Berto and Kwala

Happy Anniversary PM!

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 19:16:00 +0000

I first encountered Prinsesa’s Anatomy through a friend’s blog. I was then looking for interesting blogs to add to my blogroll, when I chanced upon her post about a book review of David Sedaris’ Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. Actually what first attracted me was the cute photo that came along with the blog post. A simple picture of a mug on top of a book, on a divan by the garden. I just loved the laid-back feel it presented!

Photo from Prinsesa's Anatomy

Anyway back to the post, I loved the way PM shared her thoughts about the book, simple, witty, straight forward. I got so intrigued with the book and the author just because of PM’s post that I bugged my hubby to buy me a copy! Of course Berto argued that I still had a ton of unread books scattered everywhere… so as a compromise, he ended up buying me the ebook copy for my kindle. =)

Since then, I’ve added her to my list of interesting people to read and have been silently stalking her blog ever since. Although I profess my fondness for her blog, hubby on the other hand, detests it. He blames PM’s blog for the other kindle books I’ve nudged (nagged) him into buying me. Hahaha!

Happy fourth anniversary Prinsesa’s Anatomy! I’m looking forward to more fun reads and anectodes from you!

Photo Hunt: Point

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 21:59:00 +0000

This week's photo hunt theme is Point. This is a picture Berto and I took when we went to JE Camp in Sampaloc, Tanay Rizal. Our Photo Booth was rented for a wedding, after all photo booth pictures are wonderful as wedding souvenirs.

We were there for work but we were enamored with the picturesque view on the way to the venue. Everything looked so green and fresh, so relaxing. The way there was full of zigzags, thankfully we had these road signs to "point" and guide us to the right way.

Join the weekly Photo Hunt here!

Sebastian's Ice Cream

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 21:00:00 +0000

Hubby went off to a photo coverage gig this afternoon. He covered a cutie jungle safari themed birthday party at Valle Verde 1 Clubhouse in QC. Thankfully our assistant was available to join him. I, on the other hand, met with some friends for dinner and some coffee and ice cream at Gelatissimo, Greenbelt 5 in Makati City.

Being the caffeine chaser that I am, I opted to have coffee instead of ice cream, but as I watched my friends lick and "mmmm...." their way through their cold treats, I remember the ice cream hubby and I had a few months back. It was called Sebastian Ice Cream from The Block in SM North Edsa. They have delicious and unique flavors to choose from. When comes to food, hubby is not the adventurous type, he is more inclined to choose the tried and tested flavors, so that time he chose the rich and creamy Chocolates Anonymous.

I had the yummy Fro-Ya flavor, which was short for Frozen Yakult. The cold and creamy delight was actually made of 100% pure Yakult, as in the lactobacillus shirota strain! hahaha! I used to gulp it down when I was a kid, then I had the chance to eat some by the scoop!

If you guys ever feel the serious need to get some delicious ice cream, go and check out Sebastian's Ice Cream. They have scooping stations at:

The Block, SM North Edsa
3rd floor, near Cinema Ticket booth
Quezon City
0927 290 1633

Podium Mall,
4th floor, near escalator
ADB Avenue, Ortigas
0927 453 7426

COLD COMFORT Ice Cream Parlor
SM Mall of Asia
New Entertainment Mall, 2nd Floor
(near IMAX exit)
0915 489 5753

Try out their best selling flavors:

Cookie Dough
Chocoholics
Macadamia White
Butter Pecan
Up All Night
Blueberry Cheesecake
Mango Sansrival
Salted Butter Caramel

Happy Valentine's Day!!

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 06:18:00 +0000

Happy Valentine’s Day to every body! It’s that one day when girls have the excuse to expect (demand) flowers and guys are give n the courage to give gifts to girl(s) they like! =)

Even a girl married ten years to her high school sweetheart still appreciates the tokens of love from her man… When the need to impress and the pretensions of courtship is replaced by concerns for bills and school projects and tuition fees ( a.k.a. the married life) one leans towards the more practical, but romance shouldn’t be sacrificed in a marriage, no matter how long you’ve been married.

Yesterday, Feb 14, I really appreciated the effort Berto made to surprise me when I went for my usual coffee escape on my lunch hour, He was there waiting for me, with a single white rose, when I arrived. No frills, no loud professions of love, just him smiling sheepishly, clasping a single white rose, patiently waiting for me. 10 years married with me has taught him that I always make a show of how I say that I find the sky-high prices of roses scandalous, yet secretly hope I get some on VDay… haha… ok, so girls are complicated..stop the presses!!

Anyway, Happy Heart’s Day to all the couples, non-couples, soon-to-be-couples, soon-to-be-single, happily single people out there. Find your happiness. Everyone has a heart (at least physically) so technically, this day is for everyone! =)

Do What You Love

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:02:00 +0000

Steve Jobs has repeatedly shared with us the secret to his success: Do what you love! Follow your passion!

I have always been practical. Following your passion is a luxury for dreamers. I need to what i need to do. To pay the bills... to settle the obligations... to be the good girl that I was raised up to be... I have always thought that... until I've reached this point.

Do what your love...I will, hopefully soon.

Marikina Date Night: Dinner at Cafe Lidia and Safe House at SM Marikina

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 16:25:00 +0000

This Saturday, we had no scheduled shoot or photo booth rental. We were free to stay home and bond with our family. For lunch, Berto prepared one of my favorite dishes, Guinisang Kalabasa. He also served corn soup with little quail eggs for our daughter.Thankfully, my sister also got to stay home for lunch. It is such a rare thing nowadays, for us the whole family to be complete around the dining table. The little one was elated!

After lunch, we rested for a bit then Berto and I went out for some "us" time. First we dropped by Cafe Lidia in Calumpang Marikina City. We have been craving for their Bufallo Wings, Garlic Three Cheese Pizza and Chicken Pesto Pasta. No we didn't ask friends along, the food was for the two of us only! Har har! All these even after a hearty lunch! We topped the gastronomic experience with a Mudpie Madness Cobbler, which is basically a scoop of chocolate and vanilla with generous portions of cookie crumbs and caramel syrup! Super yummy! And to thing everything only cost us about P600!

We decided to see a movie after our early dinner. It was hard to choose which among the currently shown movies in SM Marikina we'll go and see. There was The Vow by Channing Tatum, Chronicles and Safe House by Ryan Reynolds and Denzel Washington. Safe House won, and this is a good thing for the movie did not let us down.

I have loved Ryan Reynolds ever since I followed his sitcom Two Guys a Girl and a Pizza Place. I love his wit and humor... and the way he delivers his lines. The fact that he has a handsome face and well-sculpted body doesn't hurt either.

The plot was fairly simple, about the CIA and how they tend to screw everyone over, you know the usual stuff. I love how Ryan Reynolds portrayed the character of a newbie agent, still idealistic and untainted, and how he interacted with Denzel Washington's character as a jaded and conniving rogue agent. Action scenes left us breathless, most characters dropped like flies! The movie kept me and hubby at the edge of our seats. Drama wasn't sappy, instead was sincere and heartfelt. Plus it was a happy ending.

Date night was so much fun for us, especially so since our last date night was months ago. Lately we have been so caught up with growing our photography business. =)

As they say, all work and no play make husband and wife crabby and grouchy! Haha! Here's to more date nights to come!

In Sickness and In Health

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 07:14:00 +0000

This is what Berto and I promised each other when we got married... we'd tough it through together in sickness and in health. Lately though it's been more 'in sickness' than 'in health'. Fever, cough and colds have made the rounds in our family. Even the little one is coughing and sniffling... My lungs is more phlegmic than I'd care to share... breathing alone is such a task.

This too shall pass as they say... hopefully soon.

Photo Hunt: Bliss

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 12:18:00 +0000

This is my bliss: reading my e-book reader with a cup of premium brewed coffee from Mc Cafe. In this picture though instead of including a picture of an actual cup of coffee i just included the coffee key chain/bag tag I bought from Mcdonald's.

I am at my happiest when i get to read in peace in a quiet corner sipping hot coffee. This has been my secret for the past few weeks. During my lunch break, i would walk to a specific Mcdonald's branch (the one faaar from my office) where there is little chance of me bumping into anyone i know, buy a coffee and read undisturbed for 30 minutes. No calls, no emails, no bosses… just me and my books and caffeine.

After my blissful 30 minutes, I'd walk my way back to the office. Thirty minutes of peace and quiet is enough to rejuvenate me for the rest of the day.

Too bad Berto couldn't join me... that would've made everything perfect!

Come join the Saturday Photo Hunt!

Kodak's Troubles

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 21:45:00 +0000

Eastman Kodak Co, the photography icon that invented the hand-held camera, has filed for bankruptcy. Though the official filing of Chapter 11 still came as a shock to most... we all saw how kodak was heading that way for some time now. It failed to compete with its fast rising market opponents.

Read more about my thoughts on Kodak here.

Pancakes for Dinner

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 21:48:00 +0000

Breakfast fare for dinner? Thank God for Pancake House for making breakfast available the whole day through. While waiting for the hubby Berto to finish with his work I stayed at Pancake House in Greenbelt, but not before hopping over to National Bookstore to buy something to read.

Ever since I bought a Kindle, I told myself I will never buy a book again just for the sake of satisfying a need to read while eating alone. I said buying Kendra the Kindle will be more practical in the end since I will no longer make the unnecessary stops at the bookstore to buy something to read while eating. I end up not finishing most of them anyway. Once I'm done with my meal... the book is dropped into the abyss we call our car's back seat/trunk.

Then I forget Kendra at home... just when I needed to wait for hubby...with nothing to do but eat... alone.

Rushed to the bookstore and grabbed on the nearest paperback they had on sale, which happened to be Fallen by Lauren Kate.

That book didn't fare well either. Once I finished up my banana walnut pancake and coffee... hubby picked me up, we got to the car and.. well.. it went to book oblivion along with the others... hay.

Note to self: Never leave home without the kindle.

A Simple Yet Very Touching Wedding at the Sulu Riviera Hotel

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 20:34:00 +0000

We started the year with a wedding. BK Pixels Photography We were contacted by Michael saying he wanted to avail of our photo coverage services for their civil wedding the next day, January 6, 2012, a friday. Too bad I had to go to work. Luckily, Berto was available.

It was a civil wedding and the venue was the Sulu Riviera Hotel in Quezon City, very near the Quezon City Hall. Hubby took along our assistant, R. Berto arrived there ahead of time so he can look for wonderful spots where he can take the couple's pictures. Although this is not our first time to cover a wedding at the Sulu Riviera Hotel. Last year we also covered Jessie and Sandra's renewal of vows at the same hotel.

Here are some photos taken at that event:

Here's to a booming photography business this year and onwards!

Visit our site: www.bkpixels.com
Need a photobooth for your party? We also rent one out: BK Pixels Photobooth

Zing!... Zing a Zong...

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 15:13:00 +0000

Just got home. Had to stay late at work… for the sake of month-end reports. Had to survive on Nacho Chips and Coke Zero courtesy of 7-11. Hubby had his usual siopao and gulp combo. I feel so tired.

Times like these remind me of food that make me feel better...I would love to gulp down some of that healthy and yummy fruit juice, Zing! Juice. We had some the last time we were in Powerplant Mall, Rockwell. Apparently, it’s 100% all natural fruit juices and smoothies. Just what I need after a loooong day from work. Something cool and refreshing to drive away the workday’s worries and stress.

Contradiction

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 16:56:00 +0000

It has been a while since i last posted. I know... I know... I've written these words so much if this blog were twitter it'd be trending already. It's the truth though. Funny how life works out. Just when I've decided to go one way, life really does throw you the most unexpected curve ball.. the strongest one too. Serves me right I guess, for thinking that i am the boss of me...

I guess i am truly the world's biggest contradiction. Much like my fave Starbucks mug (from my sis), shown here brewing my fave brand of tea, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (from the hubby).

I'll post a more coherent blog post soon i promise.

It's 2012... and I am back!

Hainanese Chicken with Ginger Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 05:23:00 +0000

Sunday is my second favorite day of the week, Saturday being the first. On a typical Sunday morning, everyone is relaxed, everyone gets up a little later than usual, even the little one. We go through the same routine, the moment hubby opens his eyes, he wonders out loud what would be his menu for the day. I often wonder how it is that while the idea of going to the market and cooking for our family is such a torture for me, he relishes every moment of it.

One Sunday he decided to try his hand at cooking Hainanese Chicken again. His first attempt wasn’t too successful. Even after more than an hour of boiling, the chicken still was bloody inside when sliced. This didn’t make the dish too popular especially for my dad who shared his opinion with all the good intentions in the world (“the chicken seems still lacking a few more minutes inside the boiling pot”). Disheartened, Berto didn’t try to cook this dish again… until recently.
Let me share with you Berto’s latest attempt in cooking one of his favorite dishes, the hainanese chicken with ginger sauce. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

Chicken:
1 whole chicken
1 teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic, peeled
4 slices fresh ginger, peeled
about 12 cups water
2 tablespoons sesame oil

Ginger sauce
2-inch chubby section ginger (about 2 ounces), peeled and finely chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation:
Wash chicken and be sure to remove excess fat. Rub the inside of the cavity with salt. Mash garlic and ginger slightly with the ladle, to produce the spicy juices. Place garlic and ginger inside the chicken cavity.

Bring the water to a boil in a pot large enough to hold the chicken. Make sure the whole chicken is submerged. Add the chicken, breast-side down. Simmer, covered, 45 minutes, turning chicken halfway through the cooking process, until chicken tests done (juices from thigh should run clear when pricked with a fork).

Carefully remove chicken, drain the liquid from body cavity back into the boiling pot. Plunge the chicken into ice water for 5 minutes to stop the cooking process and tighten the skin. Drain, rub with sesame oil, and let cool to room temperature.

For the ginger sauce, put the ginger, oil, salt, and 1 tablespoon of hot chicken broth. Taste and add up to 2 more tablespoons of poaching broth. Transfer to a dipping sauce dish.

To serve, the chicken is supposed to be sliced into thin, bite-sized pieces, however hubby had no more time so he just kept the original sizes of the chicken. Plus a hungry tummy isn't really picky when it comes to presentation... but officially you're supposed to slice it thinly...

He then served with boiled brocolli seasoned with salt and pepper.

Being Berto’s number one fan, I personally thought the chicken turned out great! Still a little bloody inside, but still delicious just the same.

My father, already suspicious of anything boiled, didn't touch the dish, opting to eat the last night's leftover dish.. oh well.

A Toast for Toast Box's Delectable Fare

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 02:29:00 +0000

Friday nights are Berto and Kwala Date Nights. We didn't really choose
the day, it's just traffic is so terribly horrible on Fridays that we choose to wait it out, hoping that by the time we hit the road, the traffic would have eased up.

Last Friday, we decided to try the dining offerings of Toast Box, a

Singaporean restaurant located at the 3rd Floor of Greenbelt 5. We've
passed by the resto a number of times and I've always been intrigued by
the bright and cozy interiors. I've been bugging the hubby for a dinner
date there. He's been making excuses, but the last time we pa

ssed it, wenoticed that they offered one of our favorite chow of all time,
hainanese chicken! That was all the convincing that Berto needed. We
went inside and were surprised to note that although it looked like a
semi-fine dining resto (the interiors looked a bit like that of Rack's)
actually wasn't. We had to line up and give our orders to the counter.

Toast Box's interiors gave off the shabby chic feel. Almost everything
was painted in white, emphasized even more by the bright lights. White
wooden tables and chairs, scattered around the restaurant, reminded me

of those comfy sets one can find on porches (if you had one) or by the

breakfast nook (if you're English, I guess). There are also some couches
available for those who want to lounge and drink coffee comfortably. It
exuded a laid back atmosphere.

Since it was our first time, we asked about some items on the menu, the
girl manning the counter dutifully answered our questions, albeit
unsmilingly. In the end, hubby settled for his favorite, a hearty
serving of hainanese chicken (P239), which came with greenish looking
rice and ginger/soy sauce dips. Hubby enjoyed this dish! He said it was flavorful and the chicken had just the right texture. I opted to try

Nasi Lemak (P225) which turned out to be a huge portion of fried chicken leg served with coconut rice and fried egg. It also came with an interesting siding of sweet-spicy dilis and beans. I was pleasantly surprised that it didn't taste like the usual fried chicken, it was more
flavorful, not to mention really crunchy. It tasted more like crispy
pata than fried chicken. Yum! We washed our heavy dinner down with
their Iced Lemon Tea (P30), a strong blend of brewed tea with 2 slices
of lemon. BURP!

After that sumptuous dinner, Berto and I decided our tummies still had
room for dessert, and I will share our dessert goodies in my post.

With Toast Box's savory fare and huge servings, food was indeed value
for money. We'll definitely come back for more.

Max's Chicken-All-You-Can

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 07:22:00 +0000

Just a quick thank you to our fave chicken resto, Max’s. Thanks for the chicken all you can promo for two years in a row. Berto and I almost couldn’t belive our eyes when we saw their billboard along c5 that said bubusugin nyo kami ulit. When they had this promo last year because of their anniversary, families and friends trouped to the different Max’s branches to enjoy the endless helpings of yummy chicken. This year was no different… Our family spent father’s day wolfing down chicken… and as if I didn’t feel full enough, I met my college friends for more chicken the next day.

Here’s more or less how every dining experience with max’s end up with….See you next year!

Ace Water Spa Kapitolyo Pasig Branch Now Open!

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 14:00:00 +0000

Hubby and I have been loyal customers of Ace Water Spa in Quezon City ever since we discovered it a few years ago. There’s nothing like hydromassage to relax our weary muscles. The facilities are great, the personnel friendly and the experience definitely worth it! The only problem is that it is located so far away from our place. We have to really make the trip to San Francisco Del Monte in QC if we want a respite from the hustle and bustle of our daily routine. Imagine our surprise and joy when we found out that Ace Water Spa opened a branch Pasig! It is definitely a better location for us since it is on our way home from Makati…

Address: Ace Water Spa Pasig Branch, United cor. Brixton St, Kapitolyo Pasig
near Pioneer Supermarket // across Uncle Moe's Shawarma Hub ) You may traverse Pioneer street and when you get to Jollibee, turn right. It is a new building with a sign that says Ace Water Spa

Daily operating hours: 6am to 11pm

Contact Number: 451-1111

Prices are still the same :
Adults P550 and Kids(4 feet and below) P250

When we went there, they had a Buy 2 Take 1 Promo. You can avail of your free ticket within two weeks of the initial spa schedule. Wonderful! That is a P550 value right there! My husband is already excited to claim the free ticket!
Same friendly personnel, but with better parking, since free parking space is allotted on the 5th floor of the building. (unlike in QC where there is limited parking in front of the spa, and when this is full your other choice is to go at the back of the building where a guard will look after your vehicle.) You’ll have to take the elevator down to the ground floor to enter the spa itself. It is basically the same set up, only smaller spa area since the lapping pool is bigger than the one in the main branch. All the hydro machines are still there but there is less space to move around in. I also noticed a few machines that were out of order, I never encountered such problem in the main branch. Unlike in QC where there are separate herbal pools for males and females, in this branch both sexes get to share in 4 herbal pools. Sadly we didn’t feel relaxed when we dipped in them since there were boisterous kids all around. Grrr… sorta defeated the purpose of those herbal pools.

All in all it we enjoyed the same relaxing feeling off the original Ace Water Spa, but sadly, no free soup afterwards. =(

Computer Classes for Me

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 21:01:00 +0000

Last April, I decided to enroll myself in a computer class. It has always been a dream of mine to finally get formal training in photoshop. I was self-taught and considering that I am not the world’s greatest teacher, this leaves me with a lot more to learn. I was initially intrigued with the concept of digital scrapbooking. I saw a lot of mommy bloggers getting into it big time so I also wanted to join the bandwagon. Apparently you had to know something about photoshop or corel to do this, so I went ahead and bought a book about photoshop and digital scrapbooking. It has been my therapy ever since.

Last October, I decided I wanted to learn more. I called up First Academy of Computer Arts to inquire and learned that photoshop classes don’t come cheap. They had this course that my “advisor” recommended, Graphic Design which is just a more impressive way of saying basic and advanced photoshop. It costs more than Php20,000. I almost dropped the phone. I shoved that idea at the very back of my head, along with liposuction and singing lessons. It was just not practical! Dishing out that much money only so that I can make prettier scrapbook pages.

Fast forward to March. We already launched our digital photography and photobooth rental business, BK Pixels. I have been creating layouts for our photobooth for months and it has been such a fun but painful process. It would take me hours to come up with a measly mediocre layout. I needed help. I am officially the artist (naks!) in our business. If you told my younger self that people will pay me in the future for my artistic prowess, my younger self would’ve died laughing and I wouldn’t be here anymore. I didn’t want to let my business partner/husband/best friend/prince charming down. I wanted to come up with better layouts and processed pictures for our business. I figured it would be an investment, plus I’d also get to make prettier scrapbook pages. Hence another call to my “advisor”.

Fast forward to June. Classes finally started. It has been 2 sessions already and I have to say, I am having fun! My classes are 6-9pm after work. I get to class with caffeine furiously coursing through my veins to keep awake because sometimes even my enthusiasm is not enough to keep my energy levels up. After 3 hours of dragging, selecting and ctrl-alt-clicking, I drag my bum off my ergonomic chair and fling myself into the open arms of my husband waiting outside the classroom. Even my weary body will agree though, I am learning a lot!

Later we’ll be having our third class, and my instructor will be checking our very first homework. Gee I feel like a grade schooler again. Hahaha. I’m excited! I just need some more caffeine to get that photoshopping mojo going.

For those interested in taking classes, contact my school:

First Academy of Computer Arts
2/F Saville Bldg. 8728 Paseo de Roxas Ave. cor. Sen Gil Puyat (Buendia) Ave., Makati City, Philippines
Telephone:+632 8982724 to 26 | +632 5015144
TeleFax:+632 8975502

Dinner at Buddy's

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Tue, 17 May 2011 14:49:00 +0000

Yesterday, Berto and I decided to dine at Buddy’s at Makati. We ordered the Pancit Lucban (P155), Budin (P55) and the Lumpiang Ubod (P70). I also wanted to try out the Longganisang Lucban but I reminded myself that I’d have to eat rice too, and I really need to lessen my food intake during dinner…This can be such a test on my conviction. Eating is one of the many things my husband and I have in common. Hence, the constant need to lose weight!

Berto suggested that instead of putting kalamansi on our pancit, we should try the suka (vinegar) instead. We were not disappointed! The vinegar had been mixed with other spices, and the resulting taste is just right. Mixed with the pancit, the distinct flavor is released adding to the yummy experience.

The lumpiang ubod was so good too! It tasted naturally sweet. Unlike other lumpia we’ve tasted, it didn’t rely on the sugar sprinkled on top for the sweetness. The natural taste of the fresh ubod is just perfect. A crushed peanut bar is placed on top instead of the usual crushed peanuts.

For dessert, we opted for Buddy’s famous budin, a delicious cassava cake that gives you value for your money. It is affordable at only 55 but can serve up to 4 people. My tummy was able to accommodate only 1 slice, Berto had to chomp down the rest. He pretended to complain at first, but then happily finished off our budin.

New Wedding Rings to Celebrate our Wedding Anniversary

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sun, 08 May 2011 14:50:00 +0000

10 years ago, we bought our wedding rings at Sta Cruz, Ongpin Manila. Good thing my husband is so familiar with Manila, we didn’t have a hard time looking for a “good” and “trustworthy” shop. (Beware there are a lot of shops out there looking to fool shoppers) We knew exactly what we were looking for: a simple band made of yellow (Saudi) gold. This design is similar to my parents’ wedding rings. Hubby also liked the design. We found a shop which not only sold, but also made the jewelry. They assured us that we will be getting a ring that is made with 100% gold as compared to other shops that sell “gold rings” but are actually just gold plated and is actually just steel inside. They even went on to show us a cross section of a wedding ring they made to prove that it was all gold through and through. Our rings cost us 7,000 for the pair. We just loved it!

Fast forward to the present, we haven’t been wearing our wedding rings for a while due to a few reasons. #1 through the years, our fingers have grown too fat… #2 most of our jewelry and watches are made of silver/white gold/steel. The yellow tint of our wedding rings didn’t blend well.

To celebrate our anniversary, my husband and I decided to start wearing our rings again. What better way to celebrate our union as husband and wife than to start wearing the very thing that symbolized our marriage. We had to have our rings resized.

Let me digress, we had 2 pairs of wedding rings. A few years before our church wedding, we already had our civil wedding and we had our simple (thin) gold bands from that wedding. Then, we also had the rings from our church wedding. We decided that it really was no use keeping 2 sets of similar looking wedding rings. So we decided to combine the two rings into one, and as an afterthought, we also decided to add a solitary diamond on each ring to celebrate the past decade that we’ve been together.

We found a wonderful jewelry shop in Shoppesville, Greenhills, Bernardo Jewelry(?). A woman was kind enough to assist us and even gave us discounts on top of the already reasonable price. It cost us another 12,000 to have all the adjustments made, since they had to add a few grams of their 24k gold. The result was just wonderful! Our rings looked new! All shiny and heavy and sparkly!

On the day of our anniversary, we attended mass. After the mass, we were blessed by the priest, he also blessed our rings. He was amused that we still had our original rings and that they still seem new. Hehehe =) We placed our rings on each other’s fingers in front of the priest the way we did 10 years ago, with a whisper of hope and love from our lips and a promise of forever from our hearts.

Happy Anniversary Hunny!

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sun, 08 May 2011 10:45:00 +0000

Last Wednesday, my husband and I celebrated our 10th year anniversary. Whew! Where have all the years gone? It seems only yesterday when we were fretting about which catering service to get for the wedding. Hahaha! More on how we celebrated our anniversary… soon! ( have to go to church now with the family)

Our New Venture is as Perfect as a Picture

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 04:13:00 +0000

Maybe this is the path we’re supposed to take… Apparently you can teach old dogs new tricks, at 34 we’re no spring chicken anymore but we definitely are learning new tricks.

Last year, hubby and I launched our digital photography and photobooth rental business. Call it fate, but last year everything just fell into place. First we got our very own DSLR, purely for personal use only. Hubby became interested in taking pictures and I have always loved documenting our daily lives. Our digicam is like a third limb to me. Having a precocious little toddler, lugging a camera around with me every waking moment is a must. It seemed only natural to eventually buy a DSLR so we could take “prettier” pictures.

Next, we enrolled in Leo Castillo’s photography class. This class came highly recommended by my sister, and we eventually understood why. His teaching style is simple and endearing. He assumes that no one knows anything… as in. So DSLR newbies like us didn’t feel intimidated or overwhelmed at all.

After the class, a friend offered to sell me his barely-used DSLR, the exact same model we already had, we went ahead and bought it since the price is totally worth it!

Then sometime last year, I started channeling “The Secret” and wanted to attract infinite wealth. I wondered what business we could get into. It must be something we love. I love books, but I can’t think of any business I could do with books. Hubby loved cars. I started thinking about selling car parts on the net. While I was surfing the net looking for samples of other online business we could get into, I chanced upon an ad about photo coverages. Hmmm. We could do that. I mean we had the gadgets and the know-how. How hard could that be? So we launched ads on the net saying we were offering digital photo coverage. 2 photographers for the price of one. Business started coming in!

Then one day as I was surfing the net, and I saw ads about photobooths. Hmmm. We could do that too… And we did. We put together a booth in no time and launched ads saying we are now also offering photobooth rentals for different occasions. We made a killing last December since Christmas parties and reunions happened left and right.

I can really say that this business of ours is guided. I feel that everything just fell into place. A big plus is that we are doing something that hubby and I both really like. Here’s to our new business, may it flourish and expand more this year!

Did He Just Say Soma?

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 01:03:00 +0000

A few months ago, my office mate hurt his arm while playing basket ball. He made a jump shot and then he landed on someone else, causing him to lose his balance and fall on his arm. My husband and I were supposed to watch that game, thankfully something came up and we were not able to go to the game. I say thankfully since i dont know how i would've reacted, seeing a friend writhing in pain.

When they brought him to the hospital he was still in terrible pain. Meds to ease the pain were given to him and this made him really dizzy and groggy. When i talked to him, and asked him how he was feeling, all he could say was "soma". I asked his wife what that meant and she said that he was just explaining that he can't talk just yet because he was still feeling disoriented due to the side effects of his pain medications like soma. He was willing to endure these slight effects in exchange for the relief of the severe pain he was feeling.

His wife said he seems to be taking everything well, considering that he has been on sick leave for months now, since they had to operate on his arm. His bones were broken in several places, and they have had to staple them back together again. After this, he is facing months and months of physical therapy to gain back full facility of his arm. This means pain will be his constant companion for a few more months. He will have to depend on pain medications like soma to get him through this rough patch in his life. Good thing that he has his faithful and loving wife to nurse him back to health. With his resilience, i'm sure he'll be back to the office in no time!

This is a sponsored post.

Payday Loans to the Rescue

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 15:42:00 +0000

Christmas season is fast approaching. It is definitely a super fun season for kids, but not so much for us adults. We are bestowed with the burden of staging a very memorable christmas for our little ones every year. We are expected to outdo ourselves this year as compared to last year's holiday celebrations. And how can we ignore the growing list of god children we need to give gifts to. The list grows every year. In my case, this year is no exception. Just last month we addes 3 more in our list. Two god children for me and another god child from hubby's side. It's not that we mind, its just that financially speaking, money can be pretty tight once December comes. I mean, I also want to get some nice things for my family, and then i have to get some stuff for friends and family (especially the husband!) , then i get down to the god children list and buy stuff for them! Thank God for payday loans, or what i personally call the life saver loan. hahaha!

I apply for a payday loans and it helps me survive the holiday seasons. Shopping while constantly doing mental computations, making sure you've got just enough to check off all the names on the list, can be such a stressful thing to do. payday loans really saves me from this mental anguish i'd otherwise go through.
Now i shop worry free. Instead of constantly thinking about my budget, I can take my time and go through the list carefully. I can now not worry about the prices of the gifts I buy. I now focus my energy on thinking about what each child needs or likes. I can consider their ages and think about what is the latest trend in that age bracket. Of course I still wouldn't think about buying extravagant gifts, but this is really a welcome change from simply grabbing the cheapest item on the rack and buying it, hoping the child who receives is will somehow appeaciate it. Gift giving can be a special thing for both the giver and the recipient.

This is a sponsored post.

Freelance Photographers

noreply@blogger.com (Berto and Kwala) — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 14:39:00 +0000

The husband and I decided to make some money out of our passions, photography. So we have recently launched ourselves as freelance photographers. Yes. It is official, we are photographers. We are now offering photo coverage services for only 3,000 if within Marikina City and only 3,500 if within metro manila. It is super affordable and worth it since for that price, the clients will be getting the services of 2 photographers! It is sort of a 2 photographers for the price of one kinda deal...

Hope venture becomes a success!

Hey, for inquiries, contact (02) 2905711 or 09152868944 =)

visit our site: www.bkpixels.com