Roszain's Thoughts

Chinese New Year Family Weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:32:00 +0000

My mom, sister, brother-in-law and niece went to our house for the Chinese New Year. With the recent mishaps, everyone just needed a break and some time to unwind.

We met them at Trinoma on Sunday afternoon, then, had quick snacks at BK. Afterwards, we drove home to settle for awhile and then prepare for a short trip to our favorite restaurant Maimees’ which was just 5 minutes from our house.

For Gani and I, it was our third time visit, but the first time for us to see Maimee, the owner herself. She was warm in greeting us and the other guests (who were mostly her neighbors in that community).

The next day, we had of course, “tikoy” for breakfast. Then, we went out to Power Plant mall. Just strolling and watching the dragon dance at the stores. Mom and sis did a quick shopping too.

Then we went to Ayala Triangle for lunch and made them try BonChon. Mom liked it so much that she ate everything even the chicken skin. Gani had to buy her pure pineapple juice just to make sure that her blood pressure won’t go up. Oh well, it just shows how much mom liked the chicken!

Anyway, the above activities also intended for my husband who needs some time to refresh his mind and got a little time-off from worrying. In my first posting this year, I’ve mentioned that above everything else, what I would pray and wish for my family are good health and safety. It goes the same way for my extended families. As of this writing, FIL has been released from the hospital, we had to bring him back 2 months after his open-heart surgery due to an infection. He’s been in the hospital for the past 3 weeks and we’re all hoping for him to fully recover from home.

Reese School Field Trip, 2nd time for SY 2011-12

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:13:00 +0000

Since Reese transferred to a new school at the middle of the school year, she had been to another field trip last Jan 10. I wasn't able to go with her due to my grandmother's passing few days before. Also, I was not feeling well 100% and had lost my voice as my sister and I were busy helping in the burial...

Good thing, her Ate Len accompanied her that day. The itinerary composed of going to: Air Force Museum, Lucky Me (instant noodles) factory, lunch & fish feeding at Nuvali, and finally going to Enchanted Kingdom.

I'll let the pictures tell the rest of the story.

2011, A Year to Remember

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:12:00 +0000

I've always been grateful for every year that God has given me, it's a BIG blessing by itself. And even if I'm not asking too much, God has far better ways of showing me how much blessed I am and my family.

After the tremendous blessing in disguise "Ondoy" in 2009, we were blessed with our own house. Then early 2010, God replaced our totally loss car with something that hubby and I haven't planned for. I know, my thank you's wouldn't be enough...

Now I'll be listing down why I would remember 2011:

* I've been to 4 flights this year - 2 US (jan & july), Cebu (may), HK (oct). First time in my life that I was able to travel this much. I also had some out-of-towns with family and friends (tagaytay, antipolo and of corse, bulacan!)

* Celebrated our 5th year anniversary with love and a wonderful vacation!

* Mom celebrated her 60th birthday with family and friends. Best of all, she's in good health and is retired from work on time :). Same thing goes with FIL for celebrating his 65th birthday with a blast!

* Had our family vacation in HK and Macau with mom and my in-laws. Definitely a dream come true! Hubby and I were planning about this ever since and we finally made it. This is to share our joys and experiences in travelling with our parents. :)

* Been converted from being a "qwerty" to "touch screen" user. Hubby gave me iPad 2 for our anniversary, then, we got a good deal for iPhone 4 three months later. Now, Reese and I are Apple fanatics :)

* Had the most challenging year at work, my new role. From hiring, coaching, training leaders, working with difficult counterparts, standing firm on decisions, putting up a point, attrition, and the saddest part, losing my SG boss. I weathered the storms and came out stronger!

* Lastly, two of our loved ones had major operations, FIL had an open heart surgery and my grandma had surgery due to intestinal blockage. Both operations turn out to be successful. Thank God! We're still praying for continuous recovery of my grandma and hopefully she'll be released from the hospital soon.

Now for 2012, more than anything else, my prayers for my family as always, good health and to be safe at all times...

Update (Jan 15)
My grandma, Mama Tonie passed away. My mom and my siblings loved her so much. She will be missed... May our loving God welcome her in heaven...

December "Happy"-nings

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 05:28:00 +0000

This December 2011 has fewer declared holidays compared to previous years, but nonetheless, I was able to spend time with family and good friends. I'll update this post with some photos as I got copies of them.

12/09 - GMDC Christmas Party at Seventh High, Bonifacio High Street

Rosemount Team

12/16 - Rosemount and Friends Christmas Party

12/17 - Zoey's Christening (my best friend's daughter) in Hagonoy & Calumpit Bulacan

12/18 - Marion and Dennis supposed to be "surprise home visit" and meet up with Reese

12/22 - Lunch out with my Kumare's at Terriyaki Boy at Atrium

12/24 - Pre-Christmas celebration with my family and relatives in Bulacan
(have chosen the not so serious shots to share the fun!)

cousins

lola with her 3 apo

12/25 - Christmas with my in-laws and dinner at Tender Bobs, Greenhills

12/28 - Visit at the Ayala Triangle Lights Display, dinner at Mojo

And last and the least, the little treats and sweets!

by Marriott hotel, got this from my random visit in Megamall

little treats for office friends :)

I'll be working on the final touches of this entry in the next few days, and my 2011 year-end posting. For now, I'll enjoy the rest of the remaining hours of my last day of work for this year. Till next time! :)

Sweet & Bitter-Sweet November

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 14:23:00 +0000

November is almost over and I would like to note about the happenings in the past few weeks.

The Sweets:
• GMDC Family Day Halloween Party – as early as September, Reese was already looking forward to this event and yes, she was happy about it.

• Hubby’s birthday – spent the day on health check-up, looking for Reese’s new school and the best part, dinner at our favorite new-found resto, Maimee’s in Little Baguio, San Juan.

And the Bitter-Sweets:

• FIL’s open heart surgery – it was a big shock for the family. 15 days after we returned from our vacation in HK, FIL had a continuous heart attack and was rushed to the hospital. He was transferred to Heart Center where the major operation took place. Our prayers were answered, he recovered within 10 days and was able to go home and continue his diet and medication.

• Reese school transfer – the school was home-based and they had a security concern with one family member. The bad guy had a gun and we were told that he was under the influence of drugs. He got caught and was put into jail. But still, we cannot risk having Reese go back to the same school again. So we decided to transfer her to a“big school” in San Juan. Thank God, they accepted her even though it’s already the beginning of the 3rd quarter!

I would like to end my posting here with this quote from a friend priest, it says "Hold on to God no matter how hard the situation is, coz the winner won't be a winner unless he finishes the race... ". I have faith that God won't give us challenges that we cannot overcome. He will be there in every step of the way and will never leave at any point in time...

HK & Macau Family Vacation

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 13:07:00 +0000

Yes, it was one of our wishes, to be able to bring our parents out-of-the-country on vacation. And it finally came true, we went to HK and Macau last Oct 21-23 with my mom, MIL & FIL. :-)

Gani and I have been to HK almost 4 years ago. We arrived on different dates as I was on training and he just followed sometime in between. Anyway, the airport was still very huge and we got a little bit lost on our way out, going to the hotel. After 30 minutes, we manage to exit and hopped on the Airport Express service and MTR. Taking the bus is a cheaper alternative, but we’re afraid to get lost and opted to save time in our journey.

at Airport Express

We stayed in Metropark Hotel Mongkok located just 3-4 minute walk from Prince Edward MTR station. From the hotel, we had a quick lunch at the nearby McDonalds. The little girl got herself Hello Kitty stuff toys dressed up as Ronald and Birdie.

After late lunch, we headed to Disneyland via MTR. It was good to be back and saw that there were changes with the characters on parade as well as new attractions.

My new favorite is the “It’s A Small World” castle. Going inside it would take a long walk along the zigzag pathway that leads to a boat ride. Inside the castle were moving characters singing in the tune of the theme song and was sung in different languages including “Tagalog”!

Aside from it, we didn’t miss to show them the River Cruise which is one of Gani’s favorites. They also loved it, except for Reese who got a bit scared from the fire. Lots of walking done during the day, we didn’t get the chance to see the fireworks as we were tired already. Oh well, hubby and I will just target it on our 3rd time visit. ;-)

On our 2nd day, after breakfast at the nearby restaurant (forgot the name, it’s Chinese), we took the Turbo Jet ferry going to Macau. I am not a big fan of riding a ferry, but this is the fastest and economical way to go to Macau from HK. So all of us endured the 1-hour ride feeling dizzy and nauseated, except for MIL who used to travelling to the province by boat before.

I super like Macau; it’s beautiful with all the structures, casinos and shopping destinations! We tried to balance our time between shopping and sight-seeing. The latter prevailed since we would like to experience the place more and it was rare opportunity for all of us to be there at the same time. We visited Senado, St. Paul’s Ruins and the ever famous Venetian. Then, we headed back to HK.

at Senado

Ruins of St. Paul

Venetian at daylight

Venetian at night

3rd day was somehow unplanned. We had breakfast at the nearby “Café Corale”. Then, Gani suggested going to “The Peak”. Going there was like semi-hiking especially for the young-at-hearts and fortunately, we made it. From there, we rode the train climbing up and going down. The highlight was seeing the view of high rise buildings on mountains, something you don’t see daily.

Last stop was at my favorite place in HK, the “Citygate Outlet Mall”. 2 hours of shopping was not enough to look at my favorite shops, but I manage to get good deals. We scored a cute Nike back-pack for Reese, nice Crocs sandals for mom and me, an Esprit body bag for MIL, and cheap Esprit towels.

Then, we headed to the airport. We barely had time for dinner, and rushed to the airport gate with just 40 minutes before boarding. Our flight was on-time, we landed safely and pick-up the car from Park N Fly. Finally, Home Sweet Home!

Before I make my next set of wishes, I would like to express how grateful I am. I know, a lot of people dream about doing this and not everybody gets their chance. Better yet, let’s all be thankful for our blessings and make sure that we share it especially with our loved ones. The joy of spending vacation with the people you love is longer lasting than spending it on oneself.

Hopefully, we’ll get the chance to tour them in a beach. How’s Boracay for that? Don’t ask me when, I still don’t know. We’ll just wait for the right time. :-)

Field Trip 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 13:49:00 +0000

I went to my 2nd school field trip with Reese last October 9 (Sun). We only have 3 places/activities in the itinerary but those were more than enough to fill our day. For my future reference, here was our schedule:

8 am - assembly
8:30 am - bus departure
10 am - arrived at Avilon Zoo. we passed by rough roads and mountain sides. the zoo was really huge and took us 2 hours to walk around it. i love the various kinds of animals they have. downside is that they don't have animal show to entertain visitors, just picture taking with animals for a fee. another concern was too much flies in the vicinity particularly in the snack area :(

the Orangutan behind us is 30 years old!

Reese looking intently at the smallest bear from North America

bird cage, looks like from China ;-)

where's the member of Wonder Pets show?

1 pm - departed Avilon Zoo
1:45 pm - arrived at SM Fairview. Went to Storyland for ride-all-you-can activity. Reese tried everything they have there: hot air balloon, merry-go-round, train, bump car and even the roller coaster ride. To my surprise she enjoyed the rides! Then, we had late lunch at Shakeys.
5:20 pm - departed SM Fairview
6:15 pm -arrived in Araneta Coliseum
7 pm - watched Disney Live. It was wonderful and of course, Reese enjoyed seeing Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofey.
9 pm - bus departure
9:30 pm - finally home... long day!

Although it was tiring, I do enjoy going into field trips as I've never been to these places before (except for Araneta). Maybe, I'll still come with Reese until she's grade 1 which is 2 more years from now. Ciao!

Casa Ibiza

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 12:59:00 +0000

Last September 25, I was with Rosemount and friends for our team bonding at Casa Ibiza. We’ve met in Megamall at 10 am, had an early lunch at Gothis (my treat) and had dessert in Amici (Frankie’s treat). It’s good to start the day with good food!

Gothis

delicious dessert by Amici

From Megamall, we took the van from the terminal. We made an arrangement with the driver to bring us straight to the resort and the fare asked was 68 pesos only, compared to the 50 pesos fare for the normal route, that’s relatively cheap. The travel time took around 1 hour and 5 minutes.

At the resort, we played mini-games such as “Guess Who’s Trivia It Is”, “Pinoy-Henyo”, and the ever famous “Charades”.

Another part that I enjoyed the most was the “revelations” during the night. It was done after shots of tequila, but in my case, I was just munching snacks as I’m not into drinking. Even so, I was happy that we got the chance to know each other better given that a lot of new members were added to our team this year. More so, it’s good to find connection between the earlier batch and the newbies. I look forward to our next bonding session :-)

Till next time.

EyeSight

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 09:15:00 +0000

It’s been a year since the first time we learned about Reese’s eyesight concern. She’s having follow-up check-ups every 6 months to monitor changes in her vision. As expected, the grade of her glasses is going up given her young age. Currently, her glasses is at 1.25 (R) and 1.0 (L).

Last Saturday, we went to American Eye Center. The big change I would like to note this time was on Reese being more cooperative and that she was no longer afraid to say if she cannot read something. Prior to our doctor’s visit, I coached her to say “sorry, it’s too small” or “sorry, it’s blurred” so that she won’t feel shy if she cannot really see it. Reese has myopia combined with astigmatism that’s why she has difficulty reading from afar.

Unlike before that I felt too bad about what happened to her eyesight, I feel better that Reese is getting more comfortable wearing her glasses and that she can still do physical activities. Also, as time goes by, I think the glasses looks good on her too. :-)

lady-looking Reese

Till our next eye check-up.

Bills and Coins

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 08:46:00 +0000

When I was a kid, my god-mother gave me a merry-go-round shaped coin bank as Christmas present. I liked it so much that I tried to save coins from my “baon” to put inside it. From then on, the habit of saving in a coin bank was born.

My first coin bank was made of carton paper. Then during College, I switched to using ceramic and glass bottle depending on which one was available. It felt more exciting to drop coins inside due to the “clanking” sound. Up to now, I’m still into this habit.

Why do I use coin bank? Well, I actually don’t save up for something; instead, I’m doing it for fun. Whenever I’m done filling it up, I spend it on something it can afford. The difference with the way I spend here is that I am more “lax” doing it. For the most part, I am a practical shopper, and hubby can attest to that. I spend time looking for good deals and will not settle for the first item I saw. The benefit I get from my coin bank is that I could spend it without thinking too hard, or for me I call it “mindless shopping”. This is my way of getting some little treats without breaking the bank. And in times I don’t have something to buy for myself, I use it to buy gift for hubby.

Before, I used to save 5 and 10 peso coins in my Starbucks bottle. Every time I do it, I ended up having a heavy purse due to the large amount of coins I have to change into bills. It became tedious and I have to wait for the coins to be all gone before I can start my next savings. This time, what I did is saving 20 peso bills to reduce the problem of heavy coins. (And since I still would like to hear the clanking sound of coins, I have this small piggy bank to fill with silver coins... yeah... I know, I can't get over it)

To make it more fun, I have Reese and hubby join me as well. Reese is saving my 5 peso coins into her purple piggy bank, while hubby is saving his spare change into his Angry Bird coin bank. As expected, hubby is just doing it to save himself from carrying coins in his pocket.

As we all know, guys are not really fond of coins. But my main goal is really for Reese to build the habit of saving (not for treats) and spending money the right way. Reese, by the time you read this, I hope you're saving on your own already. :-)

Rainy Monday

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 10:52:00 +0000

It's a gloomy day today due to typhoon "Pedring". Metro Manila is poised with signal #1 later this afternoon.
During lunch time, I went to Shangri-La Plaza to schedule Reese and Len for their eye check up. Then chanced upon Crossings department store to look around at their home section. I left the store with a lunch-box, a 490 ml square glasslock for 200 php only, absolutely cheaper compared to other brands. I've been thinking of buying one since last week and glad that I found one that's not hard on my pocket :)

Another nice find today is this dark chocolate from Ritter Sport, it's only my first time to try it and it is surprisingly good! :)

I'm going home now before it rains harder. Ciao!

Manila Ocean Park

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 04:44:00 +0000

We went there last Saturday for Len’s advance birthday celebration and Reese’s amusement. Unfortunately, Reese got scared of the big fishes and the like. Also, it rained that afternoon that’s why we didn’t wait for the Musical Fountain Show anymore.

PROS:

• Has wide variety of marine creatures. I’ve seen a lot of species that I haven’t encountered before in other aquariums I’ve been to.

• Aside from the underwater tunnel, they have huge aquariums showcasing gigantic fishes, sharks, puffer fish, etc.

• The Marine Life Show of the Sea Lion was cute and entertaining. I also learned about the difference between a Sea Lion and a Seal :-)

• Souvenirs such as stuff toys, magnets, and key chains were reasonably priced.

Below are few more snapshots we took from the place.

CONS:
• Crowded, especially at the underwater viewing tunnel since there was no “walkalator”, people were just on stand-by. Not a good idea.
• Open areas in the Oceanarium is nice but not when it’s raining!
• Car entrance was single-lane only and noticed that cars are coming from many directions, why it can’t be organized?
• Food and drinks were tagged with sky-rocketing prices, bottled water is at 35 pesos!
• The design of the place will force you to walk all-around the place just to get into your next destination/show. It could be tiring for young kids. Looks like they have it done that way to encourage people to buy something from the stalls.

Are we going back there? Not any time soon. Hopefully by the time we come back, the ongoing constructions are already done and that they have improved the current setup.

Mom @ 60

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 13:08:00 +0000

My siblings and I gave our mom a little tribute for her 60th birthday which was held last August 21 at Malolos Club Royale. Kudos to my "Ate" for doing all the planning and preparation and to my brother as well for being generous! Below are some snapshots from my mom's special day.

the ladies in the family

with our extended families

my little girl

hubby dancing with his "MIL"

our dear grandma giving special message to mom

Mom is now officially a member of a new club, the Senior Citizens club! Thank you again mommy for everything you've done for us and we're all happy that you are now relaxing at home and could spend more time for yourself. We love you!

MSP in Summer

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 11:05:00 +0000

No more snow and winter chill factor, this time I went to Minessota for business travel in Summer time! And to booth, my 2nd trip to the US this year.

It was really hot during my first week, ranging from 37-43C which is even hotter than in Manila. But good thing it cooled down a bit on the 2nd week which felt more like home. With the beautiful weather in place, the only usual challenge left was food! My taste buds which were more sensitive to too much saltiness and sweetness seem to not find a constant source of food that would satisfy it. Oh well, maybe it's just me and my craving for white rice!

For my reference, I'm listing those that have transpired during my 2- week visit (excluding lunch-out's, work and business meetings of course!) :
* Supplier Summit in Raddison Hotel at downtown. Walked myself through the streets and window shopped at Macy's.

* Twin's Baseball game at Target Field

* Saturday lunch at Santorini, lamb was good!

* Back to Mall of America since my last visit in 2009. Got good deals in Bloomingdale within the first ten minutes of entering the mall, haha! Also, the used to be Snoopy World has been replaced by Nickelodeon which is much better now that Dora is there. I hope Reese was with me... Then, we also went to Sea Life with Sanjay and his wife and daughter.

* Oh yeah, I did it again! I was back in Albertville which happen to be my most favorite place on earth, and it was during my birthday! Happiness! I still got Corelle in a box this time (i thought I wouldn't) for my aunt, which help me not to over shop since it's quite heavy already and would take up a lot of my shopping space. Great that I did coz I didn't shop too much this time. Before going home, we dined at PF Changs. Thanks to Julie and Russ.

* Boat cruise in Minnetonka lake using Tim's Formula, then dinner at Maynards. The lobster raviolli was great!

* Visited Tom's very nice new house standing in 1200sqm of land and facing a golf course! Met his beautiful wife and daughter as well.

* Dinner at Ruby Tuesday's and my first time to watch horse racing at Canterbury Park with Leanne, her husband and their 4 kids. It was fun but I held back myself from betting!

* Bailed out early on Friday and took the hotel shuttle service with Dindo for last minute shopping in Eden Prairie Mall.

I had fun and was able to do the things I wanted. The spark of shopping has set back a bit since I already did one last January and probably, I'm getting more control and getting used to what I'm seeing. :)

On business perspective it was a good visit, a lot of work to do and information to share with my team. More challenges to overcome, aja!

Above it all, glad that it was over. I'm more than happy to be on my way home and hug my Reese and hubby as soon as I got home!

Thank you God for all the blessings, opportunities, strengths, weaknesses and wisdom you are giving me. Without You, I am nothing...

Draft written in-flight with Delta from MSP going to NRT.

Reese Turned 4

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 11:57:00 +0000

How time flies so fast as my little girl turned 4 this month. During the weekend before her birthday, her dad treated us to an overnight stay at Edsa Shangri-La. Oh yes, hubby got a good deal again at 60% off with free buffet breakfast for all of us at Heat! :)

oh well, impatiently waiting for my turn! :p

As birthday present, the little girl got an electronic microwave oven (Redbox) from mom and dad.

We celebrated her birthday in school with her 18 classmates and teachers.

Little Mermaid birthday cake won over the smaller Hello Kitty round cake. Also for a change, we didn't have spaghetti in our menu, instead we brought in KFC snackbox (funshots+fries), macaroni salad and party cupcake.

Happy 4th birthday again Reese! Mom is crazy busy nowadays that's why I'll be posting this a little bit late. I look forward to our trip to meet Mickey this October. I'm very sure you'll have so much fun! We love you as always!

Draft written in-flight DL162 going to Narita.

5th Year Anniversary in Cebu

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 13:19:00 +0000

Note: This is a long post for me to remember how our very nice vacation went by...

Years ending with zero or five feel more significant to me. For this year, we have a couple of celebrations that would fall into these categories such as: my grandma’s 85th birthday in May, my father-in-law’s 65th birthday in June, my mom’s 60th birhthday in August, and last but not the least, our 5th year wedding anniversary in May. What a coincidence and all for 2011!

Gani and I spent our vacation in Cebu and what’s worth mentioning is that we were able to do it on the exact date of our anniversary! We used to avoid this date before due to high possibility of bad weather, but then we get lucky this time!

Our flight via PAL left at exactly 7am. I didn’t expect the plane to be like those being used for International flights so Gani was no longer worried about turbulence. After an hour flight, we arrived in Cebu Mactan airport. From there, we took metered taxi (flag down 70php) going to the Inn near SM Cebu.

Upon check-in, we headed outside and took a multi-cab going to SM. It was still closed so we decided to have early lunch already at CNT Lechon across the street.

tasty and skin is really crispy!

After lunch, we went back to SM to look around and have some coffee.

Then, we took multicab again and visited Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral and Basilica del Sto. Nino.

Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral

Basilica del Sto. Nino

And of course, the ever famous Magellan’s Cross.

For dinner, we went to Blu Bar and Grill at Marco Polo hotel. What more could I say, the venue was at the penthouse and we had a full view of the city while riding the all- glass elevator. The food that we ordered, lamb chops (standard) and salmon were both good. Their service was so good and we even got a customized dessert for our special day. And in addition, 20% discount on top! Such a treat!

Day 2, we checked out from the Inn and took a taxi going to our next destination, the Lapu-Lapu City. Gani booked a standard room for us in Crimson’s hotel with free buffet breakfast. We both like almost everything in it: the golf cart ride, the modern yet cozy ambiance of the resort, very good facilities with air-conditioned restrooms, the infinity pool, and of course our fabulous standard room with folding wooden divider that gives view of the bedroom from the bathroom. The only downside really was the shore. It was rocky and the sand was not smooth at all. If only the owner can make more improvements to it then I could say that it’s the best resort ever!

Afterwards, we took a cab going to Plantation Bay. We just wanted to see how it looks like in actual. The difference with typical resort was that their pools were designed to be more nature-like with “bakawan” at one part of it and the flooring was not tiles. And also while strolling at the place, we’re able to see one of the rooms there. It’s a bit old and for me, not worth the high price to pay for.

Then we had lunch at Fiji in Plantation Bay. We’ve availed the Salo-Salo for two which have various kinds of grilled seafood with rice. The venue was just okay, and the only plus was the clear view of the ocean from our seat.

We also took a peek at Shangri-La Mactan and had dessert from Scoops. I had “chocoholic” ice cream which was really good, while Gani ordered blended coffee (like frap) and that one was below standards (tasteless). It’s like mixing Nescafe instant coffee in crushed ice with no creamer at all! (warning, don’t ever try it). No picture was taken because we’re not check-in guests there and their security was tight. For me Shangri-La have all the prestige, but it has the same hotel-type resort feel which is just common in any Shangri-La hotel less the beach.

Then we went back to Crimson hotel, relaxed a bit and had a late afternoon swimming by the pool. At night, we had dinner at Safron restaurant at the resort and had “lechon kawali” and “pancit guisado”. We stayed for couple more hours outside lounging by the beach, sipping on fresh buko juice and SanMig light for Gani.

The following day, we lined up for the buffet breakfast. There were more guests due to weekend and I noticed that we really have been invaded by Koreans! Anyway, food was good. I had “danggit”, fried rice, corned beef, bread, etc. I was looking for champorado to pair with “danggit” but they don’t have it there.

While waiting for our afternoon flight, Gani availed his free one-hour billiard game. Good thing one of the staff there was willing to play with him. As for me, I just relaxed and surfed.

At the airport, we passed by Zubuchon to get a taste of their famous lechon.

Finally, we’re back to Manila before 6pm and picked up Reese from Nanay’s house. She was very excited to see us again. :-)

Before I end my story, here are my few observations of Mandaue City in Cebu:

* It’s like downtown Manila for me wherein road and streets are busy. It is as if I didn’t go outside of Manila
* They don’t have jeepney there but instead they have multicab. I like it better because it’s more sleek thus occupying lesser space on the road.
* I thought Manila has the most “kaskasero” taxi drivers. But I have proven myself wrong because based from our experience, 6 out of 8 taxi were really “kaskasero” to the point of coming from “fast gear to very sudden stop” and almost hitting the car in front of it all the time!

If I’ll be going back to Cebu, I have to find that Taboan Street next time and get those yummy “danggit”. I also wish to visit Tops and Ayala and other attractions that we didn’t find time to visit. Then maybe at Crimson’s hotel take 2. :-)

For finale, here is the list of things to do in Cebu from Crimson.

Life is good and much better if you're spending it with your loved ones! Cheers!

Uplifting Mood

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Mon, 09 May 2011 03:19:00 +0000

First, it's the continuation of the gloomy weather today due to typhoon Bebeng. Second, I woke up at the wrong side of the bed, and third but not the least, I forgot my laptop at home! (yeah... but that didn't pull me down 'coz I remember right away that I still have my old laptop with my files configured just a month ago)

It's been an hour that I've been convincing myself to actually jump start at work. So I thought of creating a list of what are the things I would like to do later: dine at somewhere really nice, shopping (shoes, bags, clothes), watch a feel-good-movie (nothing is there), swedish massage, or probably, have a dark chocolate. But none of those I've listed got me excited. Then another idea came into mind, why not browse for online deals?! So I searched Emnidy's blog to find the links for Buyanihan, CashCashPinoy and Ensogo. After feasting my eyes on the deals and a little mind conditioning, I've got myself a 42% OFF Hands & Foot Reflexology Treatment at Foot for the Gods in Megamall (valid from May 20-Aug 20, 2011). I haven't tried this before, so I hope this is really good. I've had those links way-way back and it's only now that I thought of using it. Well, as long as it's a good deal and it's something that I can use, I'm all for it! Note to self: apply practicality at all times :)

Ooops, what should I do next? Not sure really, my mood is somehow uplifted but will need something else to make it last for the whole day. Maybe an inspirational book will do. I have here in my drawer a book called "What Matters Most for Women" which I bought 3 weeks ago and didn't find time to start reading it. Well, I'll do it by lunch time and see if it works. And lastly, I found this from the web and this could also help:

Find time for yourself. Everyone needs some "me" time. There are many ways to do this and I will list a few to get your creative imagination working: 1: Take a short stroll alone at lunch time. 2: Go to bed 15 minutes before your spouse. 3: Get up a little earlier in the mornings. 4: Pull over in your car for 15 minutes and listen to some soothing music or just sit quietly.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1544456

Now, go back to work Ros and finish your tasks!

Good Friday in Tagaytay and Caleruega

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Fri, 06 May 2011 13:34:00 +0000

Last year, we visited 7 churches within the metro for our “Visita Iglesia”. On Good Friday (April 22), I told hubby that we should try visiting other church/es that we haven’t been to.

And so, we had an impromptu plan of going to Tagaytay to visit Caleruega. We left the house before 10 am, and since it was a holiday, the road was clear particularly at SLEX. We only experienced traffic at Tagaytay itself. Obviously, a lot of people had the idea to visit the same place that day.

We arrived at past 11:30 am and had lunch at Pamana. Reese, as usual was not in the mood to eat but I was able to feed her with rice and sneaked in bits of “sinigang na sugpo sa santol”.

After lunch, we headed to Sonya’s Garden for hubby and Reese to witness its beautiful garden. As for me, my agenda was to buy few packs of my favorite “cheese hopia” for our merienda, and my stock of honey mint shampoo by Ilog Maria. Another favorite from that place (believe it or not) is their nicely-scented traditional rest room with capiz sliding door. If only I can have something like that at home. (Forgot to take picture of it, but will do next time I come back)

Then a little bit past 3pm, we’re finally able to reach Caleruega. I didn’t expect that the way to go to the chapel would be such a climb. Fortunately, we didn’t miss the most important part of our itinerary and we were able to hear mass. It was all our first time, and now I understand why people are admiring the place and I hope to visit it again when it is less crowded.

On our way home this time, I didn't forget to try Loumar's buko tarts. It was quite good and hoping to try also their pie. We also passed by Nuvali as hubby made an earlier promise to the little girl that she'll be feeding the hungry fish again. But too bad that we were caught in traffic at Tagaytay and missed it. So instead, we just had dinner at Claw Daddy (seafood pasta and pizza, just average).

Finally were home at 9:30 pm.

So far, I like visiting Tagaytay. It’s not quite far from Manila and it has so many things to explore and food to try. Maybe, I’ll target the next trip for my birthday this year. Now I’m excited! :)

AMANA WATERPARK - Unlike

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Wed, 04 May 2011 14:24:00 +0000

Warning: This is a snag post, probably my rudest post so far :(

After seeing the resort on TV, we went to this place in Pandi, Bulacan last April 17. So with me was Reese, hubby, mom and Len.

I was quite disappointed starting from the time we lined up to buy our tickets, and below are the reasons why:

* There were separate lines for buying entrance tickets and renting cottages which was just okay, but the thing that sucks big time was that cottages were being reserved! This was not written anywhere in their website. So we ended up getting an improvised tent that cost 800 pesos and was situated at the farthest point of the resort, at Batanes Village near Madagascar's statue. Not really good, considering that we arrived quite early at past 9am and we ended up that way. As we entered, a lot of the cottages were still empty! Why not let the first customers take it?! I could understand that rooms can be reserved, but cottages?! What the heck!

* There were only 1 wave pool and 4 small-medium sized pools in the resort. And I witnessed it myself, they were accommodating more than they should. I understand that it was peak season, but how could you enjoy a place that has no more room to relax or to swim?! That's what we paid for in the first place! The resort was good for photo-opp with the various characters they have there, but not just good enough facilities as a whole. Take a look at the 12-door shower area and you'll know why. Also, I don't think the filters of the pool was able to do its job quite well with the quality of the water they have in their wave pool.

* On parking, since we're new to the place, we've parked at the nearest slot we first saw. Nobody told us, not even the guard nor the caretakers, that there were parking slots available nearer to the entrance of the resort. We ended walking more than 5 minutes from parking to that improvised tent at the middle of the heat of the sun! Then, on our way to the parking going home, an A-hole blocked the entrance/exit of the parking. The guard didn't know what to do and told us that there's no way to call the attention of the car owner in the resort. Oh well! Good thing the driver of the jeepney closed to us was there. He moved a bit and we're given enough space to exit. Thank God!

* Lastly, on our way to exit, hubby was asked by the security to bring out his camera. One of the guest was there explaining that her camera was stolen. Then we asked, is this the same model as yours? And instead, we were told to open our camera so that they can see the image inside. We declined since they were not able to answer us back. Then they let us go and apologize. I know it's difficult to lost something valuable, but if it doesn't look like yours so why bother? Weird & strange.

I've been to other resorts in Bulacan during peak season, but never got disappointed by this much. Lesson learned, don't try something you see on TV, when everybody else has seen it and are about to go there. Also, not everything we see on TV are as pretty or nice in actual.

My message to AMANA WATERPARK management? NOTHING. I've said more than enough here and they should know better.

Summer Getaway with College Friends

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 13:08:00 +0000

my best pals from college

Without a detailed plan for our trip, Verl, Jen and I went to Villa Del Carmen Resort in San Rafael Bulacan last April 9. We took the Five Star bus from Cubao going to Cabanatuan via Sta. Rita exit with travel time of roughly 1.5 hours. For my future reference, I'll include the towns & landmarks we passed through:

Sta Rita Exit -> Tabang Plaridel -> Plaridel -> Baliuag (SM and Baliuag Terminal) -> San Rafael sign -> Brgy. Capihan (2nd small chapel) -> less than 2 minutes tricycle ride from the chapel -> Villa Del Carmen

Finally, we’re able to spend time together (longer) after so many years! We had overnight stay at the hotel, took a day tour to 8 waves resort & hotel entrance, had snack at SM Baliuag and tried entering Northwood Golf Course but that was not successful as we're not part of any ongoing event! :p Nevertheless, we did enjoy this trip and was able to relax in the pool and took some pictures which I'm sharing below:

bridge models

women of the cave

emote mode

lunch time

this "chicharong bulaklak" rocks!

resto at night

check-out, waiting for the bill :)

the owner's traditional dining area, i like!

house just like the old times

back in Manila, late lunch at Contis Trinoma

Cheers to spending time with good friends! :)

Reese's Recognition Day - Nursery

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 13:39:00 +0000

Date: March 23, 2011
Time: 1:00 – 4:00 pm
Where: SM Centerpoint Cinema 2

Surprisingly, Reese woke up that day with a slight fever, cough and colds. We gave her paracetamol syrup and have her rested. Good thing she recovered fast and was able to make it to her recognition ceremony in the afternoon.

We arrived just in time. The program started with a prayer and welcome remarks. Then followed by dance presentations from each of the grade levels: Kinder, Nursery & Preparatory.

I was screaming on top of my lungs when Reese was dancing. She did quite well despite of the fact that she’s not 100% okay. She and her Nursery classmates danced in the tune of “Baby” by Justin Bieber.

Another presentation was a group song of “All You Need Is Love”

Reese and her classmates each all got a Special Award, in her case it’s “Most Caring”.
Then Reese was also awarded with “Best in Computer” and “6th Honor” of their class.

Her dad and I were more than happy. Congratulations to our little cupcake! :-)

Tagaytay Day Tour (with Julie & Team)

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 05:16:00 +0000

I was back to Tagaytay last March 12, this time to have a day tour with Julie, our visitor from US, and our team.

I have created our itinerary and here it goes:

7:00 am meet-up at Ortigas (Julie & I first arrived, then J, F & F)

7:15 am depart from Ortigas (called K, but she just woke up!)

8:25 – 8:45 am @Paseo Center - pick-up S and have breakfast at Jollibee

9:30 am @Jollibee Mendez to pick up E

9:45 – 10:45 am @Sonya’s Garden – shopped at Panaderia (bought cheese hopia and piyaya and would like to come back for more) and Country Store (bought citronella oil and honey mint shampoo made by Ilog Maria). By the entrance door, we also chanced upon a garage sale of slightly used authentic branded bags. S & I each got a Patrick Cox bag after several price negotiations together with F. Good deal!

11:00 – 12:30 pm @Pamana – for lunch we had bulalo (this is huge), tito-vic-and-joey medley, inihaw na bangus, three-way adobo (not recommended), pinakbet, and crispy pata (so good!) Good thing K was able to make it for lunch and the driver picked her up from the rotonda.

12:35 – 1:15 pm @Taal Vista Hotel – impromptu, I decided to pass by here to have a nicer view of Taal (thought Pamana would have it based from blog reading, but no, it didn’t meet my expectation). It was another shopping destination as they have variety of knickknacks there. Got 2 pairs of flower earrings for myself and Reese then I had to hold back myself from buying plants since I don’t want to carry it along the way. :-)

1:45 – 2:00 pm @Rowena’s – the majority bought buko pie tarts for pasalubong. As for me, I got shrimp rolls this time. Still need to test if it’s good. I also saw Lourmar’s along the way. I’ve read that their buko pies & tarts there are also good. Hope to try it next time.

2:30 – 4:00 pm @Nuvali – fed Japanese Kois with Julie, K & J. (I wish Reese was with us as she loves those fish). Then, we had snack at Conti’s with Che and her family. We had mango bravo, blueberry cheesecake, and halo-halo (not a big fan since it gets too sweet at the bottom like Razon’s)

5:00 pm arrived at Edsa Shangri-La hotel to drop off Julie, then the rest of us went home. Tired and happy :-)

I’m looking forward to my next trip to Tagaytay… when will that be? I still don’t know. My April & May don’t seem available. When I get the chance, I wish to be back at Sonia’s Garden to try their breakfast or lunch buffet and grab more of the cheese hopia and piyaya to share with our extended families. I also want to try going to Yoki’s Farm… it looks good in blogs. Then try out Loumars… then probably go to Calaruega (for the first time). I can think of so many things to explore there… hope it happens! :-)

10th year & Valentine's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 08:31:00 +0000

From the time we got married, we’ve moved away from our yearly celebration of being in a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship. (makes sense right?) Well maybe, not this year.

February 10 marked our 10th year of being together! I wouldn’t lie, both of us have forgotten about this date. It was no longer something we look forward to, in view of the fact that our marriage anniversary has taken its place. So how did we remember? It was actually me who first thought of it by accident. It was Thursday morning when I was doing a daily report as favor to my colleague. While entering the date in the system and glancing at my desk calendar at the same time, it suddenly occurred to me that there’s something special on that date. And voila! I finally remember!

I immediately told him about it and asked for a dinner date! (A long time ago, my reaction would have been, “you didn’t remember?!”, but realized I’ve outgrown that already). He was definitely caught up by surprised too and ended work early that day to have dinner with me in Cyma at Shangri-La mall. We had lamb ribs and shrimp pasta which were both really good! I was so glad I remembered and we didn’t miss that special day.

Today, it’s Valentine’s day on a lazy afternoon. I’m not in the mood to work right now, thus, I’m writing this entry. Suddenly, my phone rang and it was the receptionist. She told me I got a delivery. Surprise, surprise! I thought I won’t get one this year because the hubby already took me to a dinner date at Spiral (the other night) for our celebration. But the hubby cared so much that he probably thought of sending me this to make me feel special... and yes he did :-)

P.S.
That dinner date at Spiral was one of the best deals we’ve ever had! How good it was? Well, the dinner buffet cost was php 8k (peak season) for 2 persons. And guess how much the hubby paid for it? Not even 50% of the price, neither 30% (I would still consider it expensive if he did), luckily he paid even less than that! :-)

Going Home

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 10:42:00 +0000

Written during my flight with Delta 619 going to Narita on Jan 27.

I should be sleeping by now, but wasn’t able to do so. There were 3 nasty Asian-looking people who were talking so loud at the seat in front of me. I was hoping for a comfortable sleep with my neck pillow, eye mask and blanket on when these not so respectful people started talking endlessly. I don’t want to be judgmental, it’s just that it was too obvious that I was there trying to sleep and they didn’t bother talking too loud. The fat guy even apologized when he saw me removed my mask and stared at him. But guess what?! Nothing changed. They didn’t stop right then and there.
So I ended up putting up my laptop and starting some work, transferring the notes I got from the past several days of presentations and business meetings. And now, I’m done with that. So thanks to them that I now have the time to just blog and relax.

If the above didn’t happen, my story should be like this:

I’m writing this down during my flight with Delta 619 going to Narita, going back home. This is my 4th long haul flight, and my first time to be in Coach class. I used to be in Business before due to my back condition, but decided not to request for it as the duration of my trip is quite short, just 1.5 weeks. Not sure if that makes sense, but probably, just want to give something back to the company.

I won’t mention the differences between Business and Coach ‘coz there will be a lot and for sure, will be obvious already. Well, I actually didn’t come prepared the first time I’ve been to Coach. On the flight from Manila to Narita (about 4 hours), then to Minneapolis (which took another 11 hours), I was quite bored. The movies shown during the flight were (for me) below standards considering that I don’t watch movie that much thus I do have lower expectations. On top of that, I also ended up with almost no sleep. I didn’t feel comfortable sleeping despite of having enough room as nobody seat beside me.

So this time, during my flight back home, I ensure that I’ll have my essentials with me. I brought down my laptop with me instead of putting it in the overhead bin so that I can use it when I’m bored. I also bought a neck pillow and magazines from the airport.

Wish me luck! Hope I’ll be successful this time. Time to try sleeping again while the nasty Asian-looking people are asleep.

P.S. To report back on what happened afterwards, I wasn’t able to sleep at all during the entire flight… that was really bad. :-(

Happy 2011!

noreply@blogger.com (Ros) — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 05:04:00 +0000

We spent Christmas with my family & relatives in Bulacan. It was quite a busy day that I have forgotten to take pictures... my bad...

Below photo was taken by my Ninang during our visit to their house.

Reese with her little tita Nicole

While this one was a mobile picture taken before dinner at Classic Savory last Dec 26.

paper placemat formed into a gift, she said: for Jesus

And this was before we finally went home.

getting sweet with gingerbread man

This New Year's Day, my mom, sister, brother-in-law and niece visited our house. It was my sister's first time visit as she was pregnant before and wasn't allowed to travel.

So finally, I've taken photos this time. Souvenirs for keeps!

I wish for stronger relationships, good health, and more bonding time with the family. Happy 2011 to all!