A Day in the Life

Lance and Hannah's Birthday Celebration

2009-10-20T09:44:00.010+08:00

October 18 - This was the day that Toni and Stevie rescheduled the kids' birthday celebration. It was originally meant for October 4, Sunday but the venue was also flooded and needed weeks to get things back in order. So they decided to hold the celebration at Jollibee in Green Meadows.

Needless to say, the kids all had a good time. It was rather unlucky that Rhys and Dimples and Jericho couldn't make it because Rhys was sick. Some of the guests were also trapped and troubled by the closing of the Quezon Circle route due to a marathon run so they ended up being late for the celebration.

Dana and Dylan participated in the games and even won a few prizes.

Of course, the highlight of the party was when Jollibee himself made an appearance!! Even the adults wanted to have their picture taken with Jollibee hahahaha

All in all, kids and adults had a good time and there was plenty of food left over. After this, we took the kids back home because their car was still in the shop adn then we went straight to SM North Edsa to have Den's laptop looked at. I fear it's a virus and the system needs to be recovered. It's a good thing that the after-sales service at Gigahertz is great. They fixed the laptop with no charge :)

Took advantage of the 50% sale at the department store to buy the kids' their Christmas clothes :D

Tiring but Fun Day!!

The sun is out!

2009-10-20T07:40:00.003+08:00

After Ondoy it was Typhoon Pepeng but he didn't pass Metro Manila. Instead he made landfall in the North, not once but three times (yes, he came back twice!). Relief and cleaning up operations are still ongoing this time in the northern provinces. The northern provinces, especially Pangasinan, Tarlac, Bulacan were left flooded. Baguio had one too many landslides and for a while the roads leading to and coming from Baguio were impassable. Rains continued for 3 days straight there. 5,000 cubic meters per second of water was released from the San Roque Dam, which may have added to the flooding of 90% of the towns in Pangasinan. Prices of vegetables doubled because most of these were coming from Baguio. Many people were left homeless, their crops a riverbed of water, and their towns once clean and green are now either flooded or muddy.

Metro Manila, this time, was spared with only a few rains here and there. Thus, we decided to get out of the house, breathe "fresh" air and maybe enjoy the sun when it comes out. We all went to Mall of Asia where Dylan got his hair cut at his regular salon. Den also went for a hair cut while I treated myself (sort of a pre-birthday gift) to a foot spa with pedicure! (oh it was heaven!!) at the David's Salon. I love this salon, they really make you feel pampered and special. That's why I keep going back there :)

The weekend after that, after Dana's Saturday class, as another pre-birthday gift, we also had Stanley's stereo replaced. We bought a Pioneer system that's equipped with a USB port for more music woohoo. Stanley's old radio had a 6 CD changer but you can only play 2 CD's and that's at the whim of Stanley LOL Next on the agenda will be to replace his speakers because one of them is broken. ;)

The aftermath of the storms

2009-10-13T07:18:00.004+08:00

You've all probably heard by now the destruction that the Philippines experienced in the wake of Typhoons Ondoy (Ketsana) and Pepeng (Parma). Ondoy hit Metro Manila last September 26, rained for 6 hours and delivered a month's worth of rain. The result: Metro Manila was totally flooded, especially in the areas of Marikina, Rizal and Pasig, all of which were along the path of the Marikina and Pasig Rivers which both overflowed during the height of the storm. Many people were stranded, my niece included and she spent the night at the University. It's funny because though the school was only a 15-minute walk home I told her not to risk the floods because the water was thigh to chest deep in some areas. You'll see a lot of videos and pictures of cars one on top of the other, filled with mud and cascading down streets. Most houses in Provident Village were submerged in mud and flood waters. Patrick's brother Stevie and his family had to evacuate from their house in Marikina because the water rose up to about 12 feet. We went to help them with the cleanup last Sunday and we hardly recognized the subdivision because it looked like a battleground of sorts. As you can see, it's not just debris from their own house that they have to clear up. There are lots of debris brought by the floods that end up in their home and mud is so hard to clean.

We also heard from friends about other friends that lost most of their belongings and we pitched in to help by donating clothes and food. Den also volunteered in their school drive to pack relief goods.

Patrick's sister, Dimples also felt the brunt of the storm. Their house in Quezon City was totally flooded up to the 2nd floor. They thought that they will be safe because the water level has never risen past the ground floor and they were caught unaware by the deluge. They had to evacuate for their own safety. When they came back, their house was a wreck. Furniture overturned, the ref floating in the water and even their cellphones and gadgets were waterlogged.

This was certainly a trying time for everyone. More so for those who lost everything but their lives. Seeing all that they've worked so hard to build reduced to a pile of debris is heartbreaking. Losing their loved ones to the raging waters, cascading mud is even more traumatic. Having to spend the night on your roof without water, without food and without any hope of rescue is mind-shattering.

Thank goodness for the kind-hearted souls who have generously donated their extras to help their brothers in need. Thank goodness for the many organizations who work nonstop to get the relief goods to people still unreachable by regular means. Thank goodness for the indomitable spirit of the search and rescue workers who have continuously been working to get people to safety.

You can look at this tragedy and be hopeless and wallow in self-pity. Or you can take the higher path and feel emboldened by the generosity of others and move forward, value the life of your loved ones and strive to learn from this experience.

Flooding in Sampaloc

2009-09-27T10:55:00.002+08:00

Never in my life did I think that the water would rise so fast. It was a Saturday morning and Dana had classes. So we brought her to school. It was raining a little so it was still okay, otherwise I wouldn't have thought to bring her to school at all. Anyway, around 10:30, we were heading out to get her from school and the rains were stronger, visibility was very poor but we managed and we even went to our favorite store so we can buy lunch but the water was high already and we were scared it might get into the car. We didn't think it was going to be bad at our place.

When we got near the house, we noticed that the garage was open and my cousins were bringing their cars out.. Look out! Water was in the garage and it was ankle deep in a span of 15 minutes!! we parked the car outside, brought the kids in and checked the status inside the house. Mel's room was flooded, there was a leak in the window.. got that fixed with sealant. Den's room was leaking, got that fixed too, the roofdeck was flooded, the drain was blocked. Our room was leaking.. the ceiling was flooding.. man, i can't fix that so our room had buckets of water LOL

You won't believe it, but the water in the garage rose to as high as chest-levels. On the streets, they were probably at thigh-levels. and the rain wasn't stopping ... At least, we didn't lose power.. Our neighbors houses were flooded. Our house itself wasn't flooded but we couldn't get out.. We just had to wait it out and keep vigil on the buckets of water inside the house LOL

Now we're waiting for the water to subside for the clean-up.. oh what a joy! LOL

Here are pictures, if you're so inclined:

On the streets:

Inside the compound:
If you look at the water level behind Tito Ernie, you'll see how high it reached.

Water in the car:

Trip to Subic

2009-09-27T10:05:00.002+08:00

September 19 - With just a few days notice, Patrick told us that we were headed to Subic for the weekend. He was supposed to attend and cover the launch of a new energy drink and we were tagging along with him. It was also coincidental that he was assigned to test drive the new Honda City for a week.

Unfortunately, the day of the trip started out bad. When Patrick went out to get to the 6am opening ceremonies of the event in Ortigas, he found out that someone stole the Honda's side mirrors!! oh no!! It was our schedule to be parked outside of the garage for the weekend but never in my mind did I think that someone was going to steal side mirrors.. Man.. that was a shock.. It was a stress looking for replacement parts but Patrick found them over at Honda Otis Manila. What a relief!!

Then, we were headed out.. Dana was not feeling well but I thought it was just the regular "just woke up, bad mood" thing. I was hoping she will get better once we were on the road.. so we just monitored her..

Traffic was bad on the Expressway because it was a long weekend since Monday was a holiday. We had late lunch at the stopovers along the NLEX and we were worried that we won't make the check-in time. Fortunately, they allow late check-ins.. that's the 2nd relief! We arrived in Subic around 4pm already..

The Bayfront Hotel was pretty okay. Affordable rates, pleasant staff, good food. Dana still had a fever but it went away for a while so she was able to swim in the pool. The fever returned full blast maybe because of the aircon, it was so cold in the room. Dana's fever was still raging so we turned off the aircon and bathed her in cold water. I kept a cold compress on her forehead overnight, which meant I didn't sleep but that's okay.. it's a mother's duty.. The fever was kept at bay until morning. Luckily, there was a reclining couch in the room, that's where she slept, and we moved that couch away from the aircon so it wouldn't be so cold for her.

She was feeling better in the morning, we went outside after breakfast (buffet and really good food). There was a playground and we stopped at the beachside. We went riding around the area just to see what's new. Then went back just in time for checking out. We had lunch at Gerry's Grill - really yummy food! Dana was able to eat something at least..

Then it was time to go home. But Patrick had another stop in mind.. the Duty Free shops!! Man, did I go crazy there!!! Finally, clothes that fit me and for so cheap!!! I bought 2 pairs of shorts for me, a pair of Crocs on sale, shorts for Den, an Elmo doll for Dylan, toys for Dana.. it was crazy!! we also bought Combos (cheddar cheese snacks) and a 6-pack box of Pringles LOL

Car Emergency on the NLEX

2009-09-15T06:41:00.004+08:00

September 12 - Today, we went to visit Uncle Dennis and his family in Pampanga. This time, we were joined by Stevie and his family as well. It was a good time spent catching up, mostly it was Stevie and Uncle Dennis because we were there recently. Around 5 PM, Stevie announced we were going home and so we packed up and left.

Immediately after exiting the tollway station, Stanley (for those who don't remember, Stanley is the name of our car) just started to shake and the steering wheel was really going crazy. We immediately stopped at the shoulder of the road. We tried driving slow to see if it was caused by the speed. It wasn't. Even if we were traveling at 20km/hour there was a minor "wiggle" to the car that can't be ignored. So we decided to stop at the nearest gas station to have a mechanic check the problem and if it's possible, to fix it. Surprisingly enough there wasn't a mechanic available at the Caltex Station. They gave us a number to a mechanic in San Simon whom we had to wait for. When he arrived 30 minutes later, he looked at the tires pronounced them unfit, released some of the pressure and sent us on our way. Oh and he told us that there was an accident on the Southbound lane of the NLEX. What a joy! right!

So on we went, it was now 6 PM. Oh and we let Stevie and his family go on ahead because the kids were getting fussy. And when you're traveling you don't want fussy kids in the car LOL

We were moving again but the wheels were still a problem. I asked Patrick to stop and call the emergency service of NLEX using their phone on the side of the road. That's what they're there for, right? So that in itself was an adventure for Patrick LOL Because he said, it wasn't technically a phone but a box - a talking box LOL He wanted to take a picture but it was getting dark and it was drizzling. Perfect timing and weather for your car to breakdown.

He talked to someone, they said they'll send the nearest Patrol Car (which happened to be a few minutes away at the scene of the accident we just passed LOL) They examined the car, said it was something else that was the trouble. Finally, we decided we can't go on like this forever and so we asked them the rates for towing. P1,200 up to the nearest exit which was Pulilan. P4,200 up to the end of the NLEX, further than that, they charge more of course. hmm.. so that kept us thinking LOL

And so we thought. And the solution at that time was to call Sharon (my sister) and have Jowell (her husband) tow us back to Manila by any means necessary LOL But that didn't pan out because as the Patrol guys said, only the accredited towing service of NLEX is allowed to tow vehicles there. The option was, we get towed to Pulilan have them pick us up there and then use the McArthur Highway to get back to Manila. So that was our option. Better, P1,200 than P4,200 LOL

When the towing service came, it was from AAP or the Automobile Association of the Philippines.. Woohoo!! We were members which meant we didn't have to pay the P1,200!! hahahah one less problem solved LOL

They towed us to Pulilan and they recommended a car shop who can probably fix Stanley. By that time, Sharon and her family arrived in Pulilan too and Jowell was there at the shop with a watchful eye.

They replaced the left wheel with the spare tire. They fiddled with something. Jowell test drove it. It seemed to work fine. So we were off, no towing necessary but we were running at 40km/hr on the shoulder of the road because it was still wiggling. The steering kept fighting with Patrick.

We arrived at the house around 12. The kids were tired. We were tired but we arrived safe though not so sound LOL In our stress, we even landed on the truck lane at the exit tollgate because we were concentrating on every sound and move that Stanley was making, we didn't notice that the lanes were widening LOL

Monday morning, we took Stanley to my aunt's vulcanizing shop and one look at Stanley's underside and we saw the problem. The CV joints were busted. Not the tie rod, not the wheels. The CV joints were blown out, bearings gone, it was a surprise they didn't break off too, the mechanic said. Got those parts replaced from Banawe (original parts for P3,000) each.. expensive but at least they're not surplus.

And Stanley was as good as new.. well sort of :) Here are the pictures, forgive them if they're dark LOL
The Towing Truck

Preparing to get Stanley on the truck

Stanley on the truck. As Dana said, Stanley has his own driver now :)

Dana's Card Grades

2009-09-09T06:50:00.004+08:00

Well, the time is now to see Dana's card grades. To be honest, I wasn't really worried or anything because I've already seen the results of her exams. I was actually more worried about her Filipino (learning to speak and read Filipino class) because as you know, English is her first language.

But lo and behold, her Filipino is higher than her Math grade!! LOL It's not that she's not brilliant in Math. I saw her exams and I asked her why she didn't answer the test questions correctly because I know she knew the right answers. She told me, she was getting bored from having to answer all of the questions and she didn't read any of the instructions anymore LOL That is quite understandable seeing as this is her first time doing tests like this in school. I did tell her that the first time is the only "excusable" time.. the next time, I won't be so forgiving (hmm.. that sounded ominous) LOL

Anyway, the red numbers are the actual grades that she got.

Trip to Tagaytay and Enchanted Kingdom

2009-09-02T14:35:00.004+08:00

August 29-30, 2009

First of all, let me greet Den, my niece a Happy 18th Birthday!!! It is on her account that we're going out of town because we want to celebrate her 18th Birthday in style :)

So we chose Tagaytay as our destination for three reasons. First, we've never been there as a family and staying overnight. Second, it was on the way to Enchanted Kingdom where we'll be spending the next day at. Patrick got free tickets again as part of Enchanted Kingdom's media blitz. And, Third, we reserved a room at the Days Hotel Tagaytay because we wanted to test the discount card that I was a member of. For P3K annual membership, we get 30%-40% discounted rates at Days Hotel rooms nationwide and the same goes for their affiliate hotels.

Our first stop during our trip, believe it or not, was for lunch at the Rose and Grace Restaurant along the Sta. Rosa-Tagaytay Highway. For P1K+ we got our fill of Bulalo, Beef Steak, Lechon Kawali, a Tower of Nestea Iced Tea and 2 orders of Fresh Lumpia and bowls of rice! :D Not bad!! and Great Tasting too!!

It was just in time for checking in when we were done so we headed to the Days Hotel Tagaytay where we were booked at their Deluxe Room. There was 1 King Sized Bed, a couch that turns into an extra bed and our very own jacuzzi in the bathroom!! All for P4650 (inclusive of 10% surcharge). Oh and there was a balcony/terrace where you get to hang out and enjoy the scenic view of the mountain.

We then headed to Tagaytay Picnic Grove because we heard that there was horseback riding there and we wanted the kids to experience that. So off we went!! And sure enough, there were horses there, you can tell by the stench! LOL My allergies started acting up LOL But all for the kids so I soldiered on LOL For P200, 2 people can ride one horse for an hour. It's a boring one hour because they only get to go around in circles in a paddock type of field. For an additional P150, you supposedly get an adventure tour (but we didn't try that out). The kids enjoyed it though :)

After that, we went looking for the Zipline and Cable area. Arfie recommended this bit so thanks to her :) That was an awesome adventure!! Den and I decided to try the zipline. You are suspended from these zipline cables. You choose to lie flat or to sit (we chose to lie flat it was more exciting that way!) and you're zipping across the mountain. It was a rush, a scary, but exhilarating rush!! So we went both ways because it was tiring to go back up the trail on foot hahahaha The kids, Ate Mel and Patrick went on the cable car which will take the same route only on a much sedate pace. Dylan was pretending there was a dinosaur hiding in the trees LOL So that was a worthwhile experience :)

After all that excitement, we all trooped to the swimming pool at the hotel even though it was pretty cold so we didn't stay long. We then spent a long time in the jacuzzi LOL that was something :)

Time for bed!! We have an early day because we still have to go to Enchanted Kingdom :) But we still managed to sneak in a dip in the pool hahaha

And that was our trip to Tagaytay:

Our trip to Enchanted Kingdom is pretty much a rehash of what went on the last time.. Full of rides but since there were more people at the park, there were long lines and it wasn't really that much fun. I did have a chance to get a foot reflexology and whole body massage at Enchanted.. and it was heaven!! LOL You just don't know how long I've wanted to experience that ! LOL

For more pictures (and there are many!) just click here:

It's a good thing it was a 3-day weekend. We needed one day to rest before school and office started again LOL

Trip to Enchanted Kingdom

2009-08-09T11:03:00.008+08:00

August 2, 2009 - So the day has finally arrived for our trip to Enchanted Kingdom. The kids surprisingly enough were easy to wake up for our early drive. At first, we weren't sure if the event was going to be postponed because the weather wasn't exactly ideal. But we still pushed on because it's Enchanted Kingdom!!! LOL

Den was going to follow from school with her friends because they had a test scheduled on the same day. We just met her and her friends at the gate when they arrived. Ate Mel unfortunately got left behind because she was feeling under the weather. Too bad.

Let's hope there's another break for us!

When we got there, we headed straight for the Karting area because the competition was about to start. It was fun and looked exciting and I wanted to try it too hahaha After the first lap was done, Patrick qualified yahoo!!!

I'll just give you the highlights of the rides the kids went on. The Grand Carousel, The Dodge 'em (bump cars), the Roller Skater, the Giant Ferris Wheel, the Jungle Log Jam, the Rio Grande Rapids and other rides for kids :)

The kids also got their face painted, ran around in the kids' playground, watched "Journey to the Center of the Earth" in 4D.

At the end of the day, we all took a picture with Eldar the Wizard and a lovely maiden :) We all ended up changing clothes because when riding the Rapids, expect to get wet, wet, wet!! hahahaha

It was a good day! It was a fun day!! Dana can't stop talking about the Jungle Log Jam!

Changing Stanely's Tires

2009-08-09T10:30:00.004+08:00

July 30, 2009

When Patrick mentioned that he was participating in a Karting competition in Enchanted Kingdom and that we were all going to go with him, we were so excited and we couldn't wait for the day to arrive.

To prepare for the trip, we took Stanley (our car) for wheel balancing and wheel alignment over at the West Tyre Yokohama shop along West Avenue in Quezon City. W ended up buying two new tires for Stanley because his tires were rather worn out and that was the reason why air seemed to be escaping from the tires on a regular basis. We were just happy that we got a P500 discount for each tire :) That's already a big deal! :)

You can really feel how different Stanley feels with these new tires.. have to save up again to replace the rear ones :)

A New Desktop PC

2009-08-09T09:17:00.002+08:00

One of the things on my wish list is getting a new pc. Granted our old one wasn't broken yet but it was on its way there. I have to thank my brother Allan for sending our old one but I think PC's only last 5 years until they start to deteriorate especially if you use it a long time. The monitor was the first one to give up, then the CD-drive, then the hard drive.. you get the picture?

Oh and when Den and I decided to clean the 3-in-one Dell printer, guess what? it won't start anymore - the flimsy cables broke sheesh.. we got a clean scanner but a dead all-in-one LOL

So, instead of just buying a printer on its own, we just decided to get a new desktop and maybe get a discount on the printer as well if we include it in the purchase. We scanned and browsed many shops and I even looked at reviews of cheap-priced parts on the net.

We finally went with Dynamic PC in Gilmore and purchased our new desktop from them. I have to give props to Dynamic PC and their crew, especially Gene. He was very helpful and pleasant and attentive and great with multi-tasking! LOL Here are the specs of our new PC: Intel Core 2 Duo, 500 GB Hard Drive, 2GB Ram, a video card (sorry I'm not tehcnical about this hahaha), a 19" Viewsonic Widescreen monitor, an F4280 HP Deskjet (3-in-1), the usual keyboard, speakers and mouse, a Samsung DVDRW drive.. uhmm what else??oh we bought a Hard Drive enclosure for our old drive, from a Dynamic PC store in North Edsa on a different jaunt hahaha

Kat's quilts

2009-08-09T08:42:00.005+08:00

June 24, 2009

I am very grateful to my best friend Kat for making my kids these precious quilts :) I didn't know that she was a gifted quilt-maker, much less had the interest for it, but as you can see she really did a fine job!! I'm so proud of you, Kat!!! My kids love the quilts and are now a constant bedspread. Dana got a Lightning McQueen and Dylan got his favorite Dinosaurs.. Den also got a blue quilt but she didn't want me to take pictures of her on it LOL

Here are pictures of Dana and Dylan enjoying the quilts.. Oh and those clothes are the ones you sent Kat! :) they love them hahaha

Trip to Parks and Wildlife QC

2009-08-09T08:19:00.006+08:00

As I was looking at my blog, I realized it's been a long time since I've updated it and so here I am trying to make up for lost time :)

Last June 24, we all went to the Parks and Wildlife in Quezon City. We got tired of going to the malls and figured we needed a dose of nature LOL The last time I went here I was a kid and look now, I'm bringing my kids!

We actually didn't know where to start because the place was huge so we just started walking and hoped it would lead somewhere LOL The first thing we came to was the mini-zoo where they placed rescued animals like snakes, birds and other creatures. We took Dana's bike so she'll have more time to ride it, but unfortunately, the rough terrain (yeah right!) broke it down LOL

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

2009-06-30T07:53:00.003+08:00

June 27, 2009 - It was a rare Saturday for all six of us to be up and about. The reason was we're to be at Glorietta 4 to watch a special screening of the movie Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. It was a promotional event sponsored by Petron where Patrick (as part of Top Gear) got free tickets to the event. They even gave out P1200 worth of gift certificates from Burger King, free popcorn and a souvenir photo.

The whole cinema was packed and we ended up sitting two rows from the front. Dana and Dylan got booster seats so they'll be much more comfortable (that was great of them!). Since we knew that we were going to watch this movie, we saw to it that we watched the first movie to get back into the action hahaha

Dylan of course loved both movies and his first complete three syllable word is "Bumblebee"! hahahaha

I loved it as well and I won't tell much more of the story just in case you haven't watched it yet ;) If you get the chance don't miss it.. It's really worth it! :) Patrick and I wanted to watch it again but this time on IMAX but tickets are sold out! LOL

Dana's first day in school

2009-06-21T06:59:00.003+08:00

June 15, 2008 is a milestone in Dana's life (and come to think of it in ours as parents too). This was the first time that our daughter first set foot in the hallowed halls of learning :) Wow, that sounded so serious it's as if it wasn't me talking LOL

Well yeah, Dana is now 5 and she's now in Kinder II. Actually, their first day was supposed to be on June 08th but because of the A/H1N1 virus (swine flu to others), classes were postponed to give time for families to quarantine themselves if they've gone outside the country for a vacation. At first, we didn't know that the school moved the date of start of classes. Dana and I still went and when we reached the school, we were surprised to read the announcement. She was a little disappointed but kids bounce back so easily. She took it in a stride :)

I was still a bit antsy if I got everything that she needed and that I wasn't missing anything. Pre-school jitters are normal I guess especially for a first-time school parent hahaha This is kinda funny because I've done this school routine for my brother (you know this is true, Allan) and with my niece Den before. It's just that it's been so long and I'm kinda nostalgic that I'm now buying school stuff for my own kid.

On to June 15th. Dana had no problem waking up at 5:30am to get ready for school. She ate her breakfast (cereals) and her milk and then took a bath. She didn't have a uniform yet because the school ran out of it (weird!) so she was still in civilian clothes. Patrick and I were bringing her to school together. So, here she is in her classroom :)

We were finally able to buy her one set of uniforms by chance. So here she is :) Patrick brings her to school everyday because it's on his way to work. It's a good compromise because he gets to the office early and he can leave early too hahahha

I know that she's enjoying her time in school because by the time I pick her up and we walk home together, she can't stop talking about the things they've done. I know she even dreams about the activities when she sleeps hahahaha

Trip to Clark Field (former US Base) in Pampanga

2009-05-27T10:04:00.003+08:00

May 23 - 24 - Just shy of a week, I found out that Patrick was supposed to head to Clark to cover an event for the magazine where he works. There was going to be a drag racing event at the Clark Speedway and he needed to be on top of it. Well, I figured if he was going to Clark for the day, we might as well join him and make it an overnight trip :) We haven't been to Clark as a family and this was an opportune time as any. Sort of the last out of town trip before school starts.

So we booked a room at the Lohas Hotel New Well Being Spa. We chose the Suite Room because it offered 2 bedrooms (with queen beds), 2 bathrooms, a living room, a terrace, complimentary water and coffee, buffet breakfast for 4 and sauna treatment for 4. All for only P4500 (excluding the 10% tax). Here are some pictures of the resort:

The Jimjilbang is an authentic Korean sauna. At the hotel, they'll give you a locker key, slippers, towels and sauna clothes. There are separate men's and women's locker rooms but the sauna itself is mixed. You need to pass through three stages: First, the intense heat of the Bulgama. It was so hot that I couldn't breathe the first time I entered the room. As I asked the attendant, the trick was to sit down immediately on the mat and breathe through your mouth just to get used to the sensation. But within seconds, you really will be sweating buckets and I mean buckets!! LOL The nice thing is while you're inside the bulgama, you can order iced tea and other drinks haha If you feel that the heat is getting to you, go out for a while, relax a bit, dry yourself off and then come back inside again. The next round, your body is more acclimatised to the heat and will release more toxins and sweat. When you're through with the Bulgama, you may rest a while in the Charcoal room. The heat here is less intense but the room is lined with charcoal for a better absorption of the toxins that are still being released from your body. Once done, you need to close up your pores and that's where you go - to the Ice Room. To describe it, it's one big refrigerator or freezer hahahaha It's refreshing even though it's freakin' cold! LOL After such an experience, I felt several pounds lighter and cleaner hahaha Patrick's clothes were soaked through :))

Of course, you can't be at a resort and not take a dip in the pool so that's what we did :) The kids loved the pool because it's not so deep, there's a section that's only 2 ft high and the deepest is 5ft. There's even a portion where if you stay under the columns, it's like you're getting a massage from the water that falls on your shoulders.

For dinner, we ate at the hotel restaurant so that we can experience unique and authentic Korean food. Kudos to our Filipino server Ann that night who very patiently explained the Korean dishes on the menu hahaha We had something like stif-fried beef that should be wrapped in veggies with a spattering of special sauce and balsamic vinegar. That was delicious! Spicy but delicious!! woohoo The appetizers were an entire meal itself hahaha There was Kimchi, baked baby potatoes, some squid, an egg roll and some whose names elude me at the moment. We also ordered Korean noodles and all I can say is WOW!!!

Morning the next day, we spent eating our buffet breakfast and swimming some more. The kids were tired and spent some time sleeping too. Then it was time to go and the staff were kind enough to grant us a late checkout without any additional charges. Actually, we were supposed to take advantage of their massage but the schedule got screwed up.

Then we left around 2pm and headed on to Patrick's drag racing event, a few minutes away. We finished the day with dinner at Kenny Rogers along the expressway.

Our stay at the hotel was really good. The staff was great. The facilities were superb. The hotel was really clean and well-maintained. I would recommend Lohas Resort to everyone :)

If you want to see more of the pictures, click here.

Visiting with Uncle Dennis and Family

2009-05-27T09:41:00.003+08:00

Here's another story that's a tribute to the Internet. LOL Uncle Dennis is one of Patrick's Dad's brothers. He's the youngest among the siblings which is why Patrick, Stevie and Dimples are very close to him. For some time, we've lost track of him especially when the family moved out of their Rimas home in Project 2. When he heard that Patrick's Dad died last December, he asked his daughters to use the Internet to look for Patrick and his siblings.

Voila!! Jackie found Patrick through Google. Jackie found Patrick's blog and from there, the connection was made! :) We were able to communicate via Yahoo Messenger and we were able to catch up on the news. It was fortunate that we planned a trip to Clark which meant being able to drop by and visit them since they're on the way there.

So on May 23rd, we met up in Dau around 9:30, exactly 2 hours from Manila and before we checked-in at our hotel. Here are some pictures:

Let's hope that it doesn't take another tragedy to be together as a family.

Preparing for Dana's first time in school is making me teary-eyed

2009-05-27T08:46:00.003+08:00

Yep, you read it right.. cheesy and corny as it sounds, I was teary-eyed at the mall when we went buying Dana's first supplies for school.

I remember I used to do this with my Mom when we bought school supplies for Allan, my brother and then for Den when she was younger. Although come to think of it, Den and I still buy school supplies together but college needs are different from preschool most definitely LOL

It's funny since we hadn't bought any school stuff for elementary aged kids in a long time I wasn't sure what their needs were even though I have a list LOL I was wondering about how big the bag would be and I wanted to buy a big one just in case. Den just raised an eyebrow and said, "that's way too much, she can't even pull that, much less carry it" so I settled for a smaller one, of course, Dana chose a Lightning McQueen bag (Lily, sagot mo to! don't worry less than P1K LOL). The salesperson did say it was suitable for preschool kids so I guess that should be alright :)

Then we bought notebooks, pencils, art supplies, shoes, socks, undergarments, etc. We haven't bought the books yet because they still weren't complete and her uniforms too because there weren't any sizes available for her.

I'm glad that Dana is excited to go to school. We have an orientation on June 8th. I'm nervous and excited too hahaha

Family Trip to Island Cove (Part 2)

2009-05-06T12:48:00.003+08:00

So, to continue, we had a restful night sleeping in our airconditioned "superior" room. We shared 2 single beds and an extra bed. Patrick and Dana in one and then the other 2 beds were close together so Dylan, Den and I shared those. The kids fell asleep immediately, especially since they're so pooped from all that walking around and all the excitement.

Here are the kids after waking up and a view from the balcony of our room looking into the courtyard below:

They also had WI-FI connection at the resort so we brought our laptop with us.

After checking out, we still headed to the Giant Chessboard for some photo opps :)

We headed back to the crocodile farm so the kids can have fun painting their canvass bags :) We paused at the playground too :) We took the electric tram to get there.

After that, it was lunchtime and we headed straight to the Fishing Village. Here you have a choice of huts. On land or on water. You can also fish and whatever you catch they can cook them for you. It's great! We decided on staying on the huts over water for the experience. Depending on the size of the hut, you have a minimum amount to consume for food and you can stay for up to 3 hours.

There were a lot of things that we didn't get to try, like the bikes, the actual fishing, the spa, the hotel pool (haha) We really want to go back and stay for a longer period of time. I just need to save again hahahaha

So thanks for reading through all these and leave a comment and let me know what you think :)

Family outing at Island Cove (Part 1)

2009-05-06T09:45:00.003+08:00

May 02, 2009 - It's the day for our first out-of-town family trip and we've chosen Island Cove in Cavite, Philippines as our destination. You ask why, well, first, it's very near where we live, something like 1 hour to an hour and a half to get there. Second, their Family Fun Package is very affordable and with a lot of freebies. Third, we wanted a place that had a lot of things to do and offer so that the kids won't be bored. Island Cove has them :)

When we got there, we left our baggages and went straight to Animal Island :)

They have a petting zoo,

a butterfly garden,

a tiger sanctuary: THE DADDY
The YOUNGEST at 11 months
the BIGGEST SIBLING, at 3 years old

And the Mama Tiger who we weren't able to photograph because she kept peeing! LOL and believe me they can shower anyone at close range LOL

They also have a lot of birds: OSTRICHES, CASSOWARY, PEACOCKS

Then on to The Crocodile Farm and Monkey Island:

We fed the monkeys and crocodiles too! You have to throw the bananas to the monkeys. Dana tried her hand at it, and the banana fell in the water LOL but clever monkey was able to get it and eat it! LOL

Feeding the crocs was a major experience. You lower a chicken in the water and wait for them to bite. There were 4 crocs in the water and then the alpha male came. In one jump, he got the chicken, took it away to safety and in one gulp swallowed the chicken whole whew!! crazy!! There are a total of 167 crocodiles on the farm, segregated by their age and if they're salt-water or fresh-water crocodiles.

After the tour around the island, we went back to the hotel riding a horse-drawn carriage :)

We took a break for some refreshments and a bit of rest before heading to the Oceania Water Park.

They had two kiddie pools and slides and more adult pools. They also have a pool bar for refreshments. We all had fun, especially in the "jacuzzi" hahaha

Then we had dinner at the Sangley Point Bar and Grill. The food was great!! And then we took advantage of the free 30-minute coupon we had for Island Songs, the KTV Lounge in the Resort hahaha the kids had fun singing so we decided to extend for another hour. Time flies when you're singing and having a really good time!

After all these happenings, we had a great sleep in our airconditioned room. That in itself was a luxury because we didn't have A/C at home hahaha we all woke up late the next morning. but that's for Part 2 :)

DVD Review: The Read And Share™ Bible on DVD

2009-04-30T18:20:00.004+08:00

I have found that the best way to see if DVD's for kids are any good is to test them on the kids. Well, I did. Believe me when I say that my kids are DVD addicts. They love watching them and when they like something they have a tendency to watch them repeatedly to the point that they know the soundtracks and dialogue by heart.

When I got this from Thomas Nelson, my kids were so glad to have a new DVD to watch and immediately asked if they can watch it. So we all sat down and started watching. As you can probably surmise, the DVD is a collection of thirteen stories from the Bible. The Stories include: The Beginning, Adam & Eve, The Flood, Abram, Isaac & Rebekah, Jacob & Esau, Rachel, Jacob & God, John the Baptist, Jesus is Born, Jesus is Tempted, Jesus Love Children, and One Lost Sheep. If you haven't told your kids about these stories, then this is a good starting point for you.

They were very much enraptured from the moment the first story came on. Because it's in English, it's easier to understand for them. The narration was subtle, just the right tone for storytelling for kids. The language was also pretty straightforward so kids won't be too overwhelmed if they were to watch the DVD by themselves.

The best part about it is that the stories themselves are very short and quick that works well for kids and their short attention spans. Before they even get bored a new one starts so that's good.

I consider the The Read And Share™ Bible on DVD (Vol. 1) a success because when the DVD was finished, my kids wanted to watch it all over again. :)

Room renovations are done!! woohoo!!!

2009-04-30T16:55:00.002+08:00

April 26, 2009 - After about a month of buying, delivery, construction and finishing both the bathroom and the bedroom are done!!! YEAH BABY!!!

Just to give you a recap, it all started when we decided to replace the old and install the new windows in the bedroom. This bedroom used to be a space for all our junk but we had to fix everything up when the nanny arrived. Fast forward, the nanny left, we had new windows but my cabinet broke and we wanted customized cabinets, hence the construction of the bathroom (which has lain dormant for all the time that the house was constructed. It was never completed) and the renovation of the existing & adjoining bedroom. We tapped my cousin who has his own construction firm (Ramil Roque Construction) to do the job. He designed the layout, we discussed the materials and finally construction started. As a little promotion, you may want to email me here if you want to contact him if you're in the market for some repairs, renovation, construction and all that :)

So, you want to see pictures, who am I to disappoint you hahahaha

Before pictures:

After pictures:

Having fun

It took a little over a month for the project to be completed. It was stressful but worth it. It was expensive but worth it. The workers really did a great job, they were worth it! We Love It!!

I'm sure my Mom would love it too.

Dana Aces her Entrance Exam!!

2009-04-30T13:32:00.002+08:00

Over the course of the previous days, we have spent them preoccupied with the room renovations - buying the materials, watching them lay the fixtures and tiles, painting the room and cabinets - that sometimes our heads are spinning with all that's happening.

But the good news is that Dana aced her entrance exam! I have posted a while back about the search for a school. Patrick and I have decided that our priority is somewhere close so that the kids won't be tired from the travel as early as this. So, we thought that maybe Sta. Catalina College may be a good choice because that's where I'm from and so with all my siblings and cousins. Even Den graduated from there. There's also the added plus that they still know me and my family so that's something good going for Dana (we think). In terms of standards, they're still pretty high because if not, then Den wouldn't have been able to pass her entrance exam to UST before.

Anyway, Dana went with her Ate Den to the school because it was raining and I didn't want to bring Dylan out too. So, they were just supposed to submit the requirements to the school so that they'll be able to schedule her for an entrance exam. But to my surprise, Den sent me a text message saying that Dana was already taking her exam!!! I was so nervous for her but at the same time I was confident too, pretty confusing, huh? ahhahaha An hour passed and I called Den, asking why there's no update yet. It turned out that while they were checking Dana's paper, she remained inside the room playing with the other teachers there and she was talking to them too hahaha

When they finished checking, she got 92/100!!! and they were all surprised because she was one of the highest and she was more advanced than those who have had previous schooling experience. They'll place her in Kinder 2 (which is still Prep), but she skipped Kinder 1 already. When Den started out, she had to pass Kinder 1 because of age requirements.

Anyway, just wanted to share this milestone in Dana's life.. Now, it's just a matter of paying the tuition and buying the school stuff :)

Swimming in Marikina, April 9, 2009

2009-04-30T10:34:00.002+08:00

Okay, it's probably not what you were thinking but it still speaks of what happened hahahha

We went to Stevie's house in Marikina last Holy Thursday to bring their share of the balikbayan box that Tita Flor brought with her when she came to Manila last March 5. Yes, it took a month for the goodies to reach Stevie and Dimples but it's only because we can't find matching schedules to see each other's families. Since it's Holy Thursday, most offices are on holiday which was the perfect time to go for a visit. Unfortunately, since Dimples works in a call center, she didn't have any vacation time on this day.

It turned out that Stevie and Toni bought a huge inflatable pool for the summer and we were told to bring the kids' suits so that they can have fun in the pool. So that's what the kids did.. they had fun! Dylan was tired and bored faster than Dana because he was preoccupied with the bike and wanted to ride that more than he wanted to swim LOL

Dana had a boo-boo because she accidentally swallowed the water and she ended throwing up in the pool! LOL

The kids stopped playing and swimming when it was snack time ;) wchich gave the adults enough time to catch up on each other's news as well.

2009 Manila International Auto Show

2009-04-14T10:08:00.008+08:00

Ever since Patrick took up that writer's position for Top Gear Online Digital Magazine, our weekends have often been spent at car shows. Last April 2-5, the 2009 Manila International Auto Show was held at the World Trade Center in Pasay City and we spent both Saturday and Sunday there LOL

On Saturday, we went to a doctor's visit first because the kids' were up for their regular check-up. They caught up with their vaccines and immunizations and even went to an EENT for ear cleaning. It took most of the day, after which we went straight to the Manila International Auto Show and the parking spaces were all jam-packed! The kids were so excited and it looks like they have their Dad's passion for cars too! :) As I'm not a car aficionado, I'm afraid I can't tell you what kind of cars were on display but there were a lot of them.. and very cool they were! :D I guess you have to browse the pictures to see for yourself :)

This was worth mentioning as this was the car that Patrick and the Top Gear team used for their Powerdrifting lessons in Clark. If you look at the Mazda emblem, you'll find that it's literally dotted with Swarovski crystals! Really cool!! I didn't even need to tell the kids to pose beside the truck, they chose it for themselves hahahaha

We came back on Sunday and with Den this time. The first thing we did was buy tickets for the Russ Swift stunt show. Russ Swift is the World's No. 1 Precision Driver having a few Guinness Records under his belt. While waiting for the scheduled show, we just went around taking lots of pictures :) who wouldn't, the cars are really awesome!! Since we took a lot of pictures, just click here if you want to view them.

Anyway, the Russ Swift show was excellent.. nerve-wracking, exciting, breath-taking and really, really enjoyable!! We were even teasing Patrick that his driving sucks when compared to the likes of Russ Swift! We even fell in line after for autographs and picture-taking! LOL Believe me, after this show and for a number of days after, the kids can't stop talking about him LOL

After the show and the autograph signing, we left the car show and were headed to the Mall of Asia which was only a couple of minutes away. When we got to the parking lot, this was the image that greeted us: Our Stanley was back to back with the new Subaru Impreza. It was just too funny that we decided to take a picture of it. LOL