Thursday, December 25, 2008

Merry Christmas!


Emon & Che che
After 4 hours of cooking, this is the end result! Our first Christmas dinner, with just the two of us. (or rather, three.. tsugtsug was sleeping at 7pm)

we started with tomato, basil and mozarella bruschetta
bruschetta

steak and mushroom gravy, with mixed greens, mandarin oranges, dried cranberries & pistachio on the side drizzled with apricot dressing
steak

tomato and feta cheese couscous
steak & couscous

clear asparagus soup
soup & main dish

syempre, mawawala ba ang ham? galing pinas pa yan ehehe!
ham

and finally..crepe, my version.. i am SO happy that raymond can make crepe... imagine the possibilities! harharhar.
Dessert (geri's version)

raymond's version
Dessert (Raymond

raymond also opened his first champagne bottle.. i HAD it in video then lost it a second later (don't ask.. i'm still angry with myself.. stupid phone) we watched a tutorial in youtube.. the *pop* almost woke up tsugtsug.. (he actually did wake up but then fell asleep right after)

We're going to Anshe's today.. mamamasko si tsugtsug hihihi (hello, ninang anshe!)

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

...tsugtsug in HDB

tsugtsug has started using his zapp minus the carseat! we went around the block and he was so mesmerized by the passing cars.. he's probably wondering why they're so close to him..

he seems to enjoy strolling on his stroller ehehe. 'seems' because he's just quiet, he's not his usual smiling self, like he's trying to take everything in, like he's deep in thought..but he doesn't cry so i think he's liking it.

photo op time!

tsugtsugHDB


bait naman si tsug dun sa airplane... pero ang hiraaaap palaaa supaaah dupahhh likot eh. and ang bagal namin.. sobrang daming gamit ni tsug.. we had 2 balikbayan boxes, 3 hand carried luggages, a stroller, a diaper bag and a huge handbag.. when we finally got to immigration, we were the only ones there.. (which was fine actually, no queuing) sa carousel din, nakababa na yung luggage namin hehe. tapos, nung pipila na kami for a cab, hindi kasya yung box sa boot ng car! kainis! khet isa lang, hindi kasya.. so we had to take a maxicab (van like).. but at least we were comfortable, kasi maluwag and i was able to nurse tsug properly..

TG pala kasama si ate chary. laking tulong talaga. Thanks Ate ulit! labyu! *mwah* wala na siya eh.. huhuhu. pero okay lang.. kakayanin na lang talaga. kanina umiyak si tsug, walang dahilan. hay. kasi ang iksi ng nap nya, mga 30 minutes lang so tinatry kong inurse to sleep pero iyak ng iyak ... tapos hinehele ko nalang.. pero ayaw parin, iyak parin.. i guess kasalanan ko rin kasi pinipilit ko siyang padede.. napatahan ko lang nung naglakad lakad kami .. gusto nyang tumatanaw sa bintana ehehe.. kikita nya mga kotse kasi..

ei.. tomorrow's my birthday pala. will spend it with my boys, buying groceries, eating japanese food and buying more of tsugtsug's stuff.. that's the plan, anyway. that's a perfect day for me, as far as i'm concerned.

sa susunod ulit. i probably won't be able to blog that much now (i mean, more than my once a month ehehe).. wala ng katulong! lol! sige, babay!

Tuesday, November 04, 2008

...the big move

...is upon us! i'm looking forward to it as much as i am anxious about it. believe me, i'm not the only one. grandma's feeling it too.. she already started getting all teary eyed about a week ago.. she did a monologue while holding tsugtsug.. "paano kayo dun? paano ka? ikaw na gagawa ng lahat.. magluluto, maglalaba, maglilinis... dito nga lang, si gavin lang inaasikaso mo, hirap ka na eh".. l o l! honestly, i have no idea how i'll cope too. all i tell people when they ask me is "edi kakayanin".. which is really the case! i think its time for pangs and i to do this on our own and learn what it really means to be a family. even before tsug, we only lived in our house for a couple of months before he had to leave for SG.. and then when i got there, we shared a flat with housemates so most of the chores where split, hence, responsibility was also split. now, it'll just be the two of us and one tiny(?) baby boy...

we still got a TON of things to do.. and to buy.. pangs already got a flat, so at least that's one off the list. he'll have to make the flat ready before our arrival, and that's not an easy task. part of having housemates is that the stuff in the house are also shared, so when one moves out, you find yourselves with no rice cooker, iron, pots and plates hehehe. but at least shopping is fun, just don't think about the money you're spending.

I on the other hand have started my own shopping.. spices, clothes, medicine, dvds..everything that's cheaper here.. the dvds are getting ripped right this second so i can bring them to sg.. they're tsugtsug's dvds actually.. barney, sesame street.. haaaay. yeah, tsugtsug's been introduced to the wonderful world of barney and elmo.. (wtf is barney anyway? is he a bear? same friggin question goes to elmo.)

and tsugtsug is now 6 months old! and he has started his solids! i'll be making my own baby food and he has tasted his first kamote yesterday.

IMG_4144_filtered
one messy day

6 months old
chillin at the car.. his favorite sleeping place

6 months old
better take a photo of this shirt.. can't get the buttons closed already!

6 months old
happy 6 months baby!!!!


tsugtsug can now stand while holding on to his baby gym c/o ninang anshe.. (still his favorite toy).. and he still doesn't know how to use a bottle. i've been trying to teach him, but i think he's mostly just getting his clothes drenched..hopefully, some liquid goes in his throat..

anyhoo, that's it for today. oh, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY MOMMY DEAREST. i love you! you're a wonderful mother and grandma! *mwah*

P1060767

Sunday, October 19, 2008

...phobia


5 months

bilis ng panahon! at 5 months, tsugtsug has developed some awesome (and terrible) habits.. the latest of which just boggles my mind.. he is now rattle-phobic! just seeing it brings him to hysterical fits! on sight uh! any type of rattle! and then gawd-forbid someone tries to rattle it in front of him, his crying goes up another notch if that was even possible. sooooo kawawa! he has learned to associate the rattle with his vaccine shots! its my fault too because he has his own rattle, but its stuck on the bottom of his diaper bag and is seldom used..frankly, can't blame my poor baby.. hearing the rattle and then having someone stick a needle to your butt the next second.. lol. i am now in the process of reintroducing the rattle to him.. he can now stare at it with just a wee bit of whimpering haha..

also, he has learned to be wary of strangers. haaaay. he's no longer people friendly. he absolutely hates it when someone makes small talk to him. its so weird because he has only developed this habit about a week ago! Only a couple of weeks back when i applied for his passport, he would smile at everyone and even allowed a lady to carry him when i needed to write something.. *sighs* today some sales guy just stared at him and once he realized this dude was staring at him, ayun na.. iyak to the max. LOL.

i wonder if we'll be okay in an airplane.. TG its only 3.5 hours..

his daddy is coming this week yey! hmmm.. mangingilala kaya? L O L. will tell you soon enough.

Friday, October 10, 2008

...in the land of women

obscure title right? well.. not so obscure from my dad's totally awesome dvd collection! woohoo! i have new found respect for my dad's buying skills..

i was just youtube-ing twilight (again, as usual) and saw this clip of 'kristen talks about adam brody' and i was of course, curious because i haven't seen them together in any film.. adam brody is Seth from The OC whose character i absolutely adore for the sole reason that seth's favorite band is Death Cab for Cutie.. anyway, i watched the video and wrote the title with the small chance that my dad sees it in his 'pirating' trips.. (i usually give him a list of stuff i want him to look for) i didn't even glance at his dvd shelves.. because .. well, hello? who would friggin have this film? but yes... apparently, we did!!! wow. you can't imagine how happy i was hahaha. i was like.. hmm.. 'i guess i'll take a look anyway.. in good company.. in the cut, in the land of.. woahhhhhhhhhh we friggin have it!'

the movie's cool.. i happen to like kristen stewart.. her voice and her i'm-too-deep to-squeal-or-giggle attitude.. my dad saw what i was watching and he asked 'where do you pick up these titles?' .. lol.. 'dad, YOU bought this, you know?'..

on a totally different topic.. i haven't been doing much(any) preparation for our sg transfer.. the to-do list is in my mind though.. like.. 'burn dvds', (ohmygosh i'm gonna miss the pirated stuff again) 'buy dried seasonings' (it's much more expensive there) or 'buy a proud-to-be-filipino that kind of nationalistic stuff shirt'..*sighs* i guess i should start doing some.. especially the grocery shopping so Pangs could bring it already when he visits this month.. Tsugtsug has TONS of baby paraphernalia.. i have no idea how we'll be able to bring them all.. think he has to say goodbye to his rocker swing.. (to accomodate his soon to be purchased jumperoo)

i'm looking forward to going back to sg.. i remember J calling me a couple of months back and i was like 'wait.. you have to bear with me, i haven't spoken english since i left there' hehehe.. yeah, that was funny for him cause i've been known to correct their pronounciation and stuff.. but more than practicing english, i missed my friends back there.. L's actually expecting so i could give her a lot of my baby advice haha..

okay.. break time over. hafta getback to my ever growing bebe boy.

Tuesday, October 07, 2008

...malapit naaaaaa



it's the 3rd trailer countdown! and the movie.. ooooh, i'm so excited! wait.. is it also on the 21st here in Manila? hmm.. forgot to google that one.. i hope it issss.. ei.. that's Akel's wedding.. hmm.. akel's wedding? or twilight movie? hahaha joke lang Akel *mwah*.. you know i'll go to your wedding (after watching the first showing of Twilight hihihi)..

i've read all the 4 books now.. but i do have to say the first book was THE best.. the second i liked because of the Jacob part (didn't realize he would be such a BIG character).. yeah,.. i'm ALWAYS for the underdog so I'm Team Jacob all the way but after reading a draft of Midnight Sun.. i think i'm starting to appreciate Edward more..(the draft is found in stepheniemeyer.com)i hope Stephenie Meyer finishes and publishes it.. i kinda like Edward's perspective more than Bella's now.. the 3rd and 4th book wasn't that bad.. it's just not great.. or maybe because i was getting sick of Bella's thoughts so it was a relief to read Jacob's POV for once. his thoughts are hilarious. much more credible and infinitely more entertaining.

i still can't get enough of Twilight.. for the first time, i'm re-reading a book! never ever done that. but i can't seem to let go. bwahahaha. (oh boy i'm losing it) let's just say i'm preparing for the movie so i'm keeping it fresh on my mind. harharhar.

anyhoo..tsugtsug just gave me the scariest day of my life so far.. scarier than when i cracked my head on a meralco post and walked bleeding to an emergency room.. scarier than the time i saw a black shadow in our house and i asked my ate chary if she sees ghosts and she said 'what? the black thing?'.. and definitely scarier than the morning after i found out i vomitted on my father's shoes and was passed out on our bathroom floor(oh okay.. that's a cloooose second)... tsugtsug got his first fever. huhuhuhuh. that afternoon i told ate chary his head felt hotter than usual.. i gave him paracetamol drops then he just threw up the medicine AND everything inside his tummy with the farthest projectile i've ever seen from him.. waaaaah. i did what all first time mothers do when there babies get sick.. i called my mommy!

his temperature got higher and higher.. but TG the highest was only 38.5.. his Pedia, Ate AnnaMae said to me.. paano kung 39 pa yan ano? baka maging hysterical ka na ehehe.. i actually was pretty calm.. i only like really expressed my feelings to annamae the day after.. i told her i couldn't breathe normally, like i was hyperventillating.. and i didn't know i was capable of not sleeping but i was! my mom and i were up all night just holding and carrying tsugtsug.. was finally able to give him drops at around 2:30 am and his fever went down after that.. 2 days later, rashes appeared but his fever was gone.. now, his rashes are almost invisible but i may never be the same. LOL. i don't know how i'll be able to handle if tsugtsug becomes sick again!

he's 5 months now.. (he got sick on his 5th month birthday) and i'll soon be able to give him solids! i'll try starting with a banana.. or some organic cereal first.. oooh so excited.

he's so hyper now.. can't even change his diaper without him rolling on his own poop.. he likes to sit up then suck his toes.. he likes to be held up so he can practice standing up.. but he's still not sleeping through the night but i'm okay with that now.. i mean, he's a pretty cheerful baby, not that hard to take care of so if that means i have to wake up thrice a night to sway him to sleep,.. that's fine with me.

another month and we're back to SG.. (if everything goes as planned..) then i'll have to take care of tsugtsug all by myself ( i mean, when Pangs is at work).. hopefully the 6 month period with my parents prepared me enough. oh well.. kakayanin na lang talaga.

sige.. still have to YouTube twilight.. am watching the comic con interview hehehe.

UPDATE;
the showing of twilight in the philippines is the same! yey!
twilight

O M G!! The best part about this is once i get to singapore, i can watch twilight again bwahahahaha

Sunday, September 21, 2008

...edward and bella

something has been keeping me up at night (apart from tsugtsug) this past week.. i've been reading (and dreaming) TWILIGHT.. the worldwide bestseller which i have only recently heard about (what? i haven't been out much!) which is a shame because the book is soooo friggin good.

it was my sister who told me about it.. she said something like "si panic room girl ang magpaplay sa TWILIGHT", a sentence that i totally didn't understand. i was "huh?" and she was "oh, you are SO out of it!" and then she explained that twilight was like the next harry potter book in terms of its success.

the next day (was it fate? ehehe) someone in the n@w forum asked who liked an ebook of twilight so i began reading it.. and its so addicting, its so hard to put the mouse down (i've been reading it while lying in bed, with the mouse beside me)

its told as a first person story, Bella's point of view.. the 17 year old heroine who's in love,.. with a vampire. The story is so well-written, I could practically hear Bella's breathing.. feel her heartbeat pounding.. every action-packed chapter was enthralling and no detail was insignificant, everything was relevant to the whole story..

halfway through the first book, i remember to google the movie trailer.. i forgot ate's remark about 'the panic room girl' until i saw the trailer.. Bella is played by Kristen Stewart and Edward the vampire played by Robert Pattinson.. he's Cedric Diggory in the HP film.. (i guess he'll sound american in the movie.. well, he should) i was a bit disappointed at first with Pattinson.. in the book, Edward was described as godlike by Bella.. she said.. like a perfect runway model, breathtakingly beautiful.. i guess the edward in MY mind is humanely impossible.. thinking about it later, Pattinson IS a good match, if edward really existed in the real world.. Same goes to Bella.. she is someone who should be beautiful, but not outrightingly so that she'll be popular in the city.. but should be pretty enough to get some guys' attention in a small town..

also this week i saw Stephanie Meyer, the author (talk about right timing!) in Ellen.. she's a SAHM, with no prior writing experience.. she said she dreamt about it (Ellen said, that must be a looong dream, lol) and just googled agents, for she had no idea what to do with the book she had just written..her story is really inspiring, if only i had her talent with words ehehe.

so if you haven't read it.. i fully recommend it.. i'm not sure how many books are in the series.. i have 4 ebooks so far.. (i'm halfway thru the 2nd one, entitled New Moon).. i've asked Ate to buy the books but she said out of stock na sa Powerbooks, so she had to reserve it for me.. i also suggest reading it in broad daylight.. you know, sunny, airy, with lots of people surrounding you.. not at midnight like i did.. i was scared shitless at the 'tracker' scene (you'll know what i'm talking about once you've read it).. not to mention when i stopped reading it, the scene continued in my dreams, harhar..

yun muna, still have reading to do ehehe. bye!

Saturday, September 13, 2008

...ber na!

the weather is cooler, beer jingles (octoberrr festt naaa) and christmas carols in the malls!! yeyy, the ber months are here!

another reason to be happy? U.S. Shows are starting their new seasons this September yahooo! Hello Gossip Girl, Heroes, House and Ugly Betty. hihihi. (of course this blog was about TV)

have already watched the first 2 episodes of GG and i'm happy happy happy to see Penn Badgley again. (cue Mika song: love love me.. love love meeee) i'm reading some spoilers about Heroes and it kinda sucked because now i know who shot Nathan. It's... you really want to know? just go to spoilerfix.com and read there..

anyhoo.. lehman brothers is in a major FUNK and so is pangs' job. first bear stearns, now lehman. tsk tsk. all US financial companies are going berserk. i'm telling him it might be a blessing in disguise you know, maybe we should just stay here in Pinas.. still think tsugtsug will be 'happier' here, where he'll be closer to his grandparents and cousins and uncles and aunts.. but i dunno.. i'm okay as long as we're together.. i'm beginning to resent this setup, i miss pangs terribly. :(

kahapon pala nabinyagan na ni tsugtsug ang SM Marikina breastfeeding station. binyag as in nasukahan na nya lol. SM marikina, mukhang SM taytay. i guess all SMs are the same. interesado naman ako sa mga restaurants eh.. pero didn't find anything interesting pa.. hindi ko rin kasi mashadong nalibot. binilan ko lang ng cap sa enfant si tsugtsug tsaka sando. (note to self: kulang parin sando ni tsug.. ang bilis kasi lumaki eh!!) ay, tsaka bakit iisa lang ang elevator dun.. ang bagal pa. tska naiinis ako sa mga magulang na sinasakay ang mga stroller nila sa ESCALATOR na hindi inaalis ang baby nila.. waaah. siguro paranoid lang ako pero honestly, its an accident waiting to happen. as in! ano buh, safety first nohhh. hay. tapus yung mga baby na asa basket na meh trolly.. (yung pang shopping) nakalagay na nga sa trolly na 'no riding' , ride parin ng ride ang mga toddler. haaaaay. pinipigilan ko na lang sarili kong mainis. lol. (kaya dito ako hindi nagpipigil hehe) ang kukulit talaga.

natutuwa pala ako sa stroller namin.. as in. thank you talaga sa mga officemates ko sa Exxon dati na nagbigay saken. ang sarap nyang ipush tapus gusto ni tsugtsug. lagi siyang nakakatulog. (or dahil ba kasi malamig sa mall?) yung maxicosi na binili ni pangs para dun, (naaattach siya sa frame ng stroller) medyo maliit na para keh tsugtsug.. lagpas na paa nya! ehehe. pero ok parin kasi nakakatulog siya. can't wait na gamitin na yung pang toddler. kaya lang hindi na siya nakaharap saken, hmm. parang gusto ko ng stokke na stroller. EHEEHE. (see pangs rolling his eyes) pangs, pag asa SG na tayo, hindi na cool ang zapp naten. LOL.

yun lang.. kikita ulit kami ni pangs next week, lapit naaaa. yey!

Wednesday, September 03, 2008

...happy 4th month birthday!


to our not so little baby boy..
tsugtsug 4months
HAPPY 4 MONTHS!!!

Ang likot na ni tsugtsug! From bathing, diaper changing, nursing,..super sa likot. pagnagnunurse yan, nakataas pa yung legs tas yung free hand nya! Pag pinapalitan ng diaper, laging gumigilid! Pagnaliligo kami, sipa ng sipa, basang basa din ako. Ang bilis lumaki.. literally. Pag hinehele ko siya, parang naghehele ako ng toddler na nagkukunwaring baby LOL. Wag masyadong mabilis lumaki tsugtsug,.. kungdi, hindi ka na mabubuhat ni mommy mo!

In the meantime, i'm trying to cut back on what i'm eating.. ang taba ko na! I'm trying to get rid of my gut so I'm doing some situps everyday. Ilan ba dapat? Hmmm.. I'm just doing about 20, 3 times a day. Well.. its better than doing nothing right?

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

...lakwatsa boi


tsugtsug's latest venture to the outside world.. his cousin's 2nd birthday! Thank you to Tita Erlyn for his outfit, Tita kate and Jing for his shoes. LOL. (obvious bang hindi binibilan ng damit ng nanay?)
tishasbirthday1
tishasbirthday2
tishasbirthday3
okey pa sya nung umpisa eh.. but with all the noise confined in one room, it was too much for him (kahit ako naingayan eh!) kaya nastress ehehe. had to take my food just outside the room, but he was his jolly(bee) self there.

til his next outing!

Thursday, August 21, 2008

..ode to the 90s

after having my third nightmare about Criminal minds, i decided to give my profiling psyche a break and searched my family's numerous (and eccentric) collection for something new to watch... i wanted something light, (read: not scary) and in english (read: no subtitles!) and i ended up with... Dawson's Creek, Season 1. ehehe.

after the Pilot episode (which amazingly, i was familiar with.. OMG i have watched this before!!), i was hooked. it reminded me of my school days and i loved the music. gawwwd i love 90s music.. Sarah Mclachlan, Tori Amos.. and of course the theme song, I don't wanna wait. hearing the song is reason enough to watch the show. it's an absolutely great song. I wonder whatever happened to Paula Cole.

I'm definitely a 90s baby.. (i only remember the 80s because of my sisters.. Pretty in Pink, Some Kind of Wonderful) my highschool days when i was so engrossed in alt rock, filling up my shoeboxes with tapes of bands, congratulating myself when my latest discovery wasn't a one-hit wonder and guessing who would make it to the mainstream.. Alanis Morisette, No Doubt, Goo goo dolls, Third Eye Blind,.. i thought they would forever be my secret musical discoveries.. guess they were meant for greater things than inside my walkman. my favorites were Radiohead, Smashing pumpkins, Rage against the machine, Sonic Youth, i could go on and on and on (ooh Alice in Chains. ooooh, how could i forget Nirvana and Pearl Jam!. oooh also Soundgarden..Green day..Oasis!!! Bush!! okaaay i'm gonna shut up now).. wow. i miss their music.

i remember listening to NU on our school bus service.. i remember singing Ironic to my friend Kate 3 months before it became BIG in the radio.. and i remember how i loved Eraserheads so much I would sound like Ely when I sang their songs lol. I remember how happy i was to find classmates who liked the same stuff i did.. so much so we formed a band and first named it freon, then changed it to Orange Juice. lol. I remember going to studios and jamming it with them. i would play the drums, the bass, and would even sometimes take vocals.. we sounded like crap but we didn't friggin care. ehehe. oohhh i miss arjo, bea, maileen, joyce.. ehheehe. wow, so weird to say their names here when we haven't kept in touch all these years. i remember how bea loved beastie boys, and her name being on it just adds to her obsession. i found arjo on friendster and she stayed true to her music roots, with franz ferdinand, coldplay, the killers, audioslave, deftones, tool, the white stripes, to name a few of her current likes.

i don't listen to the radio anymore.. TV seems much more appealing to me.. so i leave it up to MTV to educate me of the new bands.. year 2000 brought about great bands, but i dunno,..nothing really hits the chord for me unlike before.. is it my age? or maybe it's too early to be sentimental over 2000 music.. yeah, that's probably it. when i'm in my 40s i'll probably be like "oooh, i loved maroon 5" ehehe.

90s was a great decade.. it brought us portable phones, jerry maguire and search engines. i'll just save all the great music to my harddisc with hopes that i can tune out the Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus from them.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

...neoooooprinnnttt


neoprint
tsugtsug and me!!!! at 3 months and 17 days, tsugtsug is now amazingly 16.96 lbs. nyahahaha. ang hebigat na talaga!

Monday, August 11, 2008

..tsugtsug milestone

check this out eheheehe.



ang galing galing!


here are more details of tsug's baptismal.. we only had a budget of 25k for EVERYTHING.. and i do mean everything.. i think lumagpas kami ng mga 2k siguro dahil nga sa emergency food situation.. anyhoo.

eto pala get up ni tsugtsug:

IMG_3392
all bought from Sta.Lu department store. St. Patrick's ata yung shirt. very cheap, think only 400bucks for the terno.

venue.. casa arenas. bwahahah. our reliable backyard. maulan but my dad put up some umbrellas and the guests were fine. also put up 2 new ceiling fans kasi mainit dati nung despedida ni ate ging. naglagay din si daddy ng aluminum something sa roof para daw mag absorb ng heat. sa next pic manonotice nyo yun..

food was from our suki, the very reliable CCME (homemadefoodstuff.com). We had chicken pastel, roast beef, barbecued spareribs, adobong prawns and crabs, steamed lapu lapu, young corn/quail eggs/green peas with shrimps. Ang dami diba? yeah, for 50 people. ehehehe. I opted for a full catering service from them, para less hassle, dagdag ng 100bucks/head. mga 14k lahat lahat ang food, pero dami namang ulam, so okey lng. (sensya na sa nagbabasa pero hindi nakatikim ehehehe)
caterer
eto likod ng casa. check out the silver ceiling ehehe.

also got charlie's pritson.. lechon in a pita.. 4650 bucks sya, pero sabi ni pangs maliit lng daw yung lechon. parang lechon de leche. mga 80 pcs lang daw din yung pita. this i knew but i didn't realize the pita would be small.. parang 2 inches lang pero masarap. we reckoned if we got the the usual Elar's 5k lechon, hindi kami nagkafood drought. well, at least natikman namin and masarap nga. plus they came with 2 helpers, nice uniforms and all. konti nga lang tlga yung lechon.
P1050826
pritson guys with soon to be wed A & R.

syempre dapat meh cake si gavin. got this from jane of sweetbite. jane was very easy to talk to, very jolly. she made the cake a fondant one without extra charge (siguro nagpapractice ka noh jane! ehehe) tapus 50 choco cupcakes. also ordered desserts from her, 50 pcs of eclair and food for the gods. i was only able to taste the cupcakes and it was good. moist and not too sweet. even my mom liked it which is a very good sign cause she doesn't like sweets. dad said he tasted the eclair and it was good. i can only assume the food for the gods was good cause they vanished before the party ended.
cupcake
buti na lang napicturan ni hubby. si daddy ang in charge of photos.. he wouldn't care less about the 'details'.

wasn't planning on getting balloons pero parang gusto ko medyo festive naman ang mood. gusto ko sana dito lang maghanap ng balloons sa meh COGEO but didn't have the time to look around. (last week nakakita ako, meron sa gate 2 ehehe, now i know). got jacque from n@w/w@w of partyboosters . madali din kausap si jacque and she went to our house to setup the balloons pa. kahiya nga kasi almost non-existent ang budget ko dito eh ehehe. got 100 balloons from her tapus nagdagdag sya ng mga centerpiece. thanks jacque! and good luck sa iyong new biz.
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the only problem with balloons was disposing them! ang dami eh! was able to give a couple sa batang dumaan sa bahay namin. yung iba nilagay ni daddy sa meh bakod namin tapus parang magic, nawala lahat. ohdiba.

kumuha rin pala ako ng mamang sorbetero.. yung ex-helper namin dati na si mae, pinaabangan ko ng naglalako.. meh nakita syang naglalako ng ice cream stick/ice buko, yun ang tinanungan nya. got 1500 for 6 gallons. wasn't too happy kasi 2 lang flavors, cheese and cookies & cream. tapus medyo pasaway pa si mamang sorbetero. sabi ko 12 pumunta, 9am andun na. ang konti pa ng cones na dala, di daw kasama sa usapan. ehehe patawa. oh well. daming natira, hanggang ngayon kinakain ko parin hahaha.

yung invites, got really cheapo and just printed them out as a photo. yung souvenir naman and tarpaulin ni tsug we got it printed sa fans digital sa hidalgo, quiapo. my dad always goes there for you-know-what naman kaya hindi out of the way ehehe. mura lang, 32bucks isang magnetic card and tarpaulin was just 300bucks. mura din magpaprint ng photos dun, just 6bucks each for a 4R size. gusto ko yung kinalabasan. ako naglayout, got scrapbook elements from shabbyprincess.com.
tarp copy
tarp layout.. laki ng mukha ni tsugtsug ehehe

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4x4 pinagawa ko.. ganda ng pagkagawa, rounded yung corners.


ayun. kapagod pero masaya. next stop.. tsugtsug's 1st birthday! yahoooooo can't wait!!

Friday, August 08, 2008

...binyagan blues

grabeeehh. kakahiya, naubusan kami ng food lol. had to ask hubby to run out and buy some emergency food.. twice! i guess i underestimated the no. of people.. akala ko mga 50 lang eh! ang 50 lang pala eh yung first batch nyahaha.. adding to the stress was me direct feeding tsugtsug .. nevertheless, tsugtsug was very playful and cheerful once he had a full stomach.. masiyahin daw sabi ng mga tita ko.. they should see him when tsug looks at himself in the mirror.. kinikilig! lol.

behave din si tsugtsug nung mismong binyag.. he slept thru half of it.. what with the priest's long sermon and longer jokes.. well it was entertaining at least.. tsug was sleeping when the water was poured on his head.. he cried for a while and then slept again 5 seconds later..

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ang taba ko ehehe. you know how i could keep this weight on? i eat breakfast TWICE (7am and 10am), eat a heavy lunch a couple of hours later, numerous snacksssss in between then and dinner.. basically just stuffing myself with food..

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family pic time!


on OTHER news (hehehe as if meron).. i've never been a kristen bell fan but i happened to catch an ETC recall of veronica mars and saw this episode where she was investigating some lab rats stolen and where she had this little moment with a certain PIZ guy.. ooooh. suchhhh a cutie. ehehehe. watched the 3rd season , found out we had an early copy (quiapo guys, tsk tsk) so it only had until the 9th episode.. watched the first 2 seasons and well, you can say i was hooked, had my dad buy the 3rd complete season and am now very sad that they cancelled the show. there's just no justice in not finishing a series and having no definite ending. googled it up and looks like they had no inkling they were getting cancelled, hence the no-ending ending for the 3rd season. *sighs* the GOOD news is that my boy crush PIZ is actually the surfer dude in Private practice! HA! AM so damn lucky. I knew i haven't seen the last of him yet. double HA! ate Chary was the one who told me this news.. she was 'he's in private practice' and i was 'sino dun???'.. and i remembered instantly when she said surfer dude because he is sooo damn unforgettable bwahahah. and saya ko talaga ano ahahaha. and now, i'm going to find the grey's anatomy episode again and watch it. it's my goal this weekend. (and to watch top chef season 4) note to self: ask dad to buy private practice, hihihi.

weird daw ng mga crush ko sabi ni ate chary.. haha. i dunno. yeah, he's not drop dead gorgeous but i find PIZ so cute. so boyishly innocent hahaha. and maybe cause i don't like Logan that much. (and again, i always root for the underdogs) okay, i'm rambling veronica mars stuff now. time to eat. this is probably one post i'll be embarassed about one day. i now leave you with my latest obsession youtube find..c ya.

Monday, July 28, 2008

...tsugtsug moments

tsugtsug will be 3 months old in a weeks time. wow ang bilis. parang kelan lang na umiiyak ako at hindi ko sya malatch sa boobs ko, ngayon sugapa na.

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favorite past time: hand sucking
favorite word: ah-goo
talent: can burp and fart like a 40 year old man
body asset: thunder thighs

kung dati iyak na iyak pag bathtime.. now he enjoys it a lot!
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'hellooooooo'


lapit na binyag ni tsugtsug!! yeyyyy! have booked a caterer, balloons, mamang sorbetero and pritson! kainan na namannnnnnn. and meh 'main' event pa.. daldalhin ni ate chary ang dine-date nya. bwahahahah. so hapi. finally. lol.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

...missing out

sometimes i feel sad when my folks go out without me.. my family and i still watch movies together.. lately i've missed quite a few good ones.. indiana jones, the dark night.. but of course, tsugtsug's too small yet.. i'll be too selfish if i insist on always going out with them, even if its just a stroll at a mall..

when i was pregnant, Switchfoot came to singapore.. my fave fave band huhuhu. i was 6 months pregnant.. i think it was really safe but you know.. it's always saf-ER to stay home and rest. i skipped on a lot of bands anyway.. franz ferdinand, fall out boy, my chemical romance, jet.. they all went to singapore but i didn't watch.

and who could forget the Tokyo trip. Not me. lol. i've always, alllways had a fascination with japan and anything japanese and i couldn't friggin go with my hubby. HU HU HU. again, was already late in the pregnancy.. and it was still winter cold at that time, i would've been very uncomfortable.

oh well.. can go out once tsugtsug becomes a toddler.. tokyo will always be there. the bands, i could watch on tv. am i growing too old for rock concerts? i dunno. i just realized.. shit, i'll be 30 in 2 years. O-M-G. that sounds too... near. and weird. moi? 30? lol. i remember watching Jeopardy Teen Tournament. and i was like.. 'are they kidding? these questions are so easy!' and then it hit me.. waahaha i'm NOT a teenager. of course it'll be easy. nyahaha. well.. i feel like one. (and act like one as well? lol) tsugtsug gives me oldie points.

i'm missing Pangs. he's gonna be here next week. Yey. i wish its Akel's wedding already so tsugtsug and I can go and be with his daddy. tsugtsug update: i was able to shower while he was in his rocker! granted, it was the fastest shower evah in history AND i had to go back because i still had shampoo residue.. it was still a milestone for me. and he's HAND sucking now.. AND i see the beginnings of a saliva machine. he also likes doing saliva bubbles now lol.

wait.. i hear him crying! later guys!

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

...random tv thoughts

my world has revolved around tsugtsug and my other baby.. TV. the one and only 'hobby' i could keep. and so..... let me ramble on..

gordon ramsey is f*cking hilarious. it's addicting to watch him swear on tv. i tried counting his swearing on one kitchen nightmare episode, i lost count at 20. project runaway philippines finally has a first-episode date.. and it's gonna be soon! on july 30.. can't wait... so sad Gio from ugly betty won't be back in the next season.. i was secretly rooting for him. (am a sucker for underdogs) think they just signed him for one episode. henry the accountant won't be back at all, so it's a new love interest for betty. i like ugly betty.. the characters are sooo multi-dimensional.. evil is not plain evil. Pinoy Idol sucks. i dunno what's GMA's fixation with ugly singers. it's TV, not radio. and the judges are lameeee. ogie, jolina or wyngard. there's so boooring. i'm a kapuso but louie ocampo, gerard salonga definitely makes more sense. (and more helpful in their comments!) si wyngard, wala ng ibang masabi kungdi "di kita na-feel" (Whatev). been watching Jdramas too. Operation Love, Yukan Club. Both good. Also watched taiwanese Corner of Love. but the last episode..nawala subtitle! demmit! (damn pirated stuff bwahaha) i wanted to call javern/lynette for him to listen and translate it for me lol. pinanood ko na lang kung sino nagkatuluyan. i love iron chef. but its hilarious mark damos rants of in japanese when he's filipino. saw a lot of filipinos in asian excellence award.. cheryl burke, ramiele, tia carerasomething (forgot her surname), apol the guy from Black eyed peas.. and some actress (forgot also her name) who said after accepting her award that her filipino mother still calls to check if her rice cooker is still working and to go out in the market and buy some Pish. i love top chef. i dunno why. (i don't like padma)i guess i like reality tv shows, period. i looved that the vietnamese guy won. i especially liked the way he chopped this chicken in like 5 seconds. gossip girl rocks. though the books are better. have the new gossip girl book, the carlyles. blair and company have graduated so its a new storyline. wonder if they'll do that for the series as well. CHUCK bores me. he's not funny. only salvation was seeing rachel bilson from the OC again. gawwd, i miss summer and seth. huhuhu. especially seth. i don't know any other character whose favorite band is Death Cab.

that's all. byebye.

Tuesday, July 08, 2008

...celebrations

happy birthday to my daddy! tsugtsug went to his second non-checkup/clinic related outing! the experience? will not do it again in the near future bwahahah. he was very grumpy, he cried halfway thru the meal so i had to gulp down my food to carry and soothe him. he slept for a while then woke up again and we had to doggie bag the dessert because no amount of swaying and rocking would calm him down.

nevertheless, it was good practice for both of us.. so hopefully, the next trip to the mall will be better.

pictures!

me and ate chary
me and ate chary at italy?

eating while baby is sleeping
sleeping part of the meal

ayaw kong magpicture!
the crying part

mom and dad
mommy with the birthday boy! ehehe


tsugtsug is already 2 months old! he has added a lot to his vocabulary.. a lot of "wooo", "akkk", "akuuu", "inggg" hehe. i'm doing the mai-mai approach to him.. i'm saying "hello, hello" repeatedly in hopes he will learn it as fast as our mayna bird did eheheeh. his cries are louder too. nakakabingi na! tas he likes listening to Everly brothers. lol. i'm making him listen to Matt Monroe and Engelbert next time bwhahaha. (these are classics tsugtsug, you must know them!)


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tabachingching!


he'll be baptized next month.. (punta kayo uh!) so, till then!

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

...elow daddy!

pangs came here for the weekend bearing tsugtsug gifts! the most important, and thankfully useful thing he brought was this Rocker Swing. The first time tsugtsug sat on it, he friggin fell asleep! as in! i couldn't believe it! i was jumping and hugging pangs when i saw those little eyes close! granted, it has yet to happen again, but i have faith! bwahaha. *positive thinking* he likes the swing a lot, he has slept on it for 45 minutes and when awake, he can stay for about 20. i know it doesn't seem much, but believe me, every minute of him being able to entertain himself is heaveeeen. i can actually write this blog! (he's currently on the swing)

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here's tsugtsug sleeping on his new throne. the big hand's another gift.. the zaky!


nagulat ata si pangs kung gano na kalaki si tsugtsug ehehe. and he's not boring anymore ehehe. when pangs left tsugtsug would only cry and sleep.. now he stays awake for a couple of hours and smiles his gas off in a poopoo session..

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meh milagrong ginagawa pag ngumingiti yan

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who? me?


bilis din natuto ni pangs.. had to teach him how tsugtsug likes to be carried.. there's a science to the bounce-bounce dance ehehe.. he also learned that tsugtsug is a very smart baby.. he knows when there's a change in altitude lol. (read: he doesn't like you sitting down while holding him!)

and there will always be a photo session when his daddy is home:

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what's up mommy?

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anong kalokohan ito?

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family portrait!


more pictures on his flickr site.

miss na namin ang daddy nya! (miss ka rin daw ni mommy, nakakatulog sya ng matagal eh hehe) his next visit is tsugtsug's binyag. can't wait!

Friday, June 13, 2008

...dead tired

*sighs*

i am so tired. both of my wrists hurt.. my joints are aching and i have this shooting spasm that hits me on my left hip..i have no idea what position causes it! nabibigla na lang ako sa painnnnnnn. i think my seldom-used muscles were challenged by tsugtsug. from his last checkup, he is now 9.9lbs! i don't know how i'll be able to carry him in the succeeding months.. maybe my arm muscles would grow bigger too? lol. carrying him is like having a total workout.. triceps, biceps.. pati muscles sa thigh, tapus cardio workout (when i try to rock him to sleep... imagine 30 minutes of walking, semi-jumping while carrying 5 kilos).

it's all worth it.. once i see his eyes closed and his mouth open. nyahahha.

good thing his daddy is visiting soon! yahooooooooooo! yey pangs! he'll be here on the 21st. don't forget my bilins nyahaha. i asked for more baby stuff.. hopefully, they won't turn into baby junk! hehe. in n@w, (newlyweds at work) i asked what baby purchases they regret and recommend.. turns out one's regret is another mother's recommendation.. so iba iba din. mga regret ko so far is yung crib.. but its still early, so hopefully he'll be able to use it once he is a bit bigger. (pang kulong ehehe) i asked pangs for a sling, some nursing blouses (i dunno where to buy here!) and an automated rocker.

tsugtsug's rashes are beginning to subside too! yey! i use cetaphil on his face.. and mustela dermo-cleansing gel on his body.. i really like the mustela products. its pricey, but its a big bottle and i only use a little.. so i'm pretty sure it'll last a couple of months. haaay, if i only knew, i should've used it from the very beginning. di gusto ni tsugtsug yung pigeon toiletries. sayang, mabango pa naman.

meh nabasa ako sa net yung 'how motherhood changed me'.. eto yung akin:
- i have a new hobby.. making cotton balls
- when constipated, i do a 'inhale-push-1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10-exhale'. works much better!
- i can finish(gulp) a meal in 5 minutes.
- i have a new skill.. i can tie a ribbon using only one hand. o-ha. (i tie a loose mitten while holding him)
- i changed from a no-cup to a B-cup!! bwahahaha.

sige, yun muna.. tulog muna ako habang tulog ang baby.

BabyPicture

Friday, June 06, 2008

...now i know

motherhood brings about tons of realizations..

first is how friggin tough it is. i decided to room-in tsugtsug on my 2nd night at the hospital, despite the strong advice of my friends and cousins against it. it was definitely hard, being responsible for the little one so soon after giving birth.. i still had painful uterine contractions, and my stitches were definitely hurting.. i think my argument then was, at least we're in the hospital where help was just a buzz away. thinking back, i'm not positive if i would've done the same thing. it was just too much responsibility, too fast! i couldn't rest at all, same for my mom and pangs. but i believe it really helped us to gain confidence as first time parents.. how to carry tsugtsug, change nappies, then a midwife showed us how to bathe him.. and most importantly was the breastfeeding. we (tsugtsug and me) were able to practice our latching.. latching is definitely the hardest part in breastfeeding.. being with him in his first few days where he didn't need that much food yet, i didn't feel any pressure at all that i was starving him. i can't imagine doing it for the first time at home! i remember during the first week, i was trying to pump milk but there was just so little.. then i stood up and left the bottle with the pump on the rocking chair.. when i got back, the milk leaked thru the bottle and 3/4s was gone.. i cried and cried and raymond and my mom had to calm me down.. i was just so friggin exhausted and frustrated then..what came to my mind though was "it's no use crying over spilled milk".. LITERALLY. then i calmed down a bit. hehehe.

another realization is.. i'm so glad i've read and researched about childcare and breastfeeding. there's just too much varying opinions from the oldies! you wouldn't believe how formula advocates the oldies are. lol. as in. they could become med reps for milk companies. tsugtsug was weighed on his 10th day and he lost a pound and everyone was like "WHAT? WHY? GINUGUTOM MO!" i honestly wasn't worried because i've read that babies do lose some birth weight on his first two weeks (especially breastfed babies) but i was beginning to get paranoid too with everyone clamoring for formula! i gave in eventually, but he only gets formula about once/twice a day when he cries in the middle of feeding for no apparent reason. (sometimes, napupupu lang pala! naiiyak sa pag iire nya). anyway, it's not just the formula.. they have opinion about everything from pacifiers to giving water to using bigkis! but good thing about my mom, she reads the books i show her so there are less arguments.

first 2 weeks, raymond, my mom and myself were taking care of the baby and we were all so sleep deprived. we were staying at our house where there was no cable tv, we had to make do with the shitty tv reception. sobrang walang tulog i was able to watch from unang hirit to dramarama to telebabad to the station sign off. pag 1:30 am i would look at tsugtsug and say.. now what? lol! also, while watching dyesebel (we can only get channel 2 and 7), there was a dialogue na "anong ginawa nila sa mukha mo dyesebel?" the 3 of us were like "huh? bakit? ano nga ginawa sa mukha eh pareho lang?". we couldn't see that half her face had scars because of the snowy reception nyahaha. (tapus black and white lang! minsan nagiging colored pag natatamaan ng electric fan ata hahaha) later on, we would watch dvds from 1-5 (twilight hour) then raymond would jump up and down in the middle of a movie and say "2:00 am pa lang!!!!". I remember Ate lala's song to us "Kay tagal, ng umagaaaaaaaaa" hehe. it sure felt like that every single day. There were times I wanted to quit breastfeeding because it felt so unfair.. everyone else was asleep (including tsugtsug..human pacifier ako nyan eh!) whereas I was trying to stay awake in fear of smothering tsugtsug with my boob. (urban legend lang ba yun?)

now that tsugtsug is a month old, i have more or less adjusted to his moods.. and to his schedule..from 1-6,i can usually sleep 4 hours.. we're 1 hour awake when i'm nursing.. i still can't put him down on his crib to sleep (what a waste of money!) but as long as he sleeps on my chest, he can sleep for 3 hours straight.. on afternoons its a different story.. sometimes he cries so much for no apparent reason it drives me nuts! just like today, minsan sinasabayan ko sya ng iyak hahaha. kaloka. i worry why he hasn't pooped, i worry if i'm starving him.. i worry about his rashes in his face and on his chest and on his neck... dati binibilang ko pa! lol! wawa eh, ang dami huhuhu.

i've also realized how much crap i've bought for tsugtsug.. the crib sucks! lol. i should've bought the one with a real bassinet (the round one) cause he seems to be lost in the hugeness of the bassinet we bought for him.. now i bought a separate bassinet which he barely uses as well.. oh well.. i'm still hoping he'll use it sooner or later..

last but definitely not the least realization.. that this little person is completely dependent on me.. its so scary!

tomorrow's his checkup. i'm excited to know how much he weighs now. my wrists hurt so much from carrying him, feels like i have permanent carpal tunnel syndrome.

yun muna.. 2 weeks in the making ang post na toh hehe. bye for now.

Monday, June 02, 2008

...tsugtsug is 1 month old!


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you can't see it but inside tsugtsug's mittens is his peace sign too!