Missing PINAS Christmas

this is the second time i missed celebrating christmas in the philippines.

here are some of the things that i missed, for the second time...
"namamasko po!"
simbang gabi (here, they do the simbang gabi. but every night, it's a different church. and too bad, i'm working at night)
puto bumbong
halaya
exchange gifts with families every christmas morning
inihaw na kung ano ano
videoke
mano po ninong, mano po ninang
parol na hugis star in different colors

my list can go on and on and on... we had a good one, but i guess the warmth of christmas in the philippines is still nice to have.

i'm just so thankful i'm with gab and my husband... so it's not that bad after all.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! I hope you had a good one, wherever you were on that day.

i miss writing again

wow, it's been a while. a lot has happened. i hope i can be here often again.

there's a lot to write about. i hope i can write soon. i miss writing again.

Gaming addiction

My nephew is really addicted to gaming already. He starts playing at seven in the evening (just after he's done with the dinner) and stops when his mom does not stop stopping him anymore... that's maybe around two in the morning. Even when they have classes the following day, they could not stop him from playing. He does not care about his home works. He does not care about his grades. All he cares about is the enjoyment he gets when playing computer games.

Recently, my sister told me that the the boy searched for game torrents and he's up to some new games on the Internet again. I’m not sure how he became this addicted to gaming considering that he's only less than ten years old.

I told my sister to limit his son's access to the computer. Not only does it affect his school performance... it also worsens his health. He became underweight since he started this gaming thing. I told her to change the computer's password or block the gaming sites so that he can only use the Internet to do his assignments at school.

I hope that it's not too late yet to impose on my nephew some rules regarding this. I read some cases wherein kids need medical treatment already for having gaming or internet or computer addiction. I feel sad every time I think about this. I wish my sister will be stronger this time.

lantern display at the marina floating platform

we went to the chinese new year's lantern display at the floating platform the other night and we really enjoyed the displays. gab had a lot of photos taken.

they showcased lanterns including the god of fortune and the 12 signs of the chinese zodiac. we experienced catching confetti from the god of fortune and it was really fun joining the crowd to catch some confetti.

when we arrived home, i immidiately posted the pictures on facebook and while we were viewing the photos, we saw again how fast gab is growing. he lost a little weight and became taller. maybe it's because he's been dancing a lot lately. probably i should start dancing with him because i see that it is effective. LOL.

here are some of the pictures.

The Basketball Superstar

His dad captured a very nice photo of Gab... Look how fast he's growing! Time flies!!

I love looking at this picture again and again.

Fat burning tips needed!

How come there are people who eat a lot and yet they do not gain weight at all? It's just so unfair! LOL. I've been battling against weight gain for who knows how long and it distresses me much more to see sexy people eating to the content of their hearts without worrying about getting flabs! Especially when I see them drown themselves in sweet treats. I envy them so much.

I feel muscle pain around my belly as I write and here comes my friend messaging me that she wants to gain 10 pounds more! I think it's time for me to try diet products to help my ever so inconsistent exercise habits. I tried the Tae Bo CD that a friend gaev me and I just can't follow everything. I've seen a lot of products, one of them is the Promedis. I guess I should take things easy. Will try to do the Tae Bo exercise as often as I can and then decide whether I need to match it with some diet products or not.

I'm just not sure what to do now but I'll keep up. I'm certain though that I don't want losing weight to be part of my 2011 new year's resolution again.

Care to share your secrets to losing weight?

i hope gab will like mommy's cooking

I have been searching kid's meal recipes since we were advised by the Doctor to control Gab's weight gain. I have found some yummy and interesting recipes already and I hope to try each of them soon. I hope Gab will like mommy's cooking.

Should we let Gab sleep on his own bed?

Gab has really grown a lot. We brought him to the Doctor's clinic the other day for follow up of his check up for cough and the Doctor told us that we need to somehow control his weight gain. He's gained two kilograms within the past two months and the Doctor advised us to nail the weight to that number in order for Gab to grow taller.

We need to buy new clothes and shoes for him again. And we're thinking of getting another bed already. He still sleeps with us and when all three of us are on the bed, we cannot move and have comfortable sleep.

I've been looking around for options and I think I want to get an airbed. I saw some information on air beds that have a pump inside them and I think I can convince my husband to get one. I tried my friend's airbed and I like it. I guess it's convenient to have one at home. You can keep it when not needed and easily set it up when you have guests. In our case, I plan to buy a single airbed for Gab. We will put it inside our room and test if he's ready to sleep alone on his own bed. Then maybe later we can move him to the other room. Or if not, we can just keep it and try again after a few months.

excited to see the singapore airshow 2010 a little later today

i'm excited because we will be seeing the airshow later today. we will go there with friends. we plan to see the first airshow scheduled at 11:30 am and roam around to see the displays afterwards.

we will leave the house early because we'll eat lunch early together with our friends. i'm so excited to see how gab will enjoy the show. =)

My Silent Time

Before I left my previous job to make way to my full time mom career, my friends at work told me to blog. I have seen how they earned money from blogging and blogging became one of their stress outlets. I thought that if they can do it, then maybe I can, too.

They gave me a checklist on what I should do. Number one on the list was to search for webhosting providers and get myself my own domain name. Then they told me I should update my blog often. Then I should visit other blogs and get to know the people who also visit my site. They also gave me articles to read to guide me in making my own blog.

I've been blogging for quite a while now. Blogging has also become one of my stress outlets just like it did to my friends. It gives me my "silent time". It relaxes me. When I go back and read my posts, it makes me happy. Even with all the things that I need to get done at home, I try to write. Blogging reminds me that somewhere, there's a place where I can go to stop, rest and simply write.

Three youths arrested for posting racist remarks on Facebook

As I open the door for my husband this morning, he handed me the newspaper on the page which says "Three youths arrested for posting racist remarks on Facebook".

Facebooking as I said has become one of my past times and so I immediately read the news post. It's not that I do such thing (like posting racist or mean remarks online) but I wanted to find out the details. Apparently, three Chinese youths, aged between 17 and 18, have been arrested for posting racist remarks on Facebook. I read on and found out that under Singapore's Sedition Act, anyone found guilty of promoting feeling of ill-will and hostility between different races can be fined up to $5000 and/or jailed up to three years if he is a first-time offender.

It's nice to know that there are certain rules that control the possible abuse that anyone can do when using the Internet.

Place for tourists

My sister called me up to ask if her husband's relatives can use our extra room during their stay here in Singapore next week. There are five of them. Aside from the small space, there are no beddings enough to give them a comfortable sleep. I suggested for her to look online for cheap yet comfortable place where they can rest after a day's tiring tour.

It's not an easy thing to find a nice place to rent. When my friend moved to Bangkok, she told me that she spent weeks to find websites and newspapers with information on condo and apartment rentals in bangkok. Bangkok Condos and Apartment rentals are always seen on newspapers but finding real cheap condo rentals bangkok is difficult. It's a good thing she's settled already and she said she can call it her new home now.

I hope my sister won't find it difficult to find a place for her hubby's relatives. Do you have some info to share on this?

In the news: Toyota's US sales signals 'uphill battle'

When talking about owning a car, my husband would always tell me that he wants one from Toyota. And every time, I would always tell him that whatever type of car that is, I would love to ride on it as long as he's the one driving. Later on, when I saw the Suzuki swift, I changed my mind and told him he can get whatever car he wants as long as he buys me a Suzuki Swift... a white one.

With the recent breaking news on recalled vehicles by the Japan-based carmaker, Toyota, my husband told me that it's a good thing he doesn't have money yet to buy a car! LOL.

News said that more than 7.6 million vehicles worldwide have been recalled by Toyota for defects linked to sudden acceleration. The said carmaker faces US congressional hearings and a rising number of product liability lawsuits.

I wonder if I can spot the Toyota defect because my passengers always complain about sudden acceleration when I drive. LOL! I got to learn how to drive smoothly if my hubby will later buy me a Swift! =)

Backed up the files

I just finished backing up the files on the laptop. It's part of the regular maintenance that we do to keep the laptop's performance okay. It's a good thing that my husband bought a hard drive 1tb during the IT show at Suntec City last year. Before, I needed to discard similar looking pictures but now, I'm so happy I can save all the photos without worrying about the available memory space that we got.

She got hired fast!

My friend got a job at the Marina Bay Sands Singapore. It was a very fast employment hiring process. She was very lucky to pass the resume on Thursday last week, got interviewed Monday and will sign the employment contract today. Even she could not believe that she'll be working soon.

For job hunters, here is their website!
Marina Bay Sands Singapore

I should watch him watch the TV

I'm glad that Gab watches other cartoon movies and TV programs now. Since his Dad subscribed for a cable TV account, he forgot about his Barney, Bob the Builder, Sesame Street and Dora CDs. It was good timing because the CDs got scratches already that's why we cannot watch them without Gab throwing tantrums when the CDs stop.

The service that we got is not the one that has digital tv recorders but we sure enjoy it.

Gab learns when watching. He dances a lot and imitates what he sees. I know I should be more attentive to him now because letting Gab watch TV shows exposes him more than just by watching the educational CDs.

See you at the Singapore Airshow 2010!

Hubby told me that we're going to the Singapore Airshow 2010! It's a weeklong event that's going to happen on February 2-7, 2010 at the Changi Exhibition Centre. The first 4 days are exclusively for trade attendees while the final 2 weekend days are open to public.

He already got the tickets for February 6. I can't wait to see how Gab will be really amazed with the number of airplanes that he will see. I can't wait to catch his jaw fall down when he looks up to watch the Flying Display!

For more information about the event, you may go to this link!

See you there!

cough and runny nose, run away!!!

we skipped class yesterday. gab has runny nose and cough. i wanted to send him to school but his dad was worried that gab might cry a lot if i leave him because he's not feeling well. i just let him watch the TV and Bolt Dog the movie on the laptop all day yesterday and yes he had a nice rest. his breathing was not very good so i forced him to take the medicine and nebulised him when he was asleep.

been busy the past few days. the beach walk was fun. gab had a great time playing with sand. mom and dad enjoyed the breakfast i packed. it was fun. i hope there'll be more weekends at the beach. so i hope gab will get well soon. don't want him to miss more classes. as i write, i'm outside their classroom. i guess i'll stay here the whole time just in case the teacher calls.

i want to go to the beach

my hubby is doing his weekend support on sunday night again. we will not have time to go out on that day because he will need to get sleep to be prepared for his night work.

it's 5 in the morning and i still don't feel like going back to bed. i had pretty long sleep before gab woke me up at aroun two to ask for milk.

gab is a big boy. he already knows how to wake me up if he needs something. the other day, he woke me up saying "meee, wee wee" because the diaper was full.

anyway, going back to wanting to go to the beach... i'm thinking of not going back to sleep anymore and prepare some food and our stuff so that when my boys wake up, we are ready to leave and we'll have fun at the beach. =) i hope i won't feel sleepy soon or when we're at the beach.

Marriages should last a life time.

Four years ago when we decided to got married, we only had four months to get all the preparations done. My husband’s sister announced to us mid part of 2005 that they’re getting married in 2006. To avoid the “Sukob” thing (that my husband and I do not really mind but we’re sure to hear a lot of negative comments from a lot of oldies in our ever so Filipino family), we decided to get married that year. Aside from the limited time that we had, we were also on a very limited budget. Although shorter time to prepare for wedding results to less fretfulness (because you will only have little time to be wasting some on your negative feelings), it has a not-so-good side effect of not having the chance to scout for better yet cheaper options.

The two major expenses that I thought I would not limit the quality because of a limited budget were on Wedding albums and wedding rings. I thought that the Wedding album is our treasure because it will remind us of the smiles on our faces when we happily tied the knot and it should last until we have children and grand children and great grand children; the wedding ring should be good enough to last on our fingers forever.

So yes, these two were among the major expenses that we had during the wedding. The list also included the food and the wedding gowns and barongs that we used for us and the entourage.

The Wedding album turned out pretty good. So far, the pictures are fine and we have Gab already. Let's wait and see when the grand children and great grand children are here. LOL.

Just this weekend, we went to our friend’s house and they showed us their Photobook when they got married June last year. Wow!!! It was really beautiful. Now I will confess that I’m really not sure about our wedding album, but, this one that they got will surely be seen by their great grand children! It was nicely laid out and the materials were scratch and water proof. It's as if you are really looking at a book with a very interesting love story and very charming characters!

When getting married, I believe that it’s okay to spend a little more on those two that I mentioned. Marriages should last a life time. If a couple gets to have another wedding album, it should be because they got married again to renew their vows. And for the ring, there should only be one. I am pretty sure that if I’m reading these pages many years later, I will still have this wedding ring on. I hope all marriages last, all our marriages.

green day's basket case

green day is performing live at the singapore indoor stadium on the 14th of january. wow, i wish i can come to watch. i remember enjoying their music way back in high school. i became friends with the anarchy band (local band in bicol) and one of the band musics that they often play are those of green day's.

i know i'll still enjoy listening to their kind of music. only that i'm not sure if my baby will like it. i think when he grows a little bigger, he will also like listening to these kinds of music.

one of the songs i like is the "Basket Case"

Do you have the time
To listen to me whine
About nothing and everything
All at once
I am one of those
Melodramatic fools
Neurotic to the bone
No doubt about it

Sometimes I give myself the creeps
Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me
It all keeps adding up
I think I'm cracking up
Am I just paranoid?
Am I just stoned?

I went to a shrink
To analyze my dreams
She says it's lack of sex
That's bringing me down
I went to a whore
He said my life's a bore
So quit my whining cause
It's bringing her down

Sometimes I give myself the creeps
Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me
It all keeps adding up
I think I'm cracking up
Am I just paranoid?
Uh, yuh, yuh, ya

Grasping to control
So I better hold on

Sometimes I give myself the creeps
Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me
It all keeps adding up
I think I'm cracking up
Am I just paranoid?
Am I just stoned?

backpack for gab

gab has a new backpack. we went to tita liza's house last weekend because she said she has a present for gab that we need to pick up. she cooked spaghetti ang gellatin that gab (and his mom and dad) enjoyed. we spent a few hours at their place eating, watching TV and chit chatting while dad was busy copying movies from tito rj's computer.

gab likes his bag. when we went to school today, he used it and he was so proud to have the bag. mom is very happy.

thanks tito rj and tita liza. =)

Have a great day ahead!

I usually wake up early during Saturday mornings because it's my schedule for buying groceries and stuff we will need for the coming week. It’s been an hour since I woke up yet I’m still in front of the computer looking at pictures on FaceBook and waiting for people to get online on Yahoo Messenger.

I feel very lazy going out today. Gab and his dad are still sleeping. Maybe I should start moving because when they wake up, we should have breakfast and get ready to go out and get Gab a haircut.

I hope we all have a great day ahead!

Got a health insurance for your family yet?

My husband and I have been thinking a lot lately about getting health insurance for our family. When we were in the Philippines, our employers were the one who arrange for our health and dental insurance. When my husband started working here in Singapore, he did not get a health card but they have health insurance benefits. Only that, when he needs to see a doctor, he will pay for the consultation and reimburse the amount from his office.

I searched online for information on health insurance and came across United Health One Reviews. There are other companies but this one provides quite an affordable health insurance package for families.

It is always our hope that our family stays healthy but there are times when sickness strikes and expenses are incurred. If we have this health insurance, then there's no need to worry about such possibilities.

Perhaps I will make some few more calls by the start of this week and we're all set to get one for ourselves.

another baby is coming!!!

My sister-in-law is having another baby! This is going to be their fifth and I’m so happy for them. Babies are blessing and families with more kids tend to have more fun. I’m not saying that families with only one child or two cannot be as happy as those with a lot, but, I’m pretty sure that with just the numbers, families with more kids are more vigorous and alive and energetic!!

Gab is going to be a kuya soon! I’m excited to go out and get some baby clothes when they are on sale so that we'll have something to give the baby as a welcome gift! Will wait until we know if it's a boy or a girl!

kuya: older male relative such as brother, cousin or friend

Kids have different talents and they should find out

When my niece and her family came over to our place last holidays, she showed us some videos that they uploaded in YouTube. Those were videos of their activities at school. Some contests they've joined and won. Shows they participated in and projects they have worked with. They told us the history of each of the videos and how they divided the work to accomplish such a good job.

Non-academic activities can really bring out the talents that the students have. My niece also showed us the draft of the t-shirt design that really looked like a professional logo design. It was an original design she created for their class.

I believe that kids have different talents and that there should be activities like what their school have in order to bring out those potentials.

Gab has improved a bit. He did not cry all throughout his class today. He still cried but not all throughout the two hours. I’m pretty sure that he will get used to going to the playgroup. I wonder what talents he will have when he grows bigger. I just wish that the schools where I'll be sending him will have the right approach to encourage kids to acknowledge and develop their talents.

bloghopping is fun and refreshing

i've been ignoring my growling tummy for more than an hour now. gab is asleep and will wake up anytime soon. i've been busy blog hopping since early this afternoon.

it's so nice to have time to visit your friend's website. i learned a lot today from bloghopping. it also relaxes me to read about personal experiences that other bloggers like me share when they write.

good for me someone thought of blogging. being a busy full time mom, there's a great need for diversion so as to prevent stress brought about by the never ending routine. wait, i'm not complaining! i'm merely stating the reason why there has to be a diversion. =)

got to go and get some snacks before gab wakes up!

I wonder if an aircon will convert the stock room into a home office.

My husband works for a bank as an IT guy. They do programming and support. With his current post, they do software support. Another team is doing the software development. People doing the support requires knowledge in development and troubleshooting. And people doing the support job requires 24/7 coverage. Thus they have shiftings chedules and weekend support assignments.

Last weekend, my husband did weekend support. Before Gab and I came here, he never had problems doing it because he can sit anywhere he wants and he can work. Now that we're here, he cannot work fine with Gab pulling him away from the computer and calling him to play.

I thought that maybe it would be nice to set up a home office. Aside from the spare room that we got, there's a stock room in the place that we got. The problem is there's no window for ventilation. I need to research if it's possible to put aircondition in the room even when there's no external access to it. I know that there are portable aircondition units. I wonder if it will be comfortable working there but for now, my husband will be staying in the other room evrytime he needs to do his weekend support assignment.

I hope Gab stops crying.

Gab is crying again. I can hear him from the waiting area. He was okay when I brought him to the class last Monday. But a classmate snatched the toy that he was playing with and that’s when the crying started. Gab is not used to playing with other kids. He plays with me and mommy never snatches his toys. I even give him more toys. (I wonder if I should have tried snatching some of his toys before.. just for the sake of explaining to him that sharing is also fun. Perhaps I’ll do that with my next baby or maybe Gab will do that for me.)

The playgroup is okay. It’s a two hour session from Mondays thru Fridays. Classes start at nine in the morning. When they enter the room, temperature is taken and they are asked to wash their hands with sanitizer. Then they will put their bags and water bottles on a table where everyone else leaves their things. Next comes play time until ten. Keeping the toys end their playtime and then they will be asked to line up to wash their hands with water as preparation for their eating time. When they go back to their seats, they are told to put their hands on their lap while food is given to them on their own plates. Teacher asks them not to touch the plate until they are told to do so. I guess its discipline and patience training, eh?
After eating time, they are told to put away their plates and then singing and watching starts.

So far, those are the activities that they have. I’m not sure when they will start doing other activities. All I know is that they are training the kids for now to remain in the classroom and learn how to follow instructions and get used to being left by their moms or grandmas or nannies. I hope that Gab will be over his crying and looking for mommy problem by the time they start with another set of activities.

Can you share your experience when you sent your toddler to school or playgroup the first time?

Better be sure about something

I know a lot of people who feel very uncomfortable when the word insurance is mentioned. I worked as an insurance agent for a few months and all throughout that period; I've seen how I myself reacted to the word insurance when I was younger. Before I got married, I did not like being approached about insurance. When I started working, my sister was connected to an insurance company and she told me that I should get one for myself. I never bothered looking at the paper that she handed me. When I got married, there was a time when my husband and I talked about it and we thought that it's just right to get one for ourselves.

There are a lot of different kinds of insurance. Life insurance, car insurance, Motor Trade Insurance, property insurance, etc. We got life insurance for ourselves and before Gab turned two, we also got a policy for him.

If you are a person who does not like talking about it with an agent because you think they will not stop until you sign that form, I suggest that you do your own reading. Search online for different insurance companies. Know their profile and study their products. You sure will find one that will fit your need and budget.

Once I did not think I should waste my time in it. But when I realized that I'm not sure what will happen to me or to my loved ones, I thought that it's better to be sure about something... and that is the insurance that we got.

Gab watched UP movie for the nth time

Gab watched the movie UP again. As I said, I already lost count of how many times he's already watched it.

It's a very nice love story. I especially like it because Carl have always remembered the promise he made to Ellie. I think it's a nice movie to watch. It's a movie telling us that we should value even the smallest promises that we make and stop making excuses by saying "Promises are meant to be broken".

I like it when Ellie was showing her adventure book to Carl.

Ellie: When I get big, I'm going where he's going... South America! It's like America, but it's south!!!

Have you watched it?

Maybe I'll try it sometime to better understand how it works.

I have never really paid attention every time my husband explains to me how p2p sharing works. And because I do not completely get it, I have never really tried using it myself. The only thing that registered to me was that if you download files, you also share that bit of file that you have already downloaded. So basically, as soon as you have a chunk of that file already, you also become a source. And everyone else doing the same are both downloading and sharing the file that they want.

From what I've read, using Torrents Search and Download is advantageous especially when downloading large files that are momentarily popular because a lot of people are downloading it. And as I understood from my husband’s explanation, the more people trying to download it, the more speed for everybody trying to get that specific file. Because the more people are downloading, the more people are providing the file also.

Now that I have more understanding about how it works, then maybe I will use this when there are files that I need to download. And after that, perhaps I will know well than what I have written now. It's always best to understand how things work after you try it instead of merely reading about it.

Feeling a bit anxious

Tomorrow is Gab's first day at school. I'm both excited and anxious. Luckily, my husband is doing weekend work from home tonight so he will not report to work tomorrow. We will both send Gab to school on his first day.

I hope that we will not have problems with the schedule. i hope that waking up early won't be difficult for Gab. Usually he wakes up around the time when he's expected to attend the playgroup session. Now, I will need to send him to bed early and wake him up the following if I need to. I hope this will not cause him to dislike going to school. Gab really hates being disturbed when he's sleeping. In the morning and especially in the afternoon when he's having his siesta.

Wait for more posts. Will let you know Gab's progress.... and that of his mom also. =)

How should I do it?

Writing a list of New Year’s resolution has always been very easy for me. Why? It's because there are entries that have been there for more than a decade now. Implementing them is what's difficult.

I think if you've been reading my posts, it won't be difficult for you to guess what's on the top list? With all the sweets and fats that I ate during the Christmas holidays plus the "pre-existing condition" - you know what I mean! LOL. It's getting the flabs out!!! Again!

Running is a good exercise that is very effective when I need to lose some pounds. Now I don't think running would be enough because I did not gain too much weight but my tummy looks like I'm a few months pregnant. I remember my nephew asking me "Is Gab having a little brother or sister soon, Auntie?" Arghhhh! I can see my husband's grin when he reads this. I guess he gave loads of chocolates for my nephew to ask me that question.

Doing sit ups is effective when I was younger. After I gave birth, I had problems doing sit ups because I suffer from severe back pains when I do it. I tried drinking slimming tea but I experienced palpitation.

Now what should I do?

Can someone give me tips so I don't have to resort to Liposuction? Promise I'll tell the results if you share your secrets. =)

yummy breaded shrimp

I just got a mesage from my friend asking how I prepared the breaded shrimp that we had last Christmas. Her husband liked it and is now asking her to prepare it for him. It's so easy, here's how.

1. de-shell the shrimp
2. add salt and pepper to taste
3. roll the shrimp on flour
4. dip in beaten egg
5. roll in bread crumbs
6. dip fry

Yummy!!!

Movie time

Recently, I have been watching a lot of movies. The previous tenant of the house left plenty of DVDs and the movies are really interesting. Some are of famous celebrities and some are not that known but the films that I watched so far are all great. Gab also likes one of the DVDs, the cartoon movie UP. I already lost count of the number of times he watched it but I'm so happy to know that Gab can now watch a complete movie without asking me to change it with his Barney or Bob the Builder CDs.

Gab will start attending his playgroup this Monday and I will be very busy adjusting my schedule to give way to the chores and the two-hour daily sessions that he needs to attend to. Then I will have lesser time to spend on movie time. But maybe I can watch while waiting. With the amount of DVDs that they've got here, I'm far from running out of movies to watch. I just wish that the previous tenant will remember what she forgot to bring after I'm done with all the nice pictures to see or I might start reading about how Torrents Search and Download works.

the thought keeps me awake

People who know me might be wondering already why I'm still awake even after writing several posts for today. My normal threshold stays only up to the third or fourth. LOL.

Well friends, there's something that's making me stay awake. If we're really very close to each other, you probably know already what I'm talking about.

If we're not that close (but then again at least we are), then I can only say that there's something really very important to me and my husband that we're about to give up. It also concerns Gab; not yet now but in the future. Maybe later, when the decision is final, I can share the details here. But for now, I'll just let it keep me awake.

Gab and Zoe opened Christmas presents together.

I have yet to visit one more close friend here in Singapore. It's so nice to be reunited with friends whom you lost contact with for quite some time. Last Christmas eve, we spent time at one of my best friend's house. We got invited because my friend understood that it would not be too exciting for Gab to open Christmas presents alone. (My friend knows because she also has only one baby.)

We brought crema de fruta and shrimp tempura. My friend cooked spaghetti and fried chicken. There was wine and a lot of chips and chocolates. The food looked and tasted even better because they were laid on the cosy and contemporary dining room furniture that my friend has at their place. We were one big happy family feasting and celebrating the holidays.

After eating noche buena, Gab and his baby sister Zoe exchanged gifts... opened them and started playing with their new toys. They ate plenty of chocolates and candies. It sure was better that Gab was with another baby on Christmas Eve. They shared toys. They watched Barney together. Nice photos were taken.

When the babies slept, the daddies had wine and the moms had chips and chit chats.

Gab is a school boy on Monday!

I can't believe Gab has grown up this much. He's two years and more than two months now and he's going to be a school boy on Monday!!!

Well, it's not really formal school. I enrolled Gab to join the playgroup at the next block. It's a lot of play and a little academics. I'm so excited to see Gab interact with the other kids. I am so excited to find more progress in the way he plays and does things and talks and a lot of other developments that moms and dads see in their ever fast growing kids.

At first, I was doubting if Gab is ready to be sent to this playgroup. But as the days go by, I'm becoming more and more certain that it's the right thing to do. Check this out!

After finding the right size, he did not want to take off the uniform anymore so he played and went home on it.

Thanks to my friends who always share tips on how they raise their kids. Thanks to the people who support us in playing a very tough but exciting role as parents to Gab.

Got to get a new bed for the other room!

Ouch, I got bruises on the back of my left leg. I was playing with Gab and his dad at the other room when the bed broke down. It's a single bed that no one has ever really used; we requested for an extra bed for the spare room and it was the one that our landlord provided. We were all sitting on it and playing for some time already when I decided to go out and prepare our lunch. I put down my left foot first and then I felt something painful. I screamed, Gab got scared and he cried profusely. Luckily, Gab was sitting at the middle of the bed. He did not get hurt.

My husband told me that it's either because of my weight or the poor quality of that bed. Of course I'm convinced that it's not a nice and safe bed. And my husband is convinced otherwise but he's just trying to be nice. (Oh my, I remembered my new year's resolution again!)

We plan to share the house with someone soon and we're glad this accident happened this early. We'll have enough time to look at stores with nice and not so expensive beds. We're glad that our future housemate won't go through a shocking experience like this. We were really shocked that the bed collapsed. And Gab was more shocked to find himself on the floor after a big bang!

Could she be denying our friendship?

I have this friend from grade school. We were very close until we lost contact some few years ago. Since I moved to Manila for our board exam review, I never got the chance to catch up with her. I just heard that she got married and that she already has kids and that some few years ago, she was nowhere anyone of us (her friends) could reach.

I felt very excited when I found out one day that she got herself a Facebook account. I sent a friend request along with a message that I miss her and that I've been trying to find ways on how I can talk to her.

It's been months now and she hasn't confirmed our friendship. Is she too busy to click on the accept button? Could it be that she never accessed her account since the day I tried to add her as my friend?

I'd like to think that I'm being overly emotional and that she's really not denying our friendship. But, I feel sad. How would you feel if I were you?

Mayweather vs. Pacquiao tickets for you!

I wish that someone will surprise me one day before March 13, 2010 and tell me, "Pacquiao vs. Mayweather tickets for you!"

My husband and I would really love to go to Pacman's next fight. If it would cost something that we can afford, we would really love to go. But just to be sure of a bigger chance to see it live, we'll start praying for someone to say to us, "Mayweather vs. Pacquiao ticket/s for you!" LOL.

We are fans of Pacquiao. When Pacman has a fight, we would normally gather in one house with my siblings and friends and watch the fight together. We've seen some of Mayweather's fights also and I'm guessing that this "Biggest Fight Ever" will be difficult for both of them. I don't have a guess as to who will win because both of them are champions. I'm praying though that Pacman will bring down the "Money".... and bring home the pride.

I can't imagine how more exciting and fun it would be to see the two great boxers fight live at the MGM Grand Arena. Well, I don't know how I'm going to watch the fight, but, what I'm sure is that I will not miss it.

i love the beach... it's oh so relaxing

last night was a fun night to celebrate some time with friends. we had picnic at the east coast park here in singapore and it was really fun. i have always wanted to bring gab to a beach because i want him to experience walking inthe sand and soaking his feet wet with salt water. when we first brought him to sentosa, i did not have much time to let him play with the sand because we were only there at the siloso beach to eat lunch. we had a lot of shows to see when we went there. at the siloso beach, gab did not enjoy the sand. instead, he was a little uncomfortable that he stayed all the time on his stroller.

last night i was so happy that we spent hours of playing and running on the sand. at first, gab looked funny because when we took off his shoes, he stayed for several minutes on where he was standing. he couldn't move a leg. LOL. later on when he saw RD (our friend's kid) running and enjoying building mountains out of the sand, he started walking and then he ran and then he played with the sand.

i love sitting and eating by the seashore. it's relaxing for me. maybe now that i know the place, we will go there often.