Ikea

Hubby and I are talking about something over YM when he told me that one of the reason why he wanted me to go to Kuwait was for him to show me the showroom in Ikea Kuwait. He really love the setup of the store wherein the rooms are already setup and you just walk in the room and check the prices of the furnitures. And then he told me to go to their website as we were discussing the things he would buy in Ikea (since they are on sale) and then ship it here (since shipping cost is only 10kd). 1kd = 164pesos (as of this moment).

Then he told me to look for toys for the princess. I have been bragging that Anevay can now sort and match the colors and shape of her shape sorter ( toy for 2+ kids) so we are looking for the 'next step' toy. But to my dismay, I saw two of Anevay's toy that we bought in Duty Free sold at a cheaper price. Kainis!

This toy is called the bead roller coaster in Ikea. I first saw this kind of toy in Tumble Tots and I saw how Anevay enjoyed playing with it. So when I saw one in Duty Free I showed it to Anevay. The salesman told me that this toy can only be enjoyed by kids 2.5 years of age. He was suprised because he saw how engrossed Anevay is. At that time Anevay was only 17 months. We bought it for Php1k + i think. But in Ikea it is only 3.9KD in pesos 643. And the one we bought is much simpler that this one. Oh man.

Then I saw another toy. One of Anevay's favorite also. It's a wooden building blocks on a wagon. Again this cost around Php1k++ or 2k na yata at Duty Free. In Ikea it only cost 2.75Kd/453.30 pesos. Urgh! When I told hubby about this, he was really encouraged to shop in Ikea. And knowing him, he would be going on a full blast. Which might result in OVERSPENDING!

Now, I think he is already scouting of things he would be sending home. Because he is not online. Oh well, I just have to wait. I was just disheartened when I saw the price of the toys. Wahh!

For MomieSpace

School Time

I wrote here about me thinking if I should enroll Anevay either in Tumble Tots or Kindermusik.

The other day, I got a missed call from Tumble Tots and then just this morning I received a mail from them with pamphlets of their programs. Since I am still undecided, I called Tumbletots. I wanted to asked for their fees and schedule. I wanted to asked the fees for their active play but Cel told me that they are still not sure if the would have Tumble Tots Jr. since they do not have enrollees yet. And that those kids of Anevay's age opted for the Right Start Jr.

Now, my problem with Right Start Jr. is hubby and I are hesistant on putting Anevay on school this early. Actually the Right Start Jr. is not purely lesson. Its play and learn but the kids are already on a room unlike in the Tumbletots program that they have stations where they can really play. Next is the schedule. Its MWF 9am. They also have afternoon session but that is Anevay's nap time. And I think it would be tiring not only for Anevay but also for me. Although, Cel told me that there is a parent that has a school bus and is also residing here in Marikina. I can negotiate with them because Tumble Tots still has no school bus. They are still on process of buying a new one daw. And the last part is the fee. The program cost Php 70k (that's the discounted price already). For me its ok but I know those around us would say that its too pricey!

The truth is I wanted to enroll Anevay with this program. Why ? Because this would force me and Anevay to go out. This would also help Anevay develop her social skills. But there is a nagging voice inside of me saying 'Its too early for this!'. And the guilt feeling of transferring the obligation of teaching Anevay's first ABCs to other people. My mommy have patiently taught and guide me that at the age of three daw I was able to read a book na.

Waah! My mind is about to explode and it does not help that I am nursing a headache. Will talk to hubby about this. I know he can put my mind into a clearer state.

One dilemna..SOLVE!

One of the many things that I wanted to find was a toothpaste for Anevay. When she was one year old I started introducing toothbrushing to her. I bought a tootbrush but with no toothpaste. I read somewhere that this was the start. And I don't want to buy those kiddie toothpaste in the supermarket. I wanted one that is prescribed by a pedia dentist.

But my dilemna with this was that Anevay might throw a fight once we entered a dental clinic. Which she does everytime we went to her pedia's clinic. She would struggle and cry her heart outs. So my first option was to asked my sister for the toothpaste that her daugther was using. But the toothpaste cost Php 800. hello! For a toothpaste that cost too much.

I remember when I my skin was super sensitive, that when I used any products sold in the market I get itchy all over. Even those products that I used before. So I went for a check up with a derma that is accredited with my health card. She told me that I cannot used any product. She prescribed me a soap that cost Php 300, lotion that cost Php 1000 and a sunblock (in a small container) for Php 250. Imagine that! So I am a little bit cautious with Anevay. She might inherited that sensitivity to product sold in the market. Which was proven true when she got rashes from using Lactacyd (blue) and then we we used an ordinary baby wipes she also had rashes and then one time I attempted applying the night time lotion the next morning we saw rashes on the part where I applied the lotion.

So am really having second thoughts. And when Daddy was here we werent able to go to the dentist for her. Good thing, there was a dental clinic nearby. I went inside to asked them if they have toothpaste for Anevay's age and they told me its out of stock but they gave me the name and told me that it can be bought in Mercury Drug. I thought they would asked me for a check up first eh. I went to Mercury and I saw it. Anevay is using it for five days now. I was so happy when she accepted its taste. The toothpaste is SANSFLUO. (thanks Van! I did not know na nde ko nilagay pangalan nung toothpaste until I saw your comment! hehe!)

hay! one problem solved!

Tell me..

how can my heart stays in place, how can my heart not beat faster....

with such energetic baby in the house, how can I? She does not know how to walk but rather she keeps on running. She jumps and climb on the top her tables and reach anything that is on our tv rack. Being so active she is never spared of the bumps and pains but she only cries for a minute and will continue on her activity. I worry a lot especially when I hear horror stories about accidents of kids with the same age as her.

A mommy can only pray.

Arte Y Pico

Mari and Mhay gave me this award. Mhay for the other blog and Mari for this blog. Thanks sisters! Already posted this one on my other blog. So I am posting it here.

So here’s the rule for this award sharing:

1) You have to pick 5 blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also for contributing to the blogging community, no matter what language.

2) Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.

3) Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.

4) Award-winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of “Arte y Pico” blog, so everyone will know the origin of this award.

~~~ http://arteypico.blogspot.com/~~~~
Make sure you visit the link above.

I already gave this award to deserving bloggers on my other blog!

QOTW 19

I have been wanting to join Yen's question of the week but somehow I end up not being able to. Now I am in the mood to blog and the questions are already posted, so I'm joining.


1. “It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” What do you think of that sayings?

When I was young I always believed that it was better to never have loved because if you don't know love then you won't know pain. But as I grow older and I met someone who was afraid to love so she have given up her opportunity to be happy. Yet this someone always feels bitter when she sees in love couples who are happy. This got me thinking. If I have not love then I think I would also harbor such bitterness for not being able to experience one of God's greatest creation -- LOVE. So, Id rather have loved and lost it, rather than not loving at all and regretting it as long as I live.

2. How much money do you have in your wallet? Right now!

Exactly

3. When you fall asleep are you usually on your side, your stomach, or your back?

On my side facing Anevay.

4. When you have a deadline do you get started right away, wait until the last minute, or switch back and forth between things?

Switch back and forth between things, surf the net, and then when its already time, I rushed the project.

5. What is the the most extreme sports you ever did?

Nada.

6. If you find a spider in your house do you kill it, ignore it, or shoo it outside? Why?

Ignore it.

7. Do you smoke?

Nope.

8. If you only have one day to live,what would you do?

Be with my family.

9. Would you rather be richer than anyone,better than everyone, or less encumbered by responsibility? And Why?

Better than anyone. Because I hate being dumb. lol! Wealth can be taken away from you any minute but the talent and the knowledge you have will stay with you forever.

10. Which of the following characteristics would you rather have? Choose only one. And Why? Nice,Exciting,Loving,Hot!

Loving. Its hard to be nice, exciting and hot since they require some efforts. While loving comes out naturally. Its part of living.

Yen's QOTW are posted here.

Potty Training Chronicles Step 1

Anevay is two months away from her 2nd birthday. And sad to say one of the things that I have yet to accomplished is potty trained her. She was used to wearing diapers all day round. I have yet to hear here say WiWi.

So to accomplish this, I removed her diaper when she wokes up and let her wear panty. So that when she urinates, she can feel the wet feeling and say WIWI. Unfortunately, that has never happen yet. haha! I'm still patiently waiting for the day to come when I can hear her say WIWI. For now, I try to stay alert as much as possible because the moment she makes WIWI, she would play with it. Nagtatampisaw! lol!

Once she utters WIWI, then we will be stepping up to Stage 2.

Just a little PUSH

...just a little shove so that I can make myself write an entry to this blog. The tags have been blessing in disguise for me. They put me on the grove.

I have been in deep thoughts as to whether or not I will enroll Anevay again in Tumbletots or Kindermusik. Although there are many negative reactions regarding play school, I still think both have help a lot in Anevay's development. With our situation right now, its only me and her in the house during daytime while night time during weekdays, my sister and her husband are here. Our house has a big gate that it is really impossible to see the outside world. lol! These two schools have somehow help Anevay not to shy away from people.

Through Tumbletots, Anevay's skills have been fully developed plus her social skills have been honed. And in Kindermusik, although we only attended few classes it instill in her the love for music that now she sings every songs in Playhouse disney. But I stopped going to both school for just one reason : I am really stress out because of the travel. Tumble Tots is in Libis, Kindermusik is in Cubao and we are residing in Marikina. It was tough for me especially I have no one to accompany us. So I decided not to go.

Now, I am not sure if I wanted to go back, i know this is the stage of exploration for Anevay. I wanted her to be exposed to all things that can help develop her in every aspect. So, I wanted to try the Right Start Program of Tumbletots, but it cost around 40k, i think. And the class would be thrice a week. That is so tiring for me.

I am still undecided or should I say my current decision is to be Anevay's teacher. Every month I am setting a plan on what to teach her. Like for this month we are focusing on colors and shapes. We started with the shape sorter yesterday and today she can compare and match the shapes. And after a few succesful tries she got tired of the shape sorter and ventured on to the book. This is a very challenging goal. I needed to keep up with Anevay's development and lay the road plan ahead of her. In fact, I am looking for activities daily. The little girl is really energetic so I need to look for ways on how to channel her energy into things where she can learn. Right now she knows circle, square, triangle, star, heart, oval, diamond. She's having a hard time saying rectangle. lol! Its a nice feeling to be able to teach her this things.

So I think it would be best for us to just stay at home and learn a thing or two, right ? Oh and btw, if you are like me looking for daily activites with your kids 5 under, you can head over to Play Activities. They send out emails every week which you can do with your kids. I found this site through the MommyFest and their emails gives me idea on what to do.

New Season of Johnny and the Sprites

...will be shown on Disney Channel this June. And I am excited. hahah!

Anevay is very fond of Johnny Tartaglia. You can hear her giggle when she is watching this show. And because of this show it came to my knowledge that sprites is also a term for fairy or elf like creatures. See I am learning while Anevay is learning. lol!

What is nice about the show are the original songs that are being sang on the show. Johnny's character is a song writer so that's why there are a lot of singing. Even the sprites (Basil, Ginger, Lily and Little Ruth are singing).

This is one of my favorite song that was song in one of the episodes and I sing it to anevay as a bedtime song.

First line of the songs :

Hush little Daniel, Sleep Little Daniel
Under the starry filled sky
Time for counting sheeps and singing you to sleep
With a sleepy time lullabye

If this guy will come here for a concert just like the ones i see in Youtube, then I will make sure that Anevay would definitely watch! I do hope this happens in the future. But I know Johnny is not that popular here in our country. Oh well!

Daddy's Corner

Who is the man I call my husband ? Well, he is a simple guy. A simple guy who have been there for me come rain or shine, who never gave up on me even if I have given up on myself, who accompanied me to every hospital confinement (may it be days or weeks in the hospital), who drove me to every doctor's appointment and most of all he is the reason why I am still here fighting. He is also the man who have given me enough reason to live and have made my life a lot happier despite of LUPUS. He is a MAN who makes everything possible to bridge the distance between us. He is a good daddy to Anevay no matter where he is. In short, he is THE MAN!

Love you deh!

Curious as a Cat Week Number 119

1) What one thing makes your husband/wife/lover/best friend feel the guiltiest?


Hubby feels guiltiest by me or our daughter crying


2) What makes you laugh?


Anevay and most conversation with hubby


3) Who is the least spiritual person you know?


Hmm...I'd rather not tell.


4) What is the biggest surprise you've ever had?


At the eve of my birthday, my husband who came home for a visit (he is in Kuwait for work) handed me an earring and a necklace. Why am I surprised ? Because it was not his personality to buy jewelries alone. He always tells me that he has no knowledge so he never attempted to buy any piece for me.


5) Show and Tell. What comes to mind first when you see this picture? Or, tell a story if it reminds you of one.

When I was around eight or nine years old, I experience having a dog as a pet. In fact I had two dogs. First one is a white dog. It was runover by car and died instantly. I really cried hard. So, my family got another dog for me. He looks exactly the same as the dog in the picture. But unfortunately, one day we saw him in the neighborhood, dead. No one can explain the cause of death. I cried again. This time, my mom said 'Stop crying. You might not have enough tears for me when I die'. I can never forget those lines. I knew she told me those just to make me stop crying. I really stop the moment I heard it but she was wrong. When she died when I was 15 (that was 13 years ago) I cried a river of tears. That dog was my last pet. I never had another dog after that, not sure if its because of the traumatic experience I have in losing a pet or because of my mom. Although now I am still considering to have one for my daughter.

--

Are you curious as a cat? Join us here!

Gloworm - her COMFORT toy

Got a baby tag from Mhay. This got me looking through the thousands of Anevay's pic in my laptop. But it gave me a nice feeling, we really have gone a long way.


So here is the rule of the tag :



Post a photo of your baby with her first ever favorite/comfort toy. Write some details of your fondest memory of your baby and her toy (like what I did below). This will make a good memento when your baby grows up!Lastly, before you pass this on to six (or more) mommies, don’t forget to add the link to your website/s at the end of the page. I’m sure many moms would love to see your sites, too!==================================================

This was taken when Anevay was about 3 months old. The toy is called GLOWORM because when you press its tummy, its face will glow and there would be music. This has help me a lot when putting Anevay to sleep when she was small. This toy has also been our bedmate (?) when hubby left for Kuwait. This is also the first two that Anevay operated. She was able to press its tummy for the music. And now whenever Anevay would her the Twinkle Twinkle little star tune she will sing along with it.

I'm not tagging anyone since the mommy's on my blogroll have already done this or were already tagged.

Lasagna

At long last, I have found the perfect recipe for an easy to bake lasagna. I have been searching the net for a long time now but I always stumble with recipes that have different kinds of cheese to use that I think they are way to complicated for me.

Luis love it! But there is one thing that I should have not done. Buy and used the no cook lasagna noodles. It was my first time to used it so I did not know when to determine if its cook or note. So some noodles ended up uncooked ;(
Yet, the two trays were consumed in no time. So that gives me a passing mark. Believe me I’ll try this recipe again.

Ingredients

500gms lasagna noodles, cooked according to the direction
3 tsp butter
1/2 cups onions
3 tbsp garlic
1 tsp basil
1/4 tsp oregano
1/2 kilo ground beef
1 cup tomato paste
1 cup tomate sauce
1 cup water/stock
250 gms ham
salt and pepper
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
1 1/4 cups stock
1 1/2 cups evaporated filled milk
1 1/2 cups grated quickmelt cheese

Procedure :
Saute onions, garlic and herbs in butter. Add in beef and cook over medium heat until done. Mix in tomato paste, tomato sauce and stock and bring to boil. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add ham. Season with salt and pepper to taste. In another pan, melt butter and mix in flour. Whish in stock little by little to avoid lumps. Pour in milk and cook over low heat until thick.
Lay noodles in an oven-proof dish and top wit 3 tbsp of cheese followed by 2/3 cups of meat sauce then 1/3 cup of cream sauce. Cover with another pasta layer and continue doing this until the dish is filled. Top with more cheese if desired and bake until cheese is melted.
Source : Alaska leaflet from YUMMY Magazine January Edition.

Baked Macaroni

One time while I was preparing for a food ( i cannot remember what) I chose to buy Quickmelt cheese. When I open the box, I saw that their is a recipe of Baked Macaroni.

You see, I am not really into pasta. Although I wanted to bake lasagna or baked macaroni for a long time now, I cannot find simple recipe that I would be able to follow.

So I am happy to see that recipe. And happier because Luis, my greatest cooking critic ( my ten year old nephew who loves pasta, that he won’t even complain eating pasta for months..hahaha!). Promise, this one is simple and YUMMY!

I prepared this for Luis birthday last Dec and even the husband who have told me he does not like BAKED MAC loves it too! In fact, they finished up the two trays that I baked. They meaning my older brother, LUIS (who consumed one tray by himself) and my dearest hubby.



Ingredients :
450 gms macaroni
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 kilo ground chicken (but i always used pork)
1 cup ham, chopped
1/2 cup red bell peppers, chopped
2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup chicken or pork broth (depends on the ground meat you used)
1 tsp salt
3/4 cups pepper (if you are using Mc Cormick, assessed how much pepper you will be using )
2 tbsp sugar
1 cup quickmelt cheese, grated ( i sometimes add a bit more cheese)


How to cook :


1. Cook pasta according to the package directions
2. In a sauce pan, melt butter and saute the rest of the ingredients (except cheese). Allow mixture to simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Toss noodles with prepared sauce. Place in oven proof baking dish and sprinkle with grated cheese on top.
4. Bake at 180 degrees celsius preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until cheese melts.


Source : back label of Magnolia quickmelt cheese. The label also contains recipe of Bacon Mushroom Melt and Baked Mussels.

One of Mommie's Assistant

Until today, I was glad I grab on the opportunity to have cable tv installed on our house. Actually it was only a representative knocking at our door and asking me if I wanted them to setup a cable tv for us Nov of last year. When he gave me the brochure the first thing that caught my eye is their 21st channel - Nick Jr. At that time Anevay loves Dora so I said yes to the cable man (!).

We werent familiar with the channel at first but later on I have switching between Nick Jr. and Playhouse disney. And then it was Playhouse disney the whole day. Yap, our tv have only one channel now. Channel 22.

Playhouse disney has a variety of programs. Each program contains educational information that a kid like Anevay would enjoy. In fact, Playhouse has been intergrating music in teaching their televiewers. This is the reason why Anevay knows a lot of song and can even count from one to ten. I told you, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is a good math teacher. haha!

Programs in this channel includes : Fun Song Factory (similar to Nick's High Five), Thomas and Friends, Bob the Builder, My Friends Tigger and Pooh, Mickey Mouse Playhouse, Handy Manny, Higgly Town Heroes, Johnny and the Sprites, Little Einstein, Barney and a lot more. Anevay knows all the characters i've mention. And all those programs will keep her busy while I am attending to some house chores (great assistant, isn't it ?)

Oh! I wish this Playhouse Disney Live on Tour can come to the Philippines.

I made it!

Yeah, I was able to drop 300 entrecards this morning. I used Ty's Super Easy Drop System and just click away. Actually Ty's method was that he compiled a list of websites that are fast loading, save them on a file and then instructed the user to open it on the bookmark. When I open the file in the Firefox browser, the sites where divided into I think 10 sites in one folder. The process would only take around 15 minutes or less if you are not a mother who has a 22 month old daughter who keeps asking for attention. Out of the sites listed, I only got 254 credits because some of the sites were already deleted(404 sites), there are also duplicate sites and there are sites with no entrecard widget (they should thank Ty for the traffic he is generating for their sites).

So if you wanted to drop 300 cards head over to Ty's blog. while surfing and bloghopping I chance upon someone who is into enrolling herself into some degree programs online. Oh I wish I could have the luxury of time to just that also.

Mango Bars

One time while waiting for my turn for my check up in my rheuma’s clinic, I browsed upon the magazines in the clinic. I saw a GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MAG Oct 2006, got it and read it. Since my GH collection only started mid of 2007.

And I was happy to see one recipe that I think I can do. I do not have any pencil or paper at the moment so I just type it on my cellphone. hahaha.

So here goes :

Filling :
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
3/4 cup fresh milk
3 ripe mangoes, chopped
1/2 tsp cinnamon

CRUST
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups flour
3/4 cup butter
1/3 cup fresh milk
1/3 cup chopped walnuts

Instruction :

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 9 inch square pan with wax paper. In a saucepan, combine the ingredients for the filing. Cook over low heat until mixture thickens. Set aside to cool. In a bowl blend brown sugar, baking powder, salt, flour and butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in milk and walnuts. Press 3/4 og the crust mixture in the baking pan. Top with mango filing. Crumble the remaining crust over the filing. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until set. Cool then cut into bars.

Note : I had a hard time putting the remaining crust over the filing. I should have press the crust again to another pan and then put it over the filing.

22!

you are growing up too fast my little child. but i am quite fortunate to witness all that.

thank you for all the kisses, hugs, i love yous and thank yous...it made me keep going

thank you for the songs, chants, words that you utter it made me realized that staying at home is the best career that i can have

thank you for being my baby. your existence makes my existence worthwhile.

mommy loves you very much!

Menu Plan for the Week 805190525

I'll be doing this weekly. A personal reference for me :

• Monday - Sinigang na Bangus
• Tuesday - Sinigang sa Miso
• Wednesday - Pork Steak
• Thursday - Chopsuey
• Friday - Tinolang Manok
• Saturday - Sarciadong Tilapia
• Sunday - Pork Asado

Friendship Around the World!

::Start Copy Here::

Rule:

1. Copy from ::Start Copy Here:: through ::End Copy Here::.

2. Add your blog to the list. Feel free to add all your other blogs. Just make sure to post this to each of the blog you added in the list.

3. Tag other online friends you know.You don’t need to be tag in order to join. If you want to join just post this one in your blog.

4. Let me know your blog’s name and url by leaving me a comment HERE. I will add you to the master list.That way, everyone is happy and can meet new friends too!

5. Come back once in a while to get the master list! Let’s see how this makes our Technorati and PR goes up!

6. DO NOT REMOVE THIS: scrap page made by Yen. Using alphas and tapes from Kate H., flowers from Ida,paper by Catrine.

1. Me and Mine 2.Creative In Me 3.Little Peanut 4. Pea in a Pod 5. Sugar Magnolias 6.Because Life Is Fun 7. Piece o’Kaje 8. Mon a Bric 9. Celebrate Life 10.My Journey11. Deeply In Love 12. Pink and Brown Diaries 13. Happyheart 14. Wilstop 15. FunFierceFab 16. Nita’s Random Thoughts 17. Nita’s Corner 18. Thomas Web Links 19. Thomas Travel Tales 20. Make Money Online 21. Great Finds and Deals 22. PRC Board Exam Results 24. My Wandering Thoughts 25. Nita’s Ramblings 26. Just Me.. Eds 27. Etc Atbp 28. When Silence Speaks 29. Juliana’s Lair 30. Juliana’s World 31. Juliana’s Library 32. Blessed Chic 33. Can of Thoughts 34. Hailey’s Domain 35. Hailey’s Beats and Bits 36. ISL family 37. Arbitrary Thoughts 38. D’ Cooking Mudra 39. My Big Picture 40. Dancing in Midlife Tune 41. Blessings In Life 42. My Colorful World 43. Dare to Blog 44. Life Realities 45. WebGeek Journal DotNet 46. WebGeek Journal 47. Let’s Travel Philippines 49. MY DAILY THOUGHTS AND MOODS 50. A Sweet Taste Of Life 51. My Life in this Wonderful World! 52. Denz Techtronics 53. Denz Recreational 54. Surviving Deplyoment 55. Ester’s Raptured Dreams 56. Nipa Hut 57.Picture Clusters 58. My Wanderings 59.Maiylah’s Snippets 60. EuLehKulit 61. Life Quest 61.Being a wife. Being a Mom. 62. MoMie SPace 63.Woman Xplore 64. PinayWAHM 65. Agring’s Simply Digital 66. Agring’s Home & Garden 67. Agring’s Homecooking & Baking 68. Agring’s Electronics & Entertainments 69. Scrap Addict Sundays 70. Mommy Talks 71. Aggie Scraps 72.Teacher’s Corner 73. My Drift 74. lancernews 75. My so called Life 76. See Me for what You Will… 77. kathycot.com 78. buhaymisis.com 79. All about Mye life 80. Everything has a Reason 81. Life’s Impression 82. Some Thoughts I have 83. Life’s Lessons 84. Just Let Go 85. Pieces Of Me 86. Winding Creek Circle 87. BOTH SIDES NOW 88. Happy Life 89. Blessed Sanctuary 90.Confessions of an Army Life 91. moms….. check nyo 92. Mommy’s Little Corner 93. Wanna Be SuperModel 94. Gandacious 95. 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A Handful of Surprises 142. Anything and Everything in Between 143. from here and beyond 144. The Nameless Blog 145. Exploring Asia 146. Malaya 147. Swan Portraits 148. BUSYNESSWORLD 149. Sprawt 150. Thinking Consciously? 151. BLOGSILOG 152. Cherry’s Comfort Zone 153. DigiScrapz: Captured Memories 154. Buzzy Me 155. Thinking Out Loud 156. Wishing and Hoping 157. Jobs for Davao 158. Jobs for Cebu 159. Filipino Jobs Abroad 160. PRC Board Exam Results 161. Nakedminds 162. Personal 163. Interesting 164. squeeshies 165. Shenzee’s World 166. Geekyology 167. Swanportraits 168. Rumination Under the Clouds 169. In My Home by Ria aka Msculit 170. It’s my Party (and I’ll cry if I want to…) by Ria aka Msculit 171. Malaya 172. Cheese: Jherson84 173. Beans: Jherson 174. EP Treasures 175. Republic of A 176. Nora’s Family Treasures 177. Points of View (Discussion Blog) 178. Gala Tayo! 179. Lucky Peso 180. Buhay Pinoy 181. Pinay Mommy’s Love Blog 182. MOMEMO 183. OnlineBiz and Resources 184. Lourdes’ Mia 185. Pinay Mommy’s DigiScrap and Musings in Life 186. Pinay Mommy Online 187. ‘nna 188. My Sweet Escape 189. The Next Chapter 190. Painted Life 191. Petty Ramblings of a Petty Queen 192. The Real Deal 193. My Beautiful Life 194. Berry Blog 195. A Tsinay Blog 196. A Celebration of Life 197. My love.mylife.my everything. 198. Gamay and Dako Adventures 199. Ester’s Daily Thoughts 200. Choc Mint Girl 201. I AM KCAT 202. RanZ-Goodies 203. RanZ-Famous 204. A Time to Weep and a Time to Laugh 205. Surviving the Circus of Life 206. The Nook207. Allen’Wifey 208. Fern’s Backyard 209. Amor’s Blog - My Place in Cyberspace 210. The Other Side of Me 211. Stylishbabe111407 212. The Inner Shopper 213. TheGeneralInfoBlog 214. my angels world 215. Pinoy Raket Online 216. My Life 217. BloggingInMyPyjamas 218. Baby Shern 219. Mariel 220. So Real 221. Okay, I am Arms and this is my blog 222.Lucid Creativity 223. Read my Mind 224.A Simple Life 225. My debt blog 226.1stopmom’s blog 227.Mommy Gamer 228. My First One Million Pesos 229. Mindless Thought 230. MommyandMe Boutique 231. My Life’s Labyrinth 232. 100% Kelly 233. Of Colors And Styles 234. KadusMama 235. The Maven 08 235. Rainbows 236. My freehand 237. Sentiments of a Effed-Up Man 238. Princess Vien 239. My freehand 240. Confessions of an Enchanting Princess 241. Marites-Pinay Heart Wanderings and Musings 242. Me, the Islands and the World243. Leaf In Deforest 244. MAX 245. Lhedy 246. Making sense..(somehow) 247. Our Life Together 248. The Chic Shopaholic 249. In Depth 250. That Blog 4 Me 251. A Nice Thought 252. Live it Up! 253. Chronicles and Tales Unlimited (RED) 254. Momhood Moments 256. It’s a woman’s world! 257. Forgotten 258. Esophoria 259. Pixel Dust 260. GladyGirl 261. Uncomplicated 262. Gentle And Compassionate 263. Kwentong Kengkay 264. Mind Juice In Full Throttle 265. Jo’s Precious Thoughts 266. Hobbies and Such 267.Jenny’s Wandering Thoughts 268. A Window to Our World 269. Let Them Eat Cake! 270. Live Love Life 271.Theif’s Stolen Collections 272. Panda’s Multiply 273. Kitty’s haven 274. lancerlord 275. The YTB Celebs Blog 276. Welcome To Earth David 278. Pinaymama’s Diary 279. Pinay Mom in Czech Republic 280. YOUR BLOG!

::End Copy Here::

Now, i am tagging Mari, Mhay, Mye.

A Blessed 3 years

I have already wrote something about this day on my other blog, so let me just say my greeting through this....

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We have sailed many seas through some stormy path but we never let go of each others hand. And when the time of happiness comes we were there together standing side by side. Thanks for the wonderful three years, deh! Love you very much! mwah!

Making my day BRIGHTER everyday!

I am going to share two videos of Anevay. Right now it is really hard to take pics or video of the little girl coz when she knows that she is being filmed she will make everything possible to cover herself.

So this two are rare moments caught on tape ;)

First one is she is singing Tomorrow. Eversince Lea Salonga's commercial, Anevay has been singing Tomorrow. And we always play this song which is consist of Lea's album. One that was produced when she was 10 years old.

Anevay is singing this lines, Tomorrow, Tommorow, I love you tomorrow, you're always a day away. She still cannot pronounce some lines clearly.


Here, she is giggling after cookie monster say, 'Big Burp, Plastic, Nah, Cookie Monster, Amyamyamyam. This is one of the games in the Sesame Street Website. And when Daddy is online they would also be saying those lines again and again.

P.S. Sorry for the low quality of the videos. I was using my cellphone and it did not help that blogger converted the videos into lower resolution. I'm too lazy to delete this and upload it to photobucket.

Somehow this really is a testament that quiting my job is a right decision but someday i would still get that online university degree that I am wishing for.

I won! I won!

MommyFest 2008 is over! And it was a successful one! A lot of participants and giveaways too! Actually I just wanted to go and have fun at the blog party. But I am so lucky that today I received an email from Eleisia that I won her giveaway. To top that, its one of the giveaways I wanted.

What have I won ?

A Watkins Vanilla Classic Recipes Cookbook, a 2 fl oz bottle of Vanilla, a 2 oz tin of Cinnamon, and a 4 oz tin of Black Pepper.

Thanks Eleisia!

I was thankful that even if I reside outside of the US she was able to mail this to me, just like the Online Degree Programs at Capella, I can take them even it I am here in the PHilippines.

On a rainy Friday afternoon...

Friday and Saturday are daddy's rest day. Not unless he has something going on for ITP Kuwait or he is the standby duty. Meaning like a doctor he is always on call no matter what time.

But today, he was able to go online around 3pm. Via webcam and voice call through YM, hubby and Anevay played. They played their usual EAT BULAGA, BELAT and the cookie monster line (plastic, big burp, nah...cookie monster...amyamyamyam). The cookie monster line was adapted by Anevay via the sesamestreet game on the web. She would be giggling everytime we say that line.

At first we were talking to Daddy in the room but it seems she wanted to go out and watch playhouse disney so we transfered to the living room. I setup the laptop (since WIFI kami sa bahay..hahaha!) on one of her tables. And look at her....

while talking to daddy she was also watching Noddy. And see the cellphone toy on her hand. She was mimicking her daddy who just received a phone call while we are talking to him.

and now she is pretending to click something on the laptop

Noddy on tv and daddy on the laptop.

but they are really communicating.

Time really fly so fast. Look how big my little girl is. Ironic ? Big to little. ;)

She LOVEs Frappe!

My daughter has a sweet tooth just like me. But now she rarely eats the chocolate we give her. But she won't say no to Lays or a yummy frappe just like in the pics below.

after tasting the BROWNIE, Seattles Best in Eastwood, Dec 2007

after dinner, enjoying her CHOCOLATE CHIP from Starbucks Marquinton (May 7, 2008)

Having her share of Macadamia something (i forgot the name) from Gloria Jeans in Megamall, May 9, 2008.

Actually I do not have pictures of her drinking some frappe from Mocha Blends in Robinsons MetroEast and the chocolate thingy from Coffee Experience which we bought whenever we go to Rustans in C&P Marikina heights for grocery. Now, I am researching for an university online which will I can enroll while being a stay at home mom.

No cashout

for my baby couture bag!

Actually I heard somewhere that Baby Couture will replaced previously purchased bags that already have damage due to usage. I bought my blue Sydney bag last May 2007. I only used it once or twice and then I found out that one of the slot (?, i really do not know what to call it) in which the belt of the bag will be inserted is missing. So I stop using it.

I was glad when hubby told me that he wanted to go to Landmark to buy his suites because that is also my chance to go Baby Couture to exchange my bag. Glorietta is under renovation when we went three. And Baby Couture have moved to the 3rd in the Teen Zone.

Luckily I was able to avail of their exchange program and I did not even shell out any cash because the bag I chose is cheaper that my previous bag. I got the CLEO Black.

The first one on the left is the one I bought last year and the fourth bag from the left is currently the one I am using and loving it because it may seem small but inside I can put two bottles and diaper plus baby wipes and still has room for my cellphone and wallet ;). I am one happy momma because I got a new bag without spending cash. Love it!

My GOING AWAY gift (s)

Uploading some pictures that were taken during daddy's vacation made me want to cry again. Last night while I was putting Anevay to sleep, I just had this terrible feeling of longing. Every night during Daddy's vacation the three of us will play first before Anevay will sleep. I just missed that moment. Oh well that's life. That's why I am keeping myself busy. Just to shake off that feeling.

When Daddy was here he bought a lot of things not only for Anevay but for me also. We are his spoiled babies ;). And I wanted to give him something in return but I can't find anything that would actually please him. And then suddenly I saw my unused I MISS YOU cards. I was planning to go the old fashioned way and mail all those cards to hubby in Kuwait. I did once during Valentines day but unfortunately hubby only received two cards ( i sent out three) and it also took almost a month for the letters to arrived at his office.

Since I know he misses my letters, actually he said that to me during one of our conversation, I decided to write one card a day during his vacation. It was so hard to right on the card since both him and Anevay are always with me. There are times when I thought he would appear suddenly when I am writing and he would asked 'Ano yan? ha!" (what is that ?). But thankfully before he leave I was able to hand him 16 cards and the calendar I did for 2008. That calendar should be a going away gift for him last January but due to the confinement of Anevay, the calendar was not printed in time. I also gave him the IBM CALENDAR that Mayeth gave me! I do hope those cards somehow helps in anyway.

I was thinking of getting him some golf balls, since he already tried playin golf last year and they have already a golf course where they are allowed to play but somehow I know at this point he prefer hockey more that golf. Maybe when he gets older. lol.

Summer Vacation 2008

Daddy went home last April 25. His vacation would be two weeks from the 25th of April to the 10th of May. Orginally our plan was that we will be flying to Kuwait with him after his vacation. Since he was able to process the documents needed for the application of the visa. But unfortunately, my fear materialized. I failed the medical test. My left lung shows pleural thickening which was due to the lung operation I had in 2004. I don't want to dwell much about it now since I have suffered because of this for four months now. I'm trying to get back on track. Good thing Daddy went home.

I was happy to say that when I open the gate and Anevay saw daddy she said 'DADDY!'. Yap, she recognized her dad even if the last time she saw him was last Jan 4. Anevay and daddy always talks through YM over speaker and webcams. Aside from the phone calls that Daddy makes. And then I also put nine 8R pics of her and her daddy on the wall of our room so she can see Daddy everywhere in our room. ;). When daddy entered the room, Anevay was shy at first. But she began to open up when Daddy started playing with her. And when sleeping time came she already sleep beside Daddy.

The vacation was spend wisely at home and sometimes on malls. We were able to have a summer outing with the family during my birthday. Daddy gave me an earring and a necklace as a birthday gift ;). I was able to have that haircut that I needed badly since Daddy took care of Anevay. Although it was short, he had so much quality time with me and Anevay. It feels so good to talk with someone who knows what I am thinking even if I do not talk about it. Someone who can say something that is inside my head. I can even laught to my hearts content because the person who can make me laugh really hard was beside me.

We were so used to him at the house that saying goodbye seems so hard again. I saw Daddy cry again. He is having a hard time leaving his babies again. Although we've been through it a lot time already GOODBYE is always a painful thing. Daddy left when Anevay was sleeping. And when Anevay woke up she seems to be looking for daddy. The next day, she knocked on the close bathroom door and she calls for his daddy. It was really heartbreaking.

Daddy and I made a promised to ourself. This would only happen for five years. After five years he should be finished with work in Kuwait and would be with us always. But for that to happen we need to be discipline regarding our finances and should be able to establish businesses that would compensate and should surpass the income he is now receiving in Kuwait.

Mommastuff Questions Week 3 - Kid’s Names

It was a nice 1st day of the MommyFest. My eyes are tired already, I have visited 80 blogs today and the last time I check the MommyFest site, the participants have grown to 130 blogs. And I think there will be more to come overnight!

Eventhough I was busy with the blog party I was able to get up and walk in the treadmill. 10 mins in the morning and 10 minutes in the evening. My pace is still slow since I am trying to get my body get used to it. Its been ages since I hit the gym. Way back 2005. Before I got pregnant. I have both good news and bad news regarding my weight loss. Good news is its my 6th days of being COKE free! yehey! and the bad news, I consumed i think five of those mini three musketeers. booo! And there still some more in our ref. Urgh!

Now before I go to slumber land, I visited Nice's MommaStuff site and she already posted the question for this week.

Question is

What are the names of your kids? Who picked them? Any significance of that name/s?

We call our little princess, Avey. Shortcut for Anevay. And even if you asked her what her name is, she would answer Anevay since she has trouble pronouncing her real name.

Anevay was picked by her daddy. While we were surfing the net after my 4D ultrasound and we have confirmed the gender of our baby. He found the name unique. And he likes its meaning. The name Anevay originate from Native American and its meaning is superior.

She also has a second name -- Jahzara, originate from Africa. Which I picked after searching for a name that means blessed princess. I really wanted to incorporate blessed to the name because she was a blessing after all the tough times we have to go through.

----

Now, on to a different topic. Somebody offered me a job which has something to do with search engine marketing company at first I tried it but the job consume a lot of time and only pay even less that the minimun I gave it up. I'll just look for some more option for work at home job.

What I've Learned Since I Became a MOM

Second contest for Mommyfest 2008.

I have been a mother for 22 months now and the journey is not that easy. But I have never felt this fulfilled. So what have I learned since I became a MOM :

1. I needed to take care of my health for my family. I got a scare last year when my rheuma told me that I might undergo chemotheraphy because of the protein leak in my urinalysis. I prayed to God to give me another chance and I would be more disciplines in taking my meds. And I was thankful that the chemo was ruled out because the next test showed a clear result. The high protein leak is due to me not taking prednisone for six months.
2. I am not a career oriented woman. Since I gave birth to Anevay, my career has taken a back sit to the point that I resigned from my post March of last year. Everybody predicted that I might get bored because I am used to the fast pace of life. Now, its already one year of being a SAHM and I am still loving it.
3. Routines and consistency in upholding those routines are necessary to establish discipline which is benefecial not only to the baby but also to the mother.
4. Practicing what you preach is a good principle. It will remind the mother to use good manners that the child will learn easily.
5. Playhouse disney is a good channel (entertaining and educational). Mickey Mouse is a good counting teacher. I love you song is a very good song especially if your daughter hear it and will run to you and hug you tightly.

5 things about this mom Meme

I am joining two contest in the MommyFest 2008. Actually I just wanted to the meme so the prize is just secondary.

So here are five things about ME :

1. I am 29 year old mother to a daughter who will be turning two on July 23. At the moment, I am the sole caregiver for her since my husband is in Kuwait working as an engineer and would only come home twice a year for a vacation. We have no househelp. But I am planning to hire one once I got pregnant for the second baby.
2. Everybody tag me as a FIGHTER. At the age of 15, i lost both my father and mother (12 days apart ) due to sickness. When I was 23 years old I was diagnosed with LUPUS. For four years I have been in and out of the hospital, feeling weak but was still able to stay at an eight to five job.
3. After eights year working with the leading IT company in the world, I gave up my job to become a stay at home mom.
4. I delivered our first born via CS operation since I am already suffering pre eclampsia (oe of many effects of LUPUS). The next day, I needed to moved slowly to make sure that there won't be any blood clots reoccuring. I suffered from pulmonary embolism when I got my lung operation due to pleurisy back in 2004.
5. Despite and inspite of LUPUS being incurable, now I am back to my normal life with monthly checkup with rheumatologist because of our faith (both me and my husband). We believe that God has better plans for us.

MommyFest Has Begun

The Linky in the MommyFest is now up which means the blog party has begun. To start of let me give you a brief introduction of myself.

I am Milet, just turned 29 last May 3, i am a mommy of one, her name is Anevay and she will be turning two on July 23. I started blogging in 2004, switching from one blog to another until I decided to host my own blog. I have another blog -- Being a wife. Being a mom. It talks about everything about me and my family. It also focuses on me having LUPUS - my struggles and triumph. Right now, I am the sole caregiver for Anevay ( NO NANNY!) since my husband is working in Kuwait as an IBM engineer. And he only comes home twice a year. I think thats it!

And now let me leave you with a slideshow of our latest photo session.

Have fun on the MommyFest everyone!

MommyFest2008

The email that I received from the mommycommunity was right on time. I was just about to logoff when I thought of checking my email. And there was an invitation for MommyFest 2008.

I am part of the mommycommunity through my other blog, but since i think this blog is much apt for the mommyfest blog party so all related topics about the MommyFest will be here. So starting May 12 to May 16, I will be participating.

So for those of you who are interested here is a summary of the MommyFest, I am pasting the email here.

What is the Event: 5th Annual Mommyfest Interactive Online Event
When is it: May 12-16, 2008 (5 days)
Where is it going to happen: ONLINE - at http://www.mommyfest.com

For more info about

On how to participate on the MommyFest go to http://mommyfest.com/2008/?p=14

For prices to be given away please visit http://mommyfest.com/2008/?p=19

For talks for topics and guest speaker and sched http://mommyfest.com/2008/?page_id=3

See you there!

Happy Mother's Day

Myspace Comment Codes

To all the mother's out there it your day...HAPPY MOTHER's DAY. I do hope you are having a great day.

As for me, well, its the first day that hubby is not here after her two week vacation so its rather lonely. Its only Anevay and me in the house but I received a lot of greetings through text. I am also busy with this new blog.

Although hubby is not here in the Philippines, he is in Kuwait already ( i received his call early in the morning but he forgot to greet me...hahaha!...lack of sleep ) but his gift arrived today.

We bought this a day before he left. I badly needed to lost weight. Imagine, i gained 14 pounds in a matter of two and a half months. I was able to obtain the numbers from my visit to my rheuma. And he first checked my pred dosage and told me what did i do because he can't blame pred for my weight gain. I told him that for the past couple of months when I was really depressed (one of the many effects of LUPUS ) i eat a lot of ice cream, chocolates and everyday i drink coke. Not on small volumes, i tell you. So one of the things I wanted to accomplish starting now is to loss weight.. to stay healthy. I do hope i can sustain the discipline. I am I think on my fifth day of not drinking coke. Goodluck to me.

Thank you daddy for the nice mother's day gift!

For the 5th time

The first time was really agonizing. I cried a rivers of tears because it was our first time to be apart. Our daughter is only three months old and we really don't know whats in store for us. Hubby was unfamiliar with his place of destination -- Kuwait. And although he would be handling the same machine he had been handling here in the Philippines as an engineer still we are apprehensive.

The second time was when he went home in May 2007. His first vacation after being away from us for seven months. I cried because at that time I was left alone with Anevay in a big house. My in laws got some issues that they left without any word.

The third time was in July. A short vacation just in time to celebrate for the 1st birthday of Anevay. I am still sad yet now we have the motivation. We recently bought a house and we know that hubby needs to go to work to pay off the loan we used to buy the house. He is also starting to establish his life in Kuwait. He is looking forward in buying his car there.

The fourth time was somehow a test of will. Days before his flight, Anevay got hospitalized. She was discharged the morning before his flight. Hubby would have like to resched his flight because I am just alone in the house. I don't have any nanny nor somebody in the house to help me take care of anevay. But we cannot resched the flight so off he goes. The succeeding days after that was tough on me since I was looking after a sick Anevay. Another experience for a neophyte mommy like me.

Now, after two weeks of vacation (16 days in total) we again bid our goodbye. He left while his daughter was sleeping because he felt that he won't have the will to go if he see her daughter crying for him. We both cried. It was still painful even if its the fifth time.

This time we bow to make sure we stick to our plan. We set five years as our goal to pay off the housing loan, his and Anevay's insurance and to establish a business which can match his monthly income. Because I think no local company will give him the salary he is receiving now in Kuwait. Also I wanted to enroll myself on some degree program so that needs additional funding.
So, now its only me and Anevay in the house. As my husband and I say, 'its back to normal!'

Three Days LATE!

I am planning to put up this blog on the day of my birthday. But since we are on the road on that day until the next day, my plan was put on hold. And then I also was tired so I was not able to do it until now.

This blog will showcase anything about me. This is all about me - a lupie, a wife, and a mommy. And the things that capture my interest and everything that made me happy.

Last May 3, I celebrated my 29th birthday. Yeah! One year more and I would be hitting the big 30! My 29th birthday is one of the best birthday I had. Promise! And that's because we have a summer outing together - my family, and my sibling's family. And we had it in Subic. We spend the night in one of the suites in Legenda (where my brother in law is a member) and then the morning of May 4 we went to Kamayan Resort for a swim. I thank God for all the blessings.

Now that I am 29, I have set some goals to achieved. One of which is weight loss. During our outing I found that I really gained a lot of weight. And my family was teasing me except for the husband who always tells me that it does not matter how fat I am. Actually he wanted me this way because he sees how Anevay wrestles her way to me. I need this body to keep up with anevay. But I told him that I wanted to loose weight in preparation for the second baby and because of that he is supporting me 100% in my quest to lose weight. He would be even buying me a treadmill. Yehey!

And then we have also set a five year plan for us. Our first plan is that we would be staying in Kuwait but unfortunately I have some pleural thickening which is a reason for me to fail the medical. Poor me! But I am over it now. I know god has other plans for us. So now our goal is to make sure we can establish some income generating business to make sure Daddy won't need to go work in Kuwait after five years.

With god's guidance I know our future will be brighter.