Snapshots of my Life

I am so excited as I will be meeting up with my friends from SK for dinner on the 26th. I haven’t since these guys in ages as we just get to see each other only if any one of our kids is having a birthday party and only during our annual Christmas party.

This is actually a last minute thing as we can’t come up with a date that all of us are free. But since we really want to push through with this get together, we agreed to meet on December 26 for dinner at Yakimix even though some of our friends still won't be able to make it.

I haven’t bought gifts for them but I think I know what to give them: swisher sweets little cigars for the boys and vanity packages from Body Shop or Marks and Spencer for the girls.

So it is a date. I hope no one will back out. See you all on the 26th.

My family and I love eating in Yellow Cab. I love their Charlie Chan Pasta and # 4 Cheese Pizza and B just loves their Pasta Carbonara. Hubby’s favorite is their chicken wings and he can consume six chicken wings all to himself.

But we noticed that most of the Yellow Cab stores here in Manila are small that every time we dine in (especially if it is during peak times), there is always no vacant table and we have to wait for a table to be free before we can eat. So when I saw this Yellow Cab restaurant in Paseo de Sta. Rosa, I was impressed:

The place is really spacious and they even have a second floor to add to the seating capacity. The ambiance is also nice as it looks like you are dining in a garden but the place is covered with airconditioning and they just have garden setup inside the restaurant to create a more homey feel.

I am really glad that business has been doing really good for our cell phone store. It really picked up especially during the holiday season as people have a lot of money to spend from their bonuses and extra pay.

Because of this, my brother and I were able to save up to expand the business. Instead of just selling cell phones, we will now be selling laptops, cameras, PSP, and other gadgets. My brother found a supplier who can give us cheap prices for these goods but the deal is that he will be a new partner of our small company.

My brother is already tempted to say Yes right away to the deal but we decided that we should consult a lawyer first which handles commercial law so we can have a guide on how to deal with partnership agreements.

But my brother and I are really excited and fulfilled with our accomplishment. We have been managing our cell phone store for more than five years now and it is really nice to see the fruits of our labour and hard work and finally, we are expanding. This just goes to show that with hard work, honesty and dedication in this line of business, we can easily get clients even if there is a big competition and this really inspires us to work even harder to give better service to our dear and loyal clients.

Day 3 of Simbang Gabi: Done

My husband and I vowed to complete the nine days of Simbang Gabi. It is actually our first time to do this and part of our prayer intention is for good health of our family.

2010 has been a hard year for us as hubby’s mom passed away last June due to cancer. Because of this we have been really conscious of our health and we have been really praying that God will always shower our family with good health always. We also got the cheapest health insurance so we don’t have to worry about medical expenses in case any of our family will get sick.

Tonight will be the 4th day of Simbang Gabi. Hubby is working overtime but he promised to be home by 7:30 PM so we can make it on time for the 8 PM mass. We will really try to complete the nine-days of Simbang Gabi for our prayer intention.

I have a lot of pending work that I need to finish before Saturday but I was not able to work last night as I got so tired preparing this:

These are the gifts that I will be giving out to the classmates and teachers of my daughter and to my mommy friends in my daughter’s school. Today is the last day of school and it is also their Christmas party so I have no choice but to wrap everything last night so I can distribute all the gifts before the school ends.

Thankfully my sister and my mom helped me in wrapping all the gifts and B even help in writing on to the gift tags. But still I finished with everything – wrapping, labelling, and packing around 12 midnight already and when I went to our room, I was not able to resist the calling of our cozy bed and I immediately doze off to sleep.

In just a few months, my cousin will be graduating from high school. I can’t believe that time really flies that fast. I can still remember him as the toddler that we used to play with before and now he is already dreaming of getting manager job when he graduates from college.

We know that it is still a long way for him as he still has to graduate from college. But we believe that college will be easy as cheesy for him as he is a very studious kid. In fact he is even a scholar in his school and he even receives monthly allowance so we know he can get any job that he wants after graduating be it medical assistant jobs or jobs in Information technology or whatever career he plans to take after graduation.

So we told him that he just continues what he is doing now in being a very responsible and studious student and for sure he will graduate from college with flying colors. And after that, he does not have to worry in getting a job, even sales manager job, because with his credentials and with the help of the site S2opps.com where he can easily search for job that he is interested in with just a simple click of a button, he will be able to get any job that he likes and be successful in any career that he chooses.

Hubby will be working overtime tomorrow but before they start to work, he and his colleague agreed to meet at 5’o clock in the morning so they can run for a few miles within their office compound for some exercise.

Hubby has been complaining of joint pain and when he consulted his doctor, he was advised to do some exercise. He has long been planning to go back to the gym but since we are really busy, he did not find a time to squeeze to his busy schedule some gym workout.

I am sure he will have body pain after his workout tomorrow as it has been ages when he last had some real workout and exercise. But I told him that he has to endure a little pain for a bit until his body adjust to his new workout routine. Anyways, I can easily buy all natural arthritis pain relief from Naturally.com for hubby.

I am really glad that hubby is back in doing exercise as I know that he really needs to start working out as he really gained a lot of weight in the past months and I know that it is unhealthy. At least now, with a little diet,natural vitamins and exercise, he is off to living a healthy lifestyle.

Gone in 60 seconds…the chocolates that is.

I got this as a gift from a friend a few weeks ago. I actually forgot about it as I put it in the fridge and it was only when my colleague asked me about it that I remembered. So I took it out from the fridge yesterday and started munching on it. This is the first time that I will be trying this chocolate from Royce as I only tried Royce’s Nama and Potato Chips chocolate.

The chocolate bars are individually wrapped which made me really think what is so special about this chocolate. And it was really heaven when I tasted it. There is something creamy inside that melts in my mouth. So I just sat there and did not let go of the box until I am done with it. B also joined me in my chocolate eating frenzy too and she ate quite a number of bars too.

Now I am so excited to go to Robinsons so I can get me another box of this chocolate.

It is just 10 days left before Christmas and I am glad that I am almost done with my Christmas shopping. Just look at my loots:

I am really glad that I was able to find the time last Saturday to hit the mall with my youngest son in tow and do some real shopping. I shopped till I dropped as I move from one store to the next and collect plastic bags after plastic bags filled with my shopping loots. Now all that is left for me to do is get some nice wrapping paper from Paper Mart so I can start wrapping all the gifts.

I have a minimum of 50 gifts to wrap which includes gift for all my relatives, my friends, my god children, and also gifts for hubby’s relatives, friends and God children too. Add to that my daughter’s gifts for all her classmates and teachers.

I am planning to do the wrapping whole day on Saturday since I am free that day as my daughter is already off from school. I do hope that I will be able to finish wrapping all the gifts before Christmas or better yet, I can also use paper bags to make my life easier.

It is really beginning to look like Christmas and I am so excited. Happy Holidays everyone!

My husband’s testosterone is all pumped up after learning about this:

The 5th Christmas Toy Fair which will be held on December 17, 18 and 19 at Megatrade Hall 1. It will be a 3 day event of toy bazaar, live toy auctions, collectibles treasure hunt, annual grand sale and bargains and Christmas cosplay and parade.

You see my husband is a toy collector. We have one room in our house that is full of his toys from NBA Action figure, to NFL, Marvel heroes, etc. Name it and for sure he got it. And so when his colleague told him about this big toy convention happening this weekend, he got really excited and was asking me if we can go check it out.

The event will be in Megamall and I hate that mall as it is so big and crowded. And since it is the busy Christmas season, I am sure it will really be jam-packed so I am not really sure if I am really up for hubby’s plan to spend our weekend in Megamall. But we will see. I am sure my husband can’t resist this event and he will beg if he has to, just so he can go this weekend at Megamall and shop like crazy for new toys to add to his collection.

I went to Paseo de Sta. Rosa with my family and extended relatives after the Christening of my niece, Izzie last Sunday and my cousin Tessa introduced us to Kanin Club.

It was actually my first time in this restaurant. They served Filipino food and this is what we ordered:

Binukadkad na Bangus
Crispy Dinuguan
Sinigang
Crispy Liempo

I actually enjoyed the food since I love Filipino food. I especially love the Crispy Dinuguan as it is not like the ordinary Dinuguan that my grand mother cooks (but I still love my grandma’s version still but it is nice to try a variety sometimes. LOL).

My sister and my dad did not like the food though as they said that it is like dining at home. But at least we tried something new that day as we always dine in at Yellow Cab or Shakeys every time we are in Paseo.

Today, the final verdict for the Vizconde massacre was released. After being in prison for 15 years, Hubert Webb and four others have been acquitted by Supreme Court and were freed today because there is not enough evidence to prove all of them guilty.

I can still remember 15 years ago when Vizconde massacre hit the news. It was a big case as one of the suspects was the son of a Senator and the rest all came from prominent and rich families. They have been convicted by the Regional Trial Court and were sentenced to jail. All security cameras at the prison were all on the suspects as every body was watching them as people are expecting that they should not get special treatment and that justice should indeed be served for the Vizconde family.

Today, it broke my heart seeing the reaction of the father of the victim, Mr. Lauro Vizconde, after hearing the bad news. But at the same time, if Hubert Webb and his gang were indeed not guilty, then it is 15 years of their life wasted after being in prison for more than a decade.

Now they are back to square one as they have to find again the suspects for the massacre. After 15 years, I am not sure if this is still possible and if the Viscondes will still get justice.

The justice system may not work here, but I pray that Mr. Vizconde will still get his justice, if not here then maybe in another life.

My dad used to maintain a blog but then he got busy when he decided to put up his own business that is why he was not able to continue blogging. But since he has plenty of time while waiting for B to get off school as he just stays in the mall beside B’s school instead of going back home and then drive back to school to fetch B, he finds this the perfect opportunity to write some blog post.

But instead of directly typing his posts, he just used the old way of pen and notebook and he will re-type his articles again when he reached home. That is why I have been reading laptop computer reviews as I want to get my dad his own laptop which he can bring with him everyday and so he has something to use while waiting for B.

My dad has lots of stories to tell and share that is why I know he really enjoys blogging a lot. That is why I am happy when I saw him get back to blogging. So I really hope I can find a good laptop for him and it will be our Christmas present so he can really go back to blogging full blast.

I forgot to blog about this, but two weeks ago we were able to drive a few hours south to check out and do some shopping at Paseo de Sta. Rosa. We actually we’re suppose to go to Tagaytay but we are running late already and so we just decided to have lunch in Nuvali. After B discovered the pond of koi fish and an opportunity to go boating, we were not able to leave Nuvali and instead we spend a good 3-4 hours there.

It was already 5 PM when we are finish with our lunch and boating and so we decided to just skip going to Tagaytay and we just went shopping at Paseo de Sta. Rosa instead and this is our loots:

I was able to buy a cute Nike rubber shoes for Jacobo at 50% off. It was actually the last pair and we were so lucky because it fits Jacobo perfectly. Hubby also got a rubber shoes at 40% off and I bought B two pairs of Crocs shoes at 30% off. As for me, I was also able to do some shopping at the bazaar in Nuvali.

There are a lot of new stores in Paseo de Sta. Rosa that we were not able to visit yet so we are hoping that we can go back there to do another round of shopping before Christmas.

Although the kind of connection that a mother and her child share is something out of this world, what is even more intimate is the relationship between a mother and her daughter. The reason why the bond between mothers and daughters is so special is that, in addition to the bond between the mother and her child, this relationship also draws on the relationship between two women. Two women can understand each other in a deeper manner than a man and woman. This is why the bond between a mother and her daughter is truly even more than the bond between the mother and her son. When such a bond is celebrated with the help of some combined action, then the effect can really be amazing. The best thing that a mother and daughter can do together is to wear mother and daughter premiere jewelry.

The mother and daughter premiere jewelry is like combination jewelry. In simpler words, this means that the mother and daughter will wear pieces of jewelry that will complement each other. Although you can actually go about finding different pieces of jewelry that can match, the proper way would be for you to go and purchase combination mother daughter premiere jewelry. The combination mother daughter premiere jewelry is nothing but jewelry that is specifically designed to be worn in conjunction with each other because their beauty is only visible when they are seen as a pair.

This combination becomes a perfect symbol of the bond that the mother and daughter share or the kind of understanding that they have. This can even be taken to the next level if you personalize the mother daughter jewelry. Personalization is usually in the form of name tags or engraved names of both the mother and daughter on each piece of the combination mother daughter premiere jewelry. There are different types of combination mother daughter premiere jewelry with some common examples being necklaces, earrings, rings and even pendants.

Finding combination mother daughter premiere jewelry should not be very difficult if you look for them online. There are many online retailers and jewelers who provide combination mother daughter premiere jewelry. Furthermore, some of these online retailers would even include personalization services such as engraving of the jewelry or the making of special pendants. Hence, when you give your mother this special gift, then you can rest assured that she will be overwhelmed with joy and would even ask you to wear it right then.

Yey, finally I was able to start with my Christmas shopping. I have to accompany my brother and his wife at Rockwell so they can select the stroller that I will buy for their daughter. My sister-in-law will be coming from their house in Manila while my brother will be coming from Pasig. My office is just a few minutes away from Rockwell and so we arrived in Rockwell a few hours before them.

While waiting, I was able to check out the stores and started buying gifts for my dad, my mom, hubby, and myself:

Then I did some shopping again today after fetching B from school and I was able to buy gifts for some of my God children.

Tomorrow, I will do some shopping again for my cousins and B’s classmates from school.

I am starting to panic already as it is just a few days away before Christmas. I hope I will be done with my Christmas shopping soon.

And so I thought we will get the good news before the week ends, but we still have to wait for another two days (at least) before we can get the result of our loan application.

Maybe I should just go back in checking http://www.wholesaleinsurance.net instead so I will be preoccupied and I will not think about it but I guess no matter how much I tried to be busy, all my mind can think of is the news that my husband and I are waiting.

We are so positive already that everything will go as planned and hubby and I were just waiting for everything to be formalized but I guess we are wrong. But I know that there is a reason for everything and so I just prayed and told the Big Man up there that it is all up to Him. So whatever the result is, we will accept it wholeheartedly without any questions.

Written by email fax services.

Email fax is the newest trend in the field of faxing and communication. Despite the convenience and benefits that it brings, a lot of people are still hesitant on whether they would subscribe to the service or not. Some are simply feeling techno-phobic and does not want to get caught in the middle of the “technological trap” where they will not know what to do, if in case anything happens while they are faxing their message.

To overcome fear, one must conquer what they fear the most. I will discuss with you the steps in sending and receiving online fax so you’d know exactly what you are dealing with. But before that, here are the things that you need to start off with your email faxing:
1. A valid email account
2. Subscription with an email fax service provider
3. Computer
4. Internet connection

You probably have all these, save for the subscription with an email fax provider. These email fax facilities can be found online, all you need to do is Google them. Choose the provider that will give you the best service for your money and whenever possible, opt for email fax facilities that offer 30-day free trials so you can give their service a test run before you actually subscribe.

Once you have a subscription with an email fax service provider, you will be provided with an email fax number that you will then give out to your contacts.

If you want to send an email fax, here’s what you need to do:
1. Login to your email (some email fax providers will give you a web interface where you can access your fax messages).
2. Click on ‘compose new message’ or ‘write new message.’
3. On the TO box, type in the fax number where you want to send your fax message.
4. On the SUBJECT box, type in the subject of your email.
5. On the body of the email, type in your cover letter. Make sure that it has all the components required of a good cover letter.
6. Attach the document that you need to send as an email attachment (you just have to make sure that the document that you want to send is in its digital or soft copy).
7. Click Send and you’re done.

That’s how easy sending an email fax is. Just like a regular email, if you want to send a particular fax message to multiple recipients, then all you have to do is type in their fax numbers on the TO box. Receiving an email fax message is just as simple. You just open your inbox, click on the new message that you just received and download the attachment. Once you open your attachment, you will now view your email fax message as a PDF or a DOC file. Complicated? I don’t think so.

So what are you waiting for? There’s no reason to fear email fax. So jump on the bandwagon and subscribe now to email faxing services.

Credit card debt is something than most people live with every day and find themselves stressing under the pressure of late payments and even bill collectors coming after them to get their money. Although this is a terrible part of life, there are ways to help you out in a pinch. If you have some high interest credit cards, pay them off quickly and truly focus on that particular mission. The sooner you eliminate them, the more money you will save as time goes on and the more money you may be able to save, which is the ultimate goal. You will always want to save regardless, but to avoid having to get a payday loan is truly just a bonus that comes with a solid credit card repayment plan. Once you are debt free, you can start socking away money for a rainy day or for any emergency that life may throw at you.

Budgeting allows you to really see how much you are spending on credit card debt. A lot of times, you is not always obvious that you are overspending in certain areas, but by laying out a spreadsheet with this info, you can see the info and because it will be right in front of your face, you will have no choice but to accept it and try your best to find a way to cut that spending down to help your financial future. It will be very rewarding to slowly take certain monthly payments that you have been dreading off of your budget and to see your budget slowly increase to the point where you feel good about all that is happening in your financial life. You may even be able to splurge on yourself one day in the near future due to all your hard work.

I have been hearing about Yellow Cab’s Dear Darla pizza from my friends and from their description, this pizza sounds really interesting. So when I finally got a chance to dine in at Yellow Cab, I decided to order one small box so we can try if this Dear Darla pizza is really good or not.

So how can you enjoy eating Dear Darla pizza? Just follow the steps below:

1. Open the pizza box immediately after serving so pizza is still hot and fresh.

2. Place one layer of arugula along a vertical strip of thin crust pizza.

3. Add a thin layer of alfalfa sprouts over the arugula.

4. Drizzle with chilli to taste.
5. Starting from one end of the pizza strip, roll tightly securing the pizza toppings in place.

6. Enjoy the pizza.

It was actually fun doing it. LOL But as for the taste, I think it is just like any other Yellow cab pizza (well that is just me and I am really not the perfect judge when it comes to food and eating.)

So try yours now: Sprinkle, drizzle and roll!!

I was suppose to work as I have a lot of pending work to finish but I got all excited when I saw Aggie’s Flickr site and it is loaded with brander t-shirts, bags, wallets for sale at very affordable and discounted prices since they came straight from the facroty in China.

So I took my list to check if I can buy something from Aggie as gifts to my cousins (those for sale are for teenager cousins and my uncles and brother. Thankfully I already bought nintendo ds for my younger cousins as my gift for them):

• I can buy this wallet for my cousin Jayson and hubby’s nephew, Ken.
• I can get the Aerospostale and Hollister shirt for hubby, my brother, my cousin Joseph and my uncle.

I already sent Aggie my list of orders and all of them are on hand already so she can ship it anytime so I can surely receive it before Christmas.

Last December 4, we attended the wedding of our good friend James and May (girl, hope you will use the sexy corsets that we gave you for your honeymoon. LOL).

The church ceremony was held at Sanctuario de San Antonio parish and reception followed at Blue Leaf. All of us were present and we all dressed up like we are attending a red carpet event for the occasion.
The food was great and it was catered by Josiah’s catering. There was even coffee, wine and beer served during the party and we were entertained by Sound Salad band and they really played good music.

It was already 1 AM when we finally said goodbye to the couple (as we know that they really can’t wait to be alone on their first night as a couple. LOL).

Congratulations again to our dear friend, Mr. and Mrs. James Laping. (I will post pictures soon as it is still in hubby’s camera and I haven’t got the time to download it yet).

A few weeks ago, on our way home from B’s class, we saw the Christmas factory store in Fajardo Street and when we showed it to B, she got all excited upon seeing all the Santa Claus and Christmas decorations outside the store that she requested for us stop the car and check out the store.

Of course hubby can’t say no and since we also need Christmas decorations, we gave in to B’s request. Just look at some of their items for sale.

The Christmas Factory store produces items made from poly-resin with fiberglass. Their products range from Santa Claus stand alone, hangers, board holders and other Christmas decors. We were able to buy hanging Santa decors made from paper mache which is cheaper as compare to the one made from fiber glass. We got the Santa holding a parachute and it cost only P350. We also got new ornaments for our Christmas tree for only P50 each.

If only they accept credit cards, I might have bought a lot of Christmas decorations for our house.

I have two toddlers and so shopping in malls with two kids in tow is really a lot of challenge. That is why I love the luxury of being able to shop online. Imagine, I can shop anytime I want at the comforts of my own home.

I shop most of our things online, from gadgets, appliances, clothes and toys for my kids and even my husband’s cameras and accessories. So I have been shopping online for as long as I can remember and there is one online shopping tip that I would like to share which can help save hundreds of bucks, and that is the use of promo codes online.

Getting discounts online is easy with the help of Coupon Mountain. What I do is search for promo codes from Coupon Mountain and then apply this promo codes upon check out for instant discounts and free shipping. Coupon Mountain has different promo codes available for Old Navy, Office Depot, HP, and even Pizza Hut. In fact I recently used a promo code from Coupon Mountain when I shopped online from Old Navy and their coupon codes are reliable and is guaranteed to really work.

I need to buy gifts for my kids for Christmas and the first thing that I will do is search for promo codes so I can get big savings on my purchases.

Hubby just went to our house in the suburbs last weekend to check on it as nobody has been staying there for months now and he was so disappointed when he found out our house mailboxes is again broken. He suspects that kids are playing with it and I realized that it is possible when I remember an episode in CSI when college kids are playing mailbox baseball where they will ride a car and they will hit all he mailboxes with a baseball bat as they drive. That is why I suggested that we just install a wall mount mailbox instead.

I checked the site of Mailboxixchange and they have a wide collection of wall mounted mailboxes that really looks durable as it is made from rust free aluminum. I am sure any type of home will also not have a hard time looking for a style that will match the theme of the house as mailboxixchange have a lot of wall mount mailboxes styles that clients can choose from. Just look at some of the styles here:

Now all we have to do is choose the design that we want so we can order and install our wall mounted mailbox right away.