Things I miss about PI

We spent our 2007 Christmas and New Year in PI for a week and we're now back in SG.

1. Salon Make-over -- sobrang cheap magpa makeover kaya everytime I visit Manila, I make sure na nakakapag hair rebonding, hair cut, foot spa, pedicure at body massage ako. At least twice a year kami nakakauwi kaya nakaktikim ako nito kahit papano. Sa price ng hair rebonding dito sa SG, katumbas na lahat ng pinagawa ko sa PI.
2. My choices of resto -- picky eater ako, kaya lugi ako dito sa SG. Di ako mahilig kumain ng seafoods kaya
kakaunti lang ang nakakainin ko dito. Kaya naman tuwing umuuwi ako ng PI, nanaba ako sa kakakain. Plus
the fact na mura ang food sa Pinas kesa sa SG kaya naman marami akong bulilit naiilibre sa Jollibee, Chowking, Max, KFX, Wendy's..Plus I stuff myself with Kakainins (haaayy sarap)
3. Tricycle -- naku sobrang miss ko ito. Di na ko kailangan maglakad ng malayo, at mula sa house hanggang
sa pupuntahan ko naihahatid ako for a cheap price pa. Kaya naman awang awang ako sa shoes ko dito sa SG.
4. Grocery -- maraming ingredients ng niluluto ko eh di ko makita dito, kaya naman tuwing uuwi ako di pwedeng di ako nag gogrocery sa Landmark. Kaya ang bigat ng luggage ko dahil sa mga local goods tulad ng delata at sangkatutak na food.
5. shopping Clothes -- di ako namimili ng office wear dito sa SG dahil sa mahal at smaller ang sizes. Pero magaganda at cheap ang casual wears ng sikat na brand na Giordano at Esprit kaya yun ang nabibili kong shirts pag SALE hehehe

1st year

Today is our 13th month anniversary in Singapore.

I cannot believe how time flies, so far so good. But we all know that this will be a temporary place for my family.I feel we have settled in well here, we're still renting the same condo here in the east side of SG.

My 6 year old daughter and 5 yr old son are settled in their catholic school with their pinoy and Chinese friends . Yanna will be in primary school on January (start of the school year here) and Edric will stay in his current school but in K2 level.
They made great progress in school. Both of them can read in English and few Chinese words. Downside is, they have a hard time reading and counting in Tagalog. They are fond of reading books at night on their own. The books are borrowed from our community library.

My little boy (2.5 ) stays at home with his Lola. Although we see him confident and fearless, we opted not to send him yet in Toddler class as we don't see him prepared yet. Maybe 2 years from now.

Hubby is settled nicely into his new job he has been working for a month now, he is more laid back now than he was in the previous months. While we both had not so nice experience with our work for the past year, we are now blessed to get a more calm and relaxing work environment from our new employers.

Since Singapore is just a 3.5 hours flight from Manila, my parents and siblings managed to visit us and we have few trips as well. I would say, Singapore is a nice place but we still long for a nicer place where we could enjoy outdoors.

Still do miss my friends & family but I suppose we can't have everything.

Christmas will be spent with them in Manila this year and we are all excited!

Friendships

Since moving here in SG, I have sent out regular emails and photos to all my family and friends - and at first I got a lot of replies. But as time has gone on, the replies have lessen and now it's just my closest friends who are in regular contact. I can understand why. My family are seldom use computers and prefer to text and do a phone call. My friends have moved on - they have probably accepted that they are unlikely to see us again on a frequent basis, and got on with their lives, whilst I still long for the friendships I left behind, because the new ones are still fresh to offer real support. Obviously there are some very good friendships that will always stay in touch, but even they email less than I do. Perhaps they feel that their news isn't as interesting as mine, but of course that isn't true, I stick on to all the news about Manila, however boring it is.

I've been tagged by Litcoo.

I must post the rules, 7 random things about me and then tag others to do the same. Sound fair enough, right? These are the rules… each player starts with 7 random facts about themselves on their Blog. People who are tagged need to blog 7 facts about themselves and post the rules as well. At the end of their blog list 7 people you are tagging. Let them know that they are tagged by leaving them a comment.

1. I'm a picky eater. I don't eat eggs, beef, all kinds of seafood..list is endless.

2. I stick to the same old friends that I have. I don't think I have gained a bestfriend since highschool.

3. I love travelling. I have this liking of the food served in the planes.

4. Hubby and I are inseperable. We both went to the same college school, then went to the same companies and got the same work skills too. Can't imagine life without him.

5. I love desserts over the main meal.

6. I have this allergy every morning thatI would sneeze repeatedly. Never run out of tissue boxes beside the bed.

7. I write lengthily and very detailed.

I'll think pa whom I can tag as I only knew few blogging friends.

NZ Pics namin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZh8QtbsmkI

Our NZ holiday

It was initially planned as a holiday lang to visit the place and do a research na rin. It was a good timing lang na hubby got some job Interviews schedled kaya pinush thru na rin namin ang punta sa Welly. Madali lang makkakuha ng NZ visit visa dito sa SG, basta complete lang ang requirements, in 30 mins nakuha na ni hubby agad. Di naman kami nagkamali sa decision namin and we had a good time. Dahil sanay kami sa tropical weather we found the weathere there na too cold for us and officially winter na sa kanila. We flew to Wellington on 2nd of January 7:50pm via QANTAS flight. Maaga kami sa Changi Airport ni hubby since gusto pa namin gumala dahil matagal tagal na rin namin di nakikita ang loob ng Terminal1. Natuwa ako sa leg massager sa airport at it really help to relax my legs dahil kararating ko rin lang nun from Manila, a night before we fly
To Welly. It's a 7 hrs flight going to Sydney, but we're happy of the seat given kasi we have big leg room sa aisle seat. I enjoyed the QANTAS flight as much as I enjoy flying with SingAir. We arrived in Sydney at 5:30am local time (they are 2 hrs ahead of SG time). 9:30am pa ang next flight namin going to Wellington so we have a few hours roaming around their small airport. I don't sleep that much Pag nag ta travel, cguro sa sobrang excitement na rin. We met there 2 Filipinos waiting for the same flight. Yung isa nurse working in NZ and
The other one is a lola visiting her daughter. 3.5 hrs ang travel going to Welly and we arrived there at 2:30pm local time (4 hrs ahead sila sa SG time). Buti na lang mabait yung nurse na pinoy, he gladly lent his phone card to us so that hubby can call up Tita Glo (house owner where we will be staying).
It's a 15 mins ride from airport to Mills Road, Vogeltown. We paid 35NZD, which I think is super mahal. Di kasi kabisado ng taxi driver yung place At inikot pa ata kami. But then, we were glad to finally reach Welly safely. The moment we arrived, I fell in love with the place. Very peaceful, Nice green sceneries and very polite ng mga tao. Wellington is like San Francisco ng US. We met Tita Glo and Jorenz (her son) and went directly to our room. We felt very exhausted and we fell asleep til 9pm! Pag pag gising namin Tapos na sila ng dinner.Father Mario (Pinoy parish priest there) is a constant visitor sa house nila on Sundays. It was nice to know them and the Sister na
Kasama nya. We even watched an old Pinoy movie and stayed up late for that. Weather was 15 degrees in the morning and 7 deg as the coldest.

Monday, June 4th

It's a holiday in NZ so we have a full day of pamamasyal lang. It was my first time to wake up very late, 11am. Had brunch na rin and prepared ourselves. Tita Glo and his son was kind enough to accompany us. We headed first in a bank in Johnsonville, One of the nearest suburb. We plan to live there since houses are still afordable and very close to mall, schools etc. and it's only 15-20 mins aways from the city. We had lunch at Subway courtesy of Tita Glo. Then they brought us to the Mt. Victoria lookout where we had seen the city 360 degrees.
They dropped us in Oriental Parade and we walked by the the bay. It's was cold but we came prepared and brought with us our skii jackets. Hehe kahit kami lang ang naka ganun, ok lang. Maybe sanay yung mga nakaksalubong
Namin sa weather nilang malamig. Hinanap namin yung mga buildings where hubby will be going on the next day. Para prepared na kami and we'll know Where we should be going. We went home about 5pm na, maaga kasi dumilim and since 2nd day pa lang namin dun takot kaming maligaw. We were told to take bus# 7 going to Vogeltown, fare is 2.50NZD per person. We were at home by 5:30pm, natagalan kasi sa paghintay ng bus.
Tita Glo served dinner at 6pm. We slept late that day as we adjust ourselves, may jetlag ata kami nun.

Tuesday, June 5th Hubby's

1st interview is sched at 10am, and so we left house at 9am. At 9:30am, his there na in Lumley's House (Candle) in Hunter Street. Ako naman, I stayed a while in Mcdo and had a hot choco to warm myself. Then gumala na ko sa Lambton Quay, checking the pricess of the stuff their selling. Expensive ang clothes, shoes and other stuff na pang personal effects. I even saw an on-sale men's shoes for 99 NZD, mahal! I went to their Library
Just beside the Police Sation to check if I can use internet for free. Sadly, it's 1.50NZD for 15mins of use. Shortly, hubby called up and finish na interview nya And we're on our way naman to take lunch in Food Willis (foodcourts) in Willis St. He had chinese food for 6.50NZD and I had a pie for 2.50, big bottle of mineral water is 3.50NZD..susmio ilang galon na ito sa Pinas. Next interview is scheduled at 2pm so we had ample time pa to go back to the library and use the internet. Then we headed to Willeston street for his 2nd interview then pasyal pasyal ulit ako sa Lambton Quay. We had some pics taken from the biggest NZ Musuem (Te Papa)
And sa area na rin na yun. We went to the Visitor Center and found out the internet use is cheaper there, it's 5NZD for card that will last for an hour. Called up my ofcmate before in ACI and plan to meet her the nextday. Went home at 5pm.

Wednesday, June 6th

This was a free day and we planned it to be a pasyal day for us. We went staright to the Beehive-Parliament House, since there's a daily tour scheduled every hour. We took The 11am slot. In our batch, there were a chinese copule, a german, european family, and students from US. We were able to meet Arlene past 12pm na and had lunch in A chinese Restaurant. We agreed to visit her place on the next day. We proceeded to try the Cable Car. Return Fare is 4.50NZD if I'm not mistaken. Ganda ng view sa taas.
We went in to the Cable Car Museum, there's a Botanical Garden but di na kami tumuloy sa baba kasi. Dun ko na experienced yung sobrang Windy Wellington. We headed straight to Te Papa's museum where we had a quick tour and hubby took his job phone interview there for an hour. By 5pm, gusto ko ng umuwi.
We headed back home, sama kasi kami sa family ni Tita Glo to 1st Wednesday mass in Father Mario's parish in St. Peter.

Thursday, June 7th

Hubby got 3 job interviews scheduled that day, all different companies. First one is at 10am, then 1:30pm(Hudson), then at 3pm(Duncan & Ryan). I busied myself in window shopping and using the net in the visitor center while he was away. After his 1st interview, we went to the grocery near Te Papa to check on food prices.
Food price is relatively the same here in SG but dairy products are cheap. Had lunch in Mcdonalds, got a Meal Package for 9.50NZ with a drink, fries, 2 burgers and an ice cream. Since we're quite tired, we decided to go home and dropped the stuff that we bought. Went back to the city and headed to the "The Terrace" street, I have waited in the café beside the Ofc building. We met with Arlene and Lisa in EDS office. She lives in Newlands but picked-up her baby from Johnsonville pa, baby is there til 5pm only. 160NZD daw ang bayad sa taga bantay per week. Meals and clother are provided by Arlene. Then we had dinner in her house in Woodridge, Kentwood Drive Newlands. By 8pm, we took a bus going to the city and there we hop on to the #7 bus going home.
Friday, June 8th It's our last day, and looks like we are quite familiary with the routes na in the city. Hubby got 2 more job interviews, 1st one from Ministry of Justice and another one in The Terrace street again. I waited in Subway for an hour, taking a hot choco worth 2.50NZD. We went to Old St. Paul's church just across the Min. of Justice Bldg. The church is 1800's built, very scary and amoy luma na talaga. We were scared to go inside as there was no one to accompany us hehehe..baka di na kami makalabas. 2nd interview is on Willis street, that make me happy na makagala ulit kasi malapit lang. We went home early 3pm, as we'll be having dinner with Tita Glo. Tito Ramir and Jorenz Dropped us in Lambton Quay and there we went to see here in mcdo. Chinese food was great in that Reso in Courtney Place but mahal. Tita Glo paid for 83NZD for 3 ulams.
We packed our things na and get ourselves ready for the 4am flight next day.

Saturday, June9th

We were up at 3am and it's soooo cold. Good thing that Tita Glo lent her heater and that kept us warm. Pero nakakatamad tlaga maligo, good thing sanay tayong maligo bago umalis ng bahay. We had our early breakfast and said goodbye to the nice family who helped us. Tito Ramir was kind enough to send us in the airport. We had a smooth flight, As always we enjoyed the food onboard as well as the movies na napanood namin. We arrived at 7pm.

Lulubog Lilitaw

3 months na rin akong di nakakapag blog. Marami na ring nangyari sa 3 months na nawala ako. Eto ang iba:

March - bumalik na from more than a vacation sa Pinas ang Mama ko. Nagpang-abot pa sila ng only sister ko dito. Pumunta kami ng Malaysia para i exit ang sis ko at ma extend pa sana. Di na sya pinayagan kasi na extend na rin namin sya sa ICA eh plus mahigpit sila sa mga girls dito kasi maraming professional prosti na Pinay. Nakasama namin sya for 1.5 months dito. Nakakalungkot ang time na ito kasi balik ulit kami na kami kami langsa bahay.

April - Na approve na ang 2 weeks vacation namin from work kaya bumili kami ng ticket pauwi ng Pinas, lahat kami uuwi para maihatid ang mga bata for their 2nd term vacation. Nag apply kami ni Allan ng visitor's visa for NZ para maka attend sya sa mga job interviews nya. Sobrang efficient ng sistema tlaga dito sa SG, 30 mins lang nakuha na namin ang visa. Sa Pinas aabutin ka ng 1 buwan. Dahil sa NZ holiday plan namin, na shorten ang magiging stay namin sa Manila.

May - excited kaming lahat makauwi, makaka attend pa ng Santacruzan si Yanna ko sa Pinas at makakauwi kami ng Vigan, Ilocos Sur para madalaw ang Lola. Gawa na rin ang itinerary namin, at magmamarathon na naman kami para ayusin ang mga data pang ayusin dahil sa limited lang ang time namin. Babalik ang mga bata dito sa SG a week before magpasukan at kasama nila ang Papa ko para may kasama sila sa byahe nila Mama at may tagabuhat ng sangkatututak na igogrocery ko. Nagpa vaccinate na rin kami dito for Flu para maiwasan ang pagkakasakit namin sa hectic na schedule namin.

12th year namin ngayon as BF & GF



Ganito kami noon....





Ganito na kami ngayon.... ( after putting up a xxx lbs..hehehe)







since he's at work last night til this morning, he sent me a very sweet text message
"I would have chosen anything else over you. It was a good decision 12 years ago..it is still until now.."

A business person's greatest reward
BUSINESS MATTERS(BEYOND THE BOTTOM LINE) By Francis J. KongThe Philippine Star 02/03/2007

One night a wife found her husband standing over their newborn baby's crib. Silently she watched him. As he stood looking down at the sleeping infant, she saw on his face a mixture of emotions: disbelief, doubt, delight, amazement, enchantment, skepticism. Touched by this unusual display and the deep emotions it aroused, with eyes glistening she slipped her arms around her husband. "A penny for your thoughts," she whispered in his ear. "It's amazing!" he replied. "I just can't see how anybody can make a crib like that for only P450! (Made in China !)"

It's amazing to see how certain people cannot detach themselves from the business life they live even when they are alone with their family. Last Saturday was no ordinary Saturday for me. There was no speaking engagement for me on that day and that is very rare. Weekends are the first to go in my calendar.

Business companies would invite me to do out-of-town talks for their people and schools would invite me to do parenting or faculty development seminars and I enjoy doing it. But last Saturday got me doing something else. I had to do a "superman act." I had to stand as one of the primary sponsors in two weddings that were just two hours apart. And that's not the only challenge I had. I had to show up in both wedding receptions notwithstanding the fact that one was in the Ortigas area and the other one in Ermita! Somehow God is merciful.

Things turned out right. It was stressful but it was fun. I did it not because I had to do it but because I wanted to. The parents of the newly wed couples are dear friends of mine. Both Romy and Tenny Menorca as well as Guillermo and Rebecca Go are very dear to me. The two weddings featured a lot of contrasts. One was held in a Catholic church the other one Evangelical. One was heavy in ceremony while the other one was deep in Scriptures. The Menorca 's have wonderful sons (no daughters) while the Co's have wonderful daughters (no sons). One wedding motif required male sponsors to wear the traditional Barong while the other one was strictly coat and tie. You should know that by now, I have developed the wonderful skill of changing clothes inside my car on my way to different functions and occasions. Now let me tell you what I saw common with the two weddings.

Both weddings were beautiful. Both wedding receptions were grand and majestic. You should have seen both the newly-wed couples, they look stunning. You should have seen the parents, they all looked so proud and happy. Both weddings packed a lot of joyful tears and merry laughter. But the one most important common thing I see in both weddings is this: that the kids and their parents are close to each other and they love each other deeply. Now this is the business person's greatest reward: to have a successful family and to be able to support the children and usher them not just down the aisle but down the path of having their own successful families as well.

So many business people I know are not blessed with this kind of success. They rush down the aisles of career or business accomplishments and many of them actually achieved their goals only to turn around and see that the roads getting there have been littered with a lot of family casualties along the way.

The most tragic moment comes to a person's life when that which one thinks would deliver the ultimate success leads to disappointment and defeat. You know you're there when this haunting thought nags you: "Is this all there is to it?" But here is how to avoid them: The warning signs are clear when you hear yourself saying, "But I'm doing this for the family!"

You have to stop for a while and seriously ask yourself whether you are indeed doing it for the family or are you doing it for yourself? Another warning sign is this. You begin to miss your kid's ball games, their recitals, their plays...their birthdays.....and you're not interested in attending those corny parenting activities in school.

Now be careful! The "Red Alert Warning".... "Code Red"..... comes when you begin to say, "I deserve some happiness of my own...." This is extremely dangerous. This is when stupid decisions are made and you begin to dig a hole that will only get deeper and deeper. We always pay for the choices we make.

You can fail in your business and you can fail in your career but if you have a successful family then you are still successful. Take care of your family. Make sure that they are your partners in what you do. Share with them your victories as well as your defeats; your joys as well as your regrets.

Be a significant part of their lives and make them conscious of their spiritual walk as well. While I was sitting there listening to the priest and the pastor delivering their message they were both correct when they said, "Unless the Lord builds the house the laborers build in vain." My last piece of advice is this. Perhaps this is the strongest piece. The best thing you can do for your kids is to love their mother.

You can listen to Francis Kong through his radio program "Business Matters" aired 8:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. daily over 98.7 dzFE-FM 'The Master's Touch', the classical music station.

1-month of hibernation

It's been a month na rin since I last blog about the happenings in our family. So many things have happened that I tottaly have no time to blog all of it. Anyway, here are some of those:

December 06 - Papa arrived here in SG for his 1 month vacation. My brother joined us too for 2 weeks lang, while he's on his sem break. Di rin namin sila masyadong naipasyal, nag uulan kasi. Ayun, binilhan ko ng sangkatutak na book si papa. Wide reader ang Papa ko, konti na lang makaka mini library na sya sa bahay sa Manila. Kakatuwa si Papa, sa sobrang dami ng books nya, inuulit na nya yung iba. My youngest brother naman enjoyed din dito, nakapahinga sya sa school. Hinatid ko si papa sa budget terminal, and since first time nya mag travel, inantay ko tlaga syang matapos sa immigration. Nagka problem pa, kasi he was given 30 days to stay here, nagkamali kami ng sched ng flight nya, lumagpas sya ng 1 day...buti na lang mabait yung immigration office.
New Year and Christmas went fine and we had the usual pinoy food, but not like what we have in Pinas. We plan to spend it nextime in Manila.

My job in assignment sa Bank ended December 29, I was at home for a month and yet being paid at the same time. I got another job assignment in a different bank with slightly higher pay. God is so good! Alam tlaga ni Lord, na ang taong inaagrabyado ay lalo nyang itinataas. Prayers really help and I believe in good karma.

January 07 - Mama went home for a month vacation in Pinas. We ask hubby's cousin to extend for 2 weeks, then my sister naman will arrive. I have started with my new assignment, so far so good. But I miss my Pinoy officemates sa previous work ko. Oh well, this too shall pass.

4-day Marathon in Manila

Day 1 (Dec. 14) : It's my first time sa Tigerairways. We got the 1st flight 7:30am. Nag taxi na lang kami papuntang budget terminal. So far,ok naman ang budget terminal, may internet kiosk din at di ako nainip maghintay. Surprised lang ako kasi, first come first served talaga. Di man lang inuna ang mga oldies at may kids sa pila. Puno ang plane, maraming balikbayan kasi magpapasko na rin. We arrived in Clark around 11:30 na, and tool a Philtranco bus papuntang megamall. We paid P300 sa bus, and the bus left around 1pm na. We got there in megamall around 2:30 pm and nalipasan na ata ako ng gutom. Pasok muna ako ng Mega A and bought sandwiches and drink before kami mag taxi pauwi. Maraming na ngongontratang taxi driver, alam nila kasing mga balikbayan ang sakay ng bus eh. Sinsingil kami ng P250 hanggang amin sa Guadalupe. Since kuripot kami at alam namin lugi kami sa singil nila, napilitan kaming dalhin ang luggages namin sa taxi queue sa side ng Bldg. Nakarating din kami at P85 lang ang fare. Since marami kaming aasikasuhin, takbo na kami agad sa Makati, nakapag renew agad kami ng NBI at hubby got his COE from his previous company, di na nga sya nakipag kita sa mga co-workers nya dun at baka masabit pa ng kwentuhan eh nagmamadali na kami. Konting gala muna, then we ate at Chowking. Sarappp..na miss ko chowking chow-fan =) We're both tired na, then we headed home around 8pm.

Day 2 (Dec. 15) : Maaga kami gumising kasi last working day na aabutan namin ang mga offices na pupuntahan namin. 8am paalis na sana kami ng ayaw naman umandar ng kotse namin. Medyo napabayaan na kasi at walang gumagamit kaya nag kaka problema na. Bumili pa si hubby ng battery ng car, ako naman sinubukan kong mag commute muna at mauna na sa Makati Police Station para makakuha agad ng Police Certificate. Sa haba ng pila dun, nakaabot pa si hubby pagkatapos nya maayos ang kotse. Ay grabe ang red tape sa atin. We paid P150 each for the certificate and imagine P50 lang ang nakalagay sa reciept. Yung P100 sa bulsa na nila. Di na namin magawang umangal baka di pa namin makuha ang papeles eh pina rush na nga namin yun. Inabutan na kami ng lunc time dun. Kain muna kami sa Tokyo-Tokyo sa People Support Bldg sa may buendia. Nakabalik na kami at lahat, wala pa rin ang certificates. So punta muna kami ng Libis at inasikaso muna namin ang kailangan namin sa Bank. Maayos naming nakuha yun at dumerecho na kami sa Makati City Hall to get naman an NSO copy ng birth certificate ko. Hay grabe init that time, pati ulo namin maiinit na. He dropped me there, then he proceeded to Police Station to get the certificates then binalikan nya ko. Tuwa naman ako kasi 30 mins lang ako nag antay sa birth certificate. Napaka efficient talaga ng NSO Makati. Nakapag tyangge pa ko tuloy sa office grounds nila at nakabili ng office pants. Since 3:30 pm pa lang noon, may time pa kaming asikasuhin ang collge plan ni kuya. Tapos na kasi yun, and kailangan lang namin i-claim ang copy ng full payment and certificate nya. Nakuha namin lahat ng kailangan that day so we deserve to treat ourselves. Nakatikim din sa wakas ng footspa at pedicure ang feet ko. Si hubby naman nakapag pa haircut and whole body massage. Nagmamadali din kami umuwi, kasi nag promise kami ng Jollibee treat sa mga pamangkin ko. Pina deliver na lang namin since traffic din naman kung lalabas pa kami. By 7pm, punta kami ni hubby sa Market Market. We bought some pasalubong and nakabili ulit ako ng pants na gagamitin sa kasal kinabukasan. Nakauwi kami 10pm na.

Day 3 (Dec. 16) Pinilit kong magising for the simbang gabi. Sobrang pagod di ko nagawa. But we got up early pa rin kasi maaga ang kasal at wala pang isusuot si hubby. Kailangan pa namin dumaan sa Robinson's to buy clothes.
Late kaming dumating sa wedding ng friend namin. Halos patapos na nga. But it was great to see our college friends there. May common ata sa amin, lahat tumataba na. =) Buti na lang na serve din ang food sa reception at gutom na rin kami. Right after the wedding party ended, we bid goodbye to our friends. We missed them, college barkada sila ni hubby and almost all of them ninang and ninang ng kids namin. This year lang wala kaming Christmas party, oh well, hopefully next year makauwi kami ulit with kids. Then, nag megamall kami ni hubby after ng wedding. Dami namin nabili pampasalubong..karamihan food. Daming tao sa Mega, maraming pera ata ang pinoy. By 8pm, punta na kami sa Lola ni hubby to meet his family there, at nag balikbayan din kasi ang Titas nya from Japan. Late na rin kami nakauwi ng Makati, 10pm na ata yun.

Day 4 (Dec. 17) As usual di na naman ako nagising for the simbang gabi. Maaga kong ginising si hubby, kasi paalis na kami kinabukasan, di pa namin nadadalaw ang auntie ko at di pa nabibigay ang pasalubong. Punta muna kami sa house nya which is 15 mins away lang from the house ng mama ko. Sandali lang din kami dun, wala pang 1 hour. Dumaan muna ako ng market to buy some suman na gusto ng kuya. Nagmamadali kaming pumunta ng Market Market, to have our breakfast sa Heaven and Eggs..sarap grabe..na miss ko ang food dun. Namili na rin ako ng mga vitamins and medicines na dadalhin from Mercury Drug. Tanghali na, kailangan na rin namin bumalik at pupunta p ng Cavite si hubby para bisitahin yung umuupa sa house namin sa Molino. Ako naman, nag pa drive sa brother para makapag grocery sa Landmark. Balak ko pa sana mag MAKRO, kaso baka mag over luggae limit na kami kung dun ako bibili ng mga dadalhin ko. After mag grocery nag chowking na naman kami, sumunod sa min ang sister ko and we had lunch together. Di na rin ako nakapag shopping ng marami kasi dami ko ng nabiling grocery eh. By 4pm, nakabalik na kami at ganun din si Hubby. Idinaan nya muna ako ulit sa salon so I can have my hair treated at cut na rin. may dinner kasi kami sa house ng bestfriend ko na ikakasal naman kinabukasan. It was great to see friends during this time of the year. Lalo na ngayon na malayo na kami sa kanila. We were there til 10pm and have to go home na rin to fix our things. Mga 2 grocery bags din ang di ko nadala kasi over the limit na kami.

Day 5 (Dec. 18 pauwi na) We have to be at Megamall by 7am. 6:30am na ata kami nakakuha ng taxi cab. Buti na lang kasama namin sa byaheng ito ang brother ko at kinuha namin ang baggage allowance nya na 15 kilos. Nakaalis naman sa oras ang bus and we were at Clark by 8:30am. Close pa nga ang airport, we have to wait sa labas pa. Pagpasok sa loob tuloy tuloy naman na rin ang processo. Medyo matagal nga lang kaming nag hintay sa waititng area kasi 11:30 pa ang flight namin eh.
I thank God for the safe travel, for the opportunity to see our relatives and friends, for giving Papa the opportunity to visit us and spend his holidays here with Mama, for making me free from kidney stones (after a series of lab tests and frequent visits to my Urologist), and for the Singapore Permanent Residence. Thank you LORD!

Kakulitan ng mga bulilit ko

Kuya: Ate anong tawag mo dito? (pointing to his forehead)

Ate: ano?

Kuya: Eh di forehead! di mo pa alam?

Ate: pano naging 4-head yan, eh isa lang yan?

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Kuya: Lola watch tayo ng Crazy for You (telenovela that has a very late showtime)

Lola: Di pwede, magagamit na si Mommy mo.

Kuya: Di ba anak mo sya? Dapat ikaw ang magalit sa kanya!!!
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Ate: Mommy, ayokong mag-asawa..

Mommy: Bakit naman, anak?

Ate: kasi ayoko pong magka-anak..

Mommy: Bakit , ayaw mo mag-ka anak?

Ate: kasi ayoko manganak..

Mommy: Bakit, ayaw mong manganak?

Ate: kasi ayoko pong maging Lola...

Mommy: bakit ayaw mo maging Lola?

Ate: kasi ayoko pong tumanda at mamatay...

Logic nito ---wag mag-asawa... para di mamatay..hahahaha
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Ate: Daddy, pwede ba kami pumunta sa house nila Ate Darelle (cousins)?

Daddy: no, kasi mag eat ka lang ng candies dun...

Ate: hindi, di ako kakain dun ng candies, pag binigyan nila ako di ko kukunin

Daddy: talaga anak, eh kung si Daddy ang magbibigay sa yo, ano sasabihin mo?

Ate: eh di...Thank You Daddy!!
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Mommy: kuya, pls. get the baby oil..

Kuya: (3 yrs old that time) Mommy san ba ang Mommy Oil at Daddy Oil? Naiwan kasi si Baby Oil..

Permanent Residency

We just want to share the good news that our Singapore Permanent Residency was already approved! Hubby submitted it last month, Oct. 18 to be exact and the approval date on the letter was Nov. 21, 2006. We praise GOD for this wonderful blessing!

Homesickness

Habang papalapit ng papalapit ang 4 na araw naming pag-uwi sa Manila ni hubby, na hohomesick ako lalo. Ewan ko ba, imbes na maging excited ako lalo akong nalulungkot. Nalulungkot ako lalo pag nakikita ko si Mama na malungkot din. Nararamdaman kong gustong gusto na rin nyang bumalik ng Manila. Lalo na ngayon nag-uulan na dito sa SG, di sila nakakapamasyal ng mga bata at halos buong araw nasa condo lang sila. Hayy, how I wish madala ko na rin si Papa dito para magkasama sila. Ayaw pa kasi nya mag retire at may bunso pa kami na graduating ng nursing. Naka 3 months na rin ako sa work, masasabi ko namang so far so good. But I still can't wait to migrate to NZ wherein I will be stay at home mom to my 3 little kiddos.

NAWIES SG Halloween Party


I joined this eGroup even before we went here in SG. The members were all married Pinoys living in SG. They have been of great help to me and hubby as we relocate here. This is the first EB I joined and we all had fun last week, the kids enjoyed the goodie treats given by the moms. Can't wait to join them again for the early Christmas Party scheduled next week.

Manila here we come!

Hubby just book our flights for a 4-day stay in Manila. It's not actually a grand vacation, but we're going there for the purpose of getting some important papers needed for our ITA (NZ requirement). It will be me and him going this time via a budgeted airline. My father will be in SG, 3 days before hubby and I go. Papa will be here for a month stay. oth of them (him and Mama will take care of the kids while we are away. I have started to list down all the resto and fastfoods that I've missed and would want to visit. Here are some:
1. Jollibee
2. Max's
3. Mexicali's
4. TGIF
5. Chowking
6. Gerry's Grill
I just don't know how it would fit in, in our busy 4 day-stay. Visiting the salon is on top of my list, aside from the Tyangge Christmas Shopping =) I'm so excited to attend the Simbang gabi too and buy puto bumbong and suman. I plan to bring those here coz my kids love to eat those. This vacation certainly is a good excuse to continue my diet har har...

Lantern Festival @ Chinese Garden

I filed my first vacation leave from the office so we can celebrate hunny's bday that fell on a Monday. We bought the tickets a month ago pa. If by MRT, our travel will take us an hour, if by bus 1.5 hrs and so we take the cab to go there to save time. Naligaw pa ang cab driver, nagkamali ata sya ng rinig ng destination namin. Sobrang bait ng driver, he took a few dollars off from our payment dahil nagkamali nga. Sobrang honest ng drivers dito, or di ko pa cguro na experience na maloko nila. We'll see, when I get to take the cab this coming week , off from work due to my afternoon shift. Anyway, we really got a lot of nice photos from the chinese garden. The kids super enjoyed the lanterns, and ako super enjoy sa pagpapapicture.

Typhoon Milenyo

Signal #3 nung Thursday sa Manila, ayun mula noon di na namin nakakausap sa chat ang Papa ko at sister ko. Til today wala pa rin daw koryente eh Saturday na ngayon. Naala ko tuloy ang papa ko, ina asthma pa naman yun, eh ang init daw sa gabi. Sana mabalik na ang koryente sa lugar namin dun (South Cembo Makati). Nag aalala tuloy ang Mama ko na nandito sa sa SG. Nasa news nga na maraming nasiraan ng property at may mga na aksidente rin. Sana bumalik na sa ayos ang lahat.

Singapore Zoo
We visited the zoo last weekend. The kids had a blast. Super enjoy sila sa animals na nakita nila. My mama was amaze how clean the zoo is and most of the animals are not on cage, unlike sa Pinas. We got kasi free tickets sa zoo courtesy of hubby's company. We just paid for my mom. We hope to be back there when papa and my sister arrives.

1st month at SG


Today is exactly my 1st month at work. I arrived here 1 day before I started my work. It's been a while na rin since I blog.
So I resigned from my work after being there for 3 months. The kids followed us here a week after I arrived. I believed dami na rin namin na accomplished since we arrived here. My mama is here too to take care of the kids while hubby and I are at work. We already found a school na for the kids, Kindie school of Church of the Holy Trinity in Tampines. The kids enjoy their stay here, well except of course they miss their cousins. Almost everyday online ang kids ko, they are busy chatting and talking To my nieces and sister ko. Whenever hubby is on restday, they go swimming sa baba ng condo. Hmm..I missed Pinoy Food so much. Mapili kasi ako sa food and I'm not adventurous to try the local dishes here. Kahit sa bahay, we cooked Pinoy food. Did I mention that I brought a lot of dried fishes and canned goods =P Unfortunately, the grocery near our place doesn't to much Of varieties ng food. Good thing na lang my office is beside Plaza Singapura so sometimes lunch time is my grocery time too. I never walked this long in my entire life. Tamad ako maglakad, kaya na missed ko na tricycle and FX sa Pinas. But then, Nakakapayat pala talaga ang paglalakad, I shed a few pounds. Our ITA (invitation to apply) for NZ has arrived na last Sept. 13.
We didn't expect it to come pa, in fact kinalimutan na nga namin eversince nag email ang VO that we cannot claim bonus
Points for the work experience and because of the course namin. Buti na lang mabait ang VO (visa officer) and she added back the points. So she have given us 4 months to submit our ITA including the medicals. We plan to submit it maybe November or late December So we can stretch our stay here in SG.