GRATITUDE JOURNAL

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/VJFw-bmsTz/ January just whizzed by. And in a few weeks, our second son will join the thousands of fresh high school graduates, a significant percentage of which is hoping to continue on to college while a part will enter the workforce. For this family, we consider it truly a blessing that despite these tough times, we are able to send our son off to pursue a degree. Very soon, we will have two college boys. :) On another note... At the thought of our middle son joining the eldest at the university, I sometimes shake my head in disbelief. Grabe, (tu)matanda na talaga kami! There's no stopping us getting old. Lol. Yun lang pala ang issue? :) The one reason that (still) makes us feel like we're young parents is having Jake, our (almost) 9 year old grader. We care for him like we did his A-hia and Di-hia. We attend to his school activities with the same gusto like it's the late 1990s, until we see the parents of Jake's c...

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/VIaYG2msXI/ Not that I want hubby to look like Adam here but for hubby to be convinced that yoga is not just for the women. :) See, Adam Levine swears by the benefits he has derived from doing yoga. Today he joined me for an early vinyasa session. That pic of hubby on the upper left is how he looked, with hair standing on end, after a relaxing savasana.

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/VGrX9GGsSa/ Reunited with cuzns for mid-am treats today right before school run.

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via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/U-wh3MGsVQ/ today's #lobster and #lechon for #lunch with extended #family at the #stoniño village #fiesta

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/U-D1CXGsXv/ Black Terranova top for PhP395 paired with low-rise jeans and accessorized with a 2-year old faux leather CLN tote...

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/U5sbIimsYW/ busy day for us... prom for middle son and camp for youngest... all on the same day!

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According to age: Matt, Kyle, Jaymes and Jake Nostalgia mode The photo above was taken eight years ago, a month after I gave birth to our youngest son, Jake. The boys' cousin, Jaymes, was then visiting from Australia. We used to live in Guadalupe, in one of the first condos in Cebu. And this was in the boys' tiny room. It was so small we used 2 sofa beds for Matt and Kyle that we folded away and which doubled as couches during the day... With Jake outgrowing his cot in our room, we eventually commissioned a carpenter to build a custom-fit trundle bed with storage to accommodate 3 young boys. The boys' messy room... How do you like this bed for 3 which I designed? Eight years may seem like yesterday but so many things have happened... A lot have changed. The list is long but the one that stands out is the fact that the boys have really grown! Here are more pics of the sleepover in 2004 And a couple of recent ones last Christmas with some of th...

Right before our weekend schedule got crazy due to the annual Sinulog Festival, we were school-bound early Saturday for the card distirubution. All our 3 boys were with us. Jake's grade 2 adviser said that a number of students in his class were not able to maintain their class standing as the trend for the third quarter shows, but he was happy to announce that Jake was still in the top 10 having garnered an average that qualified him for second honor. That was very good news considering that Jake is known to be easily distracted and sometimes careless in his school tests. For that we were kidding him that he deserved a lechon manok as a reward for his work because his favorite pork lechon is only for when he is first honor. Haha! Karinyo brutal! For our graduating boy, Kyle, the story was different. Most of his grades went up by leaps and bounds, enough to pull his average even higher than the previous quarter and be in the top 10 again. He made it to 4th in class, how...

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via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/Uqx-lamsY4/ After a quick early dinner at Luy's, we braved the snarled traffic to Radisson Blu Hotel to view the fireworks competition at the nearby SM Mall. Jerry requested for valet service knowing that a lot of people would be there and finding a parking slot would be impossible. Omid, our cousin on Jerry's side, said the hotel was cancelling their poolside buffet because it started to drizzle. Fortunately, the light rain stopped before the fireworks started. And we, together with the Iriberris' extended family, were able to get seats at the lobby as well as at the poolside. As expected, the fireworks display of all the participants were awesome! And the kids and adults alike were ohh-ing and ahh-ing at the sight. Indeed, a fitting signal to the Sto. Niño Feast.

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/Um3m79GsTU/ #flashbackfriday I remember that day... we were doing the "touristy" thing of having our pictures taken, when a man in his 50s sat next to us. We could see he was with his family. Hearing us speak in Filipino, he began talking to us. It turned out that he and his family were Filipinos based in the US and they were on vacation. For whatever reason, meeting other Filipinos by chance in places outside the Philippines always fascinates me. It makes me feel at ease knowing that somehow there is something common there... We were glad to bump into this man and his family. And then the part of the conversation that stuck to my memory was this: Man: Saan kayo nagtatrabaho? Where do you work? J/Me: Sa Philippines po ... (we were visiting my brother and sister-in-law in Switzerland at that time and this was a side trip) Man: Ah tourists din kayo. Ang babata nyo pa. Oh you're tourists. You're both young. Mayb...

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I'm loving the cool temp these days... It's actually more Christmassy, hehe. Not for the furball mascot though... Our little Bo prefers to hide under his bed to keep warm... via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UjFmjHGsYq/

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UiqwB7msbQ/ One Jake is already a handful... but FOUR?!?! lol

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UiLZgcmsfg/ L1: This weather calls for a moto jacket no?

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/Uh39oEGsST/ I'd rather give Jake cheese sandwich or banana for snack but he's picky. And the little that he likes, sadly, are mostly junk food. I compensate by buying him banana-cue, siopao, siomai, or steamed fried rice in the afternoon. For his morning recess, he brings cookies, a sandwich, a slice of cake (without nuts or raisins), ensaymada, mamon or in this case, a pack of cereals. We rotate the items to make sure he doesn't have it often because I've read from one site that some sweetened cereals contain a lot of sugar, about 1 in 3 parts. Sugar rush! With the sudden burst of energy, I could imagine my hyper son right after recess...

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UgHwuLmse8/ One Jake is done with dinner while the other is not... 😄

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UdZpx1msbg/ Time to buy a bigger car? LOL

It took a while before I was able to convince hubby to join me for yoga. I actually had better success with my teenage sons who were game and who didn't have qualms about being in a predominantly female environment. I guess hubby's curiosity got piqued when my sons started joining me. What better way to find out about it than be there himself as well. Though he was reluctant, he managed to attend a session with us during the Christmas break. After that first time, he said he actually liked it and the overall good feeling at the end of the session. Coming from him who prefers sports and gym workouts, this was a big deal. These days, when he's in town, he goes with me. I'm thinking there's a possibility that this is for the long haul, because he hasn't renewed his gym membership to date. So... yoga=1 gym=0. Namaste! via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/Uca1grmsa5/ now he likes it so much he attends one session twice! j/k

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UcNZE8GsaW/ Good morning from hubbies 1 and 2!

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UaX_KfmsSK/ After our yummy lunch at Canvas Bistro, we had this (Mochiko) for dessert to celebrate our niece's birthday.

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UaW7LnGsRQ/ Taken while we were waiting for son #2 and our meals at Mother's Fried Chicken at Ayala Center Cebu.

via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UY3ekOmsaz/ Grateful is an understatement. This family is humbled by the Lord's generosity... Passing DLSU was what Kyle needed and yet we are blessed with another notice of acceptance, this time from ADMU. Thank God, Kyle's work was not in vain.

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via Instagram http://instagr.am/p/UVxBnNGsah/ Here at the mall with my second son, Kyle, our incoming college boy. He kept me company while hubby and eldest son Matt were on a hunt for a charcoal grill (for use tonight). Youngest boy, Jake, was checking out the toys section. TGIF!

Rejoice! Of the three schools son #2 applied at for college, De La Salle University's results came out first. It felt like I've just won the grand prize or something when I saw his name online. Kyle is going to college! Haha! I've been refreshing my browser several times the past few days like a rabid senior just to view DLSU's website. Why the anxiety? To be honest, I was apprehensive. I felt his preparation wasn't enough, so in my mind, I was gearing for plans b, c, or d... Shhh... He is smart (a consistent academic medalist), but he can be very complacent about anything that I tend to nag him to get things done. Yes, I nag, sometimes a little too much that I worry he might resent me for it. Anyway... This sort of gives a visual why, to me, admission at DLSU is such a big deal. Praise God! Though we are still waiting for the results from UP and Ateneo de Manila, I say the wait is done and over with. I have nothing against these 2 great schoo...

I'm not sure if it's just me or if there are other women out there who, sort of, enjoy going to the home depot or hardware. When I go with my husband, I find it fascinating to see a wide variety of items being sold - from outdoor gardening or deck furniture and supplies to indoor fixtures down to the nuts and bolts. (Incidentally, I've been eyeing their bamboo screen for quite some time now) . The one we go to in Cebu is huge such that one could easily get lost inside if not for the organized displays where you could easily pick up what you need. Because of it's sheer size, I usually make a mental note of where stuff are located for when we happen to need something in the future. That is pretty much the same type of navigation we like when checking out products online. The simpler and more user-friendly the website is, the better in keeping the attention of potential clients. It pays to have an uncluttered layout where one could easily get the needed inform...

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The househelps were given Dec 31- Jan 2 for their holiday break. We felt this was enough time for them to go back home to their hometown to welcome the new year with their loved ones. The day before they left, they did a general cleaning of the entire house. Bless them for making our lives a lot easier. Because they would be out for a few days and we didn't want to spend the eve and New Year's day cleaning after our mess (doing the beds, cleaning the toilet, cooking meals and washing dishes, etc), we redeemed 2 rooms for 2 nights at Quest Hotel. The days went by smoothly as planned until we got back home on January 2. The girls were not back yet as scheduled and texted they wouldn't be home until the 3rd. Oh... no... OH NOOO!!! A gamut of thoughts began running through my head... And the biggest concern was who would take over the cook's role? Jerry was out of town. With 0-skills in the kitchen, certainly not me! Embarassing as it is, I could excellently ...

New Year's Day dinner was at Canvas Bistro, owned and operated by my SIL and BIL. As usual, the spread was wiped out before I could take a snap. LOL. I guess you just have to take my word for it that the following are excellent: pork medallion, herb encrusted salmon, corned beef, osso buco, battered fish and chips. Here are pics of our extended family post-New Year's Day dinner... at Canvas right outside the bistro Oh, and last Christmas Eve, we were here too for lunch... I guess that says much about their food, huh. lunch last Christmas Eve

I mentioned in a recent post that when reading the newspaper, I'm more inclined to look at sale ads than the headlines. And so I came across Dong Juan's anniversary promo where they give 50% discount on all their burgers on January 1. Perfect timing for the famished boys. Today is the 1st of January and they are on a hunt for a filling snack (/late lunch). Jake ordered calamares and rice while the rest of us shared the mushroom cheeseburger and the double d burger. What would have cost us about P650 at regular price became about P400. Pretty good savings there. Here is the double d minutes before it was totally wiped out... And the family with happy tummies...