The Day She Turned 3 - The School Party

My daughter turned 3 last Friday. For this year, we didn't have the same big parties we prepared for her when she turned 1 & 2 years old. Gotta be prudent about the money since I'm giving birth in November. We prepared though a small school party for her in the morning and playtime in Timezone with her playmates in the afternoon. 

We started the day with surprising her with a small birthday cake and gifts:

I'm Still Alive

Oh my! Almost 3 months since my last post. Been busy with a lot of things. Anyway I 'll try to post a longer entry tomorrow. Hope all is well with you!

Sofia With Charlie Green

We were on our way out of the Eastwood mall when we chanced upon Britain's Got Talent contestant Charlie Green who was waiting for his turn to perform onstage. Good thing though that one of his security escorts was the guard who usually mans the entrance nearest to our condo. A little sweet talk and he allowed Sofia to take a quick pic with him. 

Such a charming little man!

The Life of a Stage Mom

As much as I want to deny it, I have stage mom tendencies. When S was smaller, I would submit her pictures to publications hoping to see her face in a magazine one day. It became a reality in 2008, when she appeared on the cover of Baby Magazine's May 2008 issue:

More pictures here

The BIG News

After a two-week hiatus from blogging, I'm BACK! The past 2-weeks had been quite hectic because of the last minute things I had to do for work. Plus, it doesn't help that I've been having morning (well more of evening) sickness lately. Oh yes that's my BIG BIG News. I'm 2-months preggy!

It was quite a surprise actually. After a month of being delayed, I took a PT and tested negative. I thought that the delay was stress-induced because of the house transfer and work. When I started having a bad bout of diarrhea and stomach cramps when I was about 2-months delayed, I decided to see a gastroenterologist. When he started prescribing me medications, he asked if I was pregnant. The medicines are known to cause birth defects and he wants to make sure that I'm not. I told him that I have been two months delayed. He asked me to take another PT again before he put me on any medications. To make the long story short, I did the test the following morning and was surprised to see the PT like this:

(Photo credit: Wikimedia)

Human Piggybank

This week has been a busy one for me. I've been quite tied up with some last minute projects in the office, with a big one launching tonight. And oh, it doesn't help that I received a BIG, BIG, BIG news earlier this week. I'm still in a state of shock and still trying to comprehend things. Will tell you more about this once things have settled down.


Anyway, my post today is about the importance of baby-proofing your house. You see since we moved to our own place, this became the last of my priorities. I assume that since my almost 3-year old daughter is a bit bigger now, there's no need for it. Well, I was all wrong.

Playing Dress Up

My daughter Sofia loves to play dress up. She loves to rummage in her closet and would sometimes come up with the weirdest combination of clothes. There was a day when she insisted on wearing a tiara with her dress and refused to be called anything but Princess Sofia. There was a time before she was a belly dancer/fairy princess/cowboy:

Choco Banana Muffins

Not wanting to throw away the over-riped bananas, I decided to make some Choco Banana muffins. I think mine came out a bit over done. I got a bit side tracked by some issues in the office.

Here's the recipe I usually prepare:

The Shopping Itch Strikes Again

Ever since moving into our own place, I've been obsessed in buying stuff for the house: furniture, appliance, decors...you name it! It such a shame though that the items in my wish list are either: a) not readily available here in Manila or b) if ever they are, it's so freaking expensive. More or less 100% markup.

So it was such a happy news that my dear Lola is going to the US end of April to visit and spend quality time with my US-based relatives. I am already starting to "draft" my list and hopefully she'll be able to buy these for me:

My Morning Savior

Mornings are hard for me. I cannot function well enough. Heck, I can't even make my own coffee in the morning. I am that useless. And not having a maid makes it extra harder. Between preparing my husband's clothes and attending to my daughter and for the things I need for work (yes, I'm still working hence the title of my blog is a big BS for now), I usually forget to prepare breakfast and the family would have to settle for cereals. Cereals are good but it starts to taste like cardboard after eating it for the nth day.

So I'm happy to discover Betty Crocker Bisquick Buttermilk Biscuits.

(Photo credit: Buy the Case)

Mosquitos Go Away! (Part 1)

Whenever my daughter comes home from an afternoon (or overnight) stay with Lola (grandma), she brings home souvenirs such as this:

Ugly mosquitos and insect bites.

Ephiphanie Giveaway

Who doesnt love prizes?

Now here is a chance for you to win a new Canon 5D Mark


Or a $2500 Gift Certificate from Southwest Airlines.

Earth Hour 2010

Earth Hour is a campaign started back 2007 in Sydney Australia to turn off their lights for an hour to take a stand against climate change and raise awareness on the plight of Mother Earth. A year after, this became a global event with more than 50 million people across 35 countries participating. March 2009 marked the biggest and largest global climate initiative wherein over 4000 cities across 88 countries joined.

Am I a Martyr?

After mulling with the idea for days, I finally told my boss that I'm extending til end of April instead of end of March as originally planned.

You see as it is, with four (4) Project Managers in our team, all of us are still fully-loaded. And more projects are still coming in! One of the part-time PMs will no longer work for in-house projects and will focus only on vendor-specific projects for the company. With me going, this will mean only 2 people taking all the load. I wouldn't think twice if they have a replacement for me. I wouldn't want to leave and leave my clients hanging.

Yearning for Cooler Days

With the El Nino hitting this side of the globe, the summer heat is on...and it's hotter than ever!

Temperatures increasing 30 degrees up, some northern provinces are officially under drought alert. Days like these make me wanna go back to Romania (yes my husband is Romanian) to get away from this sticky and humid weather of Manila.

When we went there almost 2 years ago, it was the height of their summer time. It was hot but unlike in Manila, it wasnt humid at all. Nights are extra cool and temperatures can drop into single digits. Something like Baguio but less cramped. If ever I'd get a chance, I want to visit again Poiana, Brasov

No Turning Back

Three days ago I submitted my resignation letter.

Not because I hated my job (ok, I hope it could be more exciting and more financially rewarding).

Nor did I have a better offers from other companies (I wasnt even applying).

I resigned to be a full-time mommy to Sofia.