and feel we are going for) and our budget.

Being the chief party planner for this event, I always look for at least 3 viable suppliers and canvass their offering. All options are then 'presented' to my husband for his final approval :) Despite our goal of sticking to the budget, we don't always go for the cheapest price. Instead, we look for VALUE, primarily. In the end, we do get what we pay for.

It is easy to know your party planning status and easily share it with your hubby or coordinator. What I did was to set up a spreadsheet on Google Docs which details the following:

a. Expense Category
b. Supplier
c. Working Estimate
d. Actual Cost
e. Down payment Made
f. Balance
g. Booking Details

So at any moment, we see an accurate picture of how close we are to sticking or going over our budget! :p

Another thing I realized is this - mommies, let's accept that not everyone will share in our excitement of planning for a first birthday party. Sometimes it's just us and maybe a couple of close friends. And that's okay. Much as this day is extremely important for us, in the light of eternity, this is just but a tiny dot. At first this can be disheartening. I mean, "Why aren't they excited??!" But then you know, people are busy, they also have other things to attend to. Let's just concentrate on planning and preparing well and understand where they are coming from. As for me, I'm happy that my hubby is mildly excited (hehe) and that I have 3 girl friends who are helping me out by listening to my crazy weird ideas and bringing me back to reality!

Two practical tips I'd like to share is (1) to have hard copies  (printed) contracts or MOA's and always attach receipts for any payments made. Especially if you intend to hand-over to a trusted friend/relative/coordinator on the day of the event. This way, you won't be stressed during the party trying to remember all the little details. It will also be easier to set and meet expectations should there be any issue. And (2) please also be upfront with suppliers when they ask for your budget. We will be helping them work more efficiently this way, rather than pushing for something that we cannot afford, and being frustrated in the end.

Another GOLDEN NUGGET I wish to share is this, our husband should be our partner. Let us be honest with them and not hide expenses they would just find about on the event itself and be powerless over. They should be our accountability partners as well. If planning for our child's party is making us do things that are contrary to our values, I hope we are able to pray for the humility to submit ourselves to God's guidance and our hubby's authority too.

3. Learn to let go

Sabi ko nga nuon, "If we're just able to get my dream caterer/stylist, a nice venue, great photographer and a pretty cake, I'm okay na!" But as I'm researching (hello Pinterest!), I keep finding nice add-ons for the party. And my hubby wouldn't let me hear the end of what I told him about my bare minimum! Hehehe :)

Yan ang downside to researching: finding nice, pretty and (gulp!) costly things. This is another challenge for us moms to prove our mettle as savvy savers extraordinaire. Can we discern what we truly need and in turn say no to these pretty yet unnecessary things? Without my hubby's 'supervision' (ahem!), I might have been too far gone flunking in this department!

To help us stick to our budget, we also streamlined our essentials and non-essentials. Right now in our planning stage, there are two main items we might not include in our party .... the dessert or candy buffet and the photo booth. Savings for avoiding both could be PHP 15,000 - 30,000! Yeah, that much..again, depending on the supplier chosen. Don't get me wrong ha, these are definitely nice to have at any party but for us personally, they are relegated to "let's think it over" as we try our best to allocate our budget efficiently.

I've been mulling over this as I know that almost all parties feature the following but hear me out:

Dessert Buffet / Candy Buffet

They are pretty, they are yummy..so why not? If we are holding it for 50 pax or less, I might reconsider. But since I'm expecting our guest list would go over a hundred, we are most likely passing up on this because (a) it's hard to manage a candy buffet station in such a way that majority of guests will be able to try it and (b) since it isn't usually manned, there is the risk of contamination especially when there are little kiddos (and okay, some grown-ups) who simply refuse to use serving spoons.

Photo courtesy of http://www.karaspartyideas.com/

Photo booth

Photo booths are fun! We even had them at our wedding (remember our bed photo studio?). They provide lasting memories of the fun time guests have had at your party. So again, why not? For one, I feel the concept is getting old. When I attend parties, I rarely line up to get a photo booth souvenir taken because I feel I've exhausted all possible high-fashion poses (naks! joke lang po!) I have in my bag of tricks! Hahaha..Unless of course, I'm able to find a 'new concept' for a good deal. *wink, wink, wink!!!* And then again, subject to hubby's A-OK! Else, I'll do a DIY na lang and have people use their cams / phones to take photos :)




Oh, these are also some expense areas that are heavily policed by hubbyness:

Party Outfit

Because we've chosen a 'period theme', I feel it's just apt to reflect it also on our attire. I'm okay with having coordinated outfits with my baby and my hubby. But my hubby thinks this is already superfluous. What do you think?

Videographer

Hubby says that we already have a photographer to capture the moment. And ito ang nakakaloka, according to him: "Mommy, a picture is already worth a thousand words. Tapos may video pa? Baka mahilo na si baby niyan sa dami ng words!" Anu daw??? Hahahaha..But I'm still convincing him that since Z is still too young to appreciate the party, a video is a nice token for her to look back to from time to time. Do you agree?

4. Claim it!

Maybe I'm just a late bloomer but something about being a mom (or a parent, in general) gives one a double-edged vulnerability and the strength to perform new capabilities. I'm actually enjoying this experience, it isn't all too hard pala. Well, save for curbing my appetite for all things pretty...really have to stick with that dang budget!

On the other hand, I'm also relishing this responsibility...for crafting an experience for our family and friends. Looking for superb suppliers and communicating our vision. Trying out different things while still considering tradition.

I'm not claiming to be an expert party planner but this is such a learning moment for me. It would definitely be so much more convenient to just hand over the major planning and preps to a party planner but I think I'm kinda enjoying getting my hands dirty and just diving deep into this wonderful world of first birthdays! :)

And so I am claiming it! I am wearing my heart (and preferences) on my sleeve and will be proud of it. It can be daunting, still such a huge event to pull off. Still so many things to do. What if something goes wrong? What if, what if, what if? But I will learn to be brave, I will learn to trust and best of all, I will learn to accept and enjoy :)

5. Pray about it

Yes, there are many uncertainties, insecurities and fears that party planning can bring. That's why we always turn to the Almighty Father to continue to guide and bless us. As they say, "pray for the best but still prepare for the worst." I'm so blessed to have chanced upon Ms. Joy Mendoza's blog on how she was also struggling and praying about her daughter's first birthday and how the Lord continued to bless them despite their initial challenges (read about it here). It definitely confirmed what I've been sensing all along and I especially appreciate the part where she advises for us wives to be obedient to our husband. It's easy to be a brat about getting what one wants but is it worth it to jeopardize your relationship (and bank account) just for a single day of festivity?

In our planning, there are already a few glitches we have encountered. I have accepted also that no party will ever be totally stress-free. Hence we are also preparing for contingencies. This early, I'm already foreseeing a possible "disturbance" to our plans and hence I'm praying for God's best.

I don't know about you but sometimes I experience myopic vision. This is where my mind just zooms to my "creative pegs" and I'm hopelessly floating and expecting that it will come to be. Reality is that there will always be deviations, adjustments and flex points. And we do have to be flexible.

So this is always part of my prayers. That we be guided on planning for a party that we can reasonably afford, that we will be enlightened with our intentions (you know at the back of our minds, it's always nice to be featured in certain party blogs but that shouldn't be the reason we are having a party in the first place), that the Lord will lead us to the right suppliers and that He continues to guide and protect our suppliers and loved ones.

Thank you so much for reading and as a simple request, please pray for us too! :)

Related Posts:

Countdown to Z's party

We're on a first birthday high! :)

Official Photos by Happy Folks Studio

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