The house got robbed.

I never thought I could be writing something like this in my blog or anywhere else. Yup, our house (mainly our house annex) was broken into last Saturday in broad daylight. Nobody discovered it until it was already about nine in the evening. When the yaya got into her quarters, she couldn't seem to open the door to her room. She sensed that something was wrong so she immediately went down to ask F. "to look for her keys". So when F. went up, he found the doors of the two rooms destroyed, the room broken into and everything in chaos. He immediately tried to wake us up but to no avail since my husband, kids and I were already in deep sleep at the time. So he decided to ask the help of our neighbor instead to check the vicinity of the house just in case the burglar is still hiding or is still around the area.

Anyway, that's then that they discovered that all the valuables of the two house assistants were already stolen. The two rooms were a total mess and it seemed as if the trespasser was there inside for quite a long time since he was able to find all the hidden money and jewelries that our maids have and own.

Oh it's so sad.

We think that the robber went through our wall at the back or maybe through the garage. Plus I really hope he won't come back and try getting inside the main house (dear God, no!).

On our part, we're planning to build a higher wall with barb wires, pieces of glass -- the works -- so that this won't happen again. I also have been looking for a garage door remote that probably help us in terms of safety. With a garage door remote, we don't need to go out of the house to open the garage for the car that's coming. I saw the Linear and Genie brands and I think it's both good.

At any rate, please pray that this kind of thing would NEVER EVER happen again.

Fundraising Project

For many years now, I have somehow been involved in various construction projects for the Center. We ask for donations from generous people who are willing to help us in our worthwhile endeavors which benefit not only a small group but a huge number of people. We have done it before with the Tagaytay Conference Center, the Campanilla project and many other houses. These were all built for the spiritual as well as cultural formation of women of all age and social class. And now we are doing it again. Our latest project is the Kanluran Kamawi building which will be the venue for women, particularly for those less fortunate ones in the area. This will be the place where they can learn livelihood skills and even hotel and restaurant management. There will also spiritual formation given there. It has a lot of great possibilities and for sure it will do a lot of good for years and years.

Anyway, with the cost of construction going up by the day, we are in urgent need of more funds in order to pay the contractor. You see, the money that has been going to this project come purely from donations. And as of date, our fundraising thermometer tells us that we need to double the efforts so that we can finish this house on time and without going into debt just to pay the contractor. Good thing that as a response to the need, many of us are already doing our share of research on how to raise money for the project. Some even try to copy how school fundraisers do it. It actually works to copy to successes of others in order to bring positive results. And of course, there is nothing like praying and praying a lot to God to send more donations, since we know that this is all for Him.

Loving the Kitchen

As a young lady, I experienced a time when I was totally addicted to cooking and baking. I would spend hours and hours back then making chocolate cakes, crinkles, different kinds of pasta, and many other delicious treats.

However, when I started to go to college, my affair with cooking took a back seat since I had to work my ass off making linear graphs, downward-sloping curves and all that economics stuff. More so as the years passed by, I saw myself spending less and less time in the kitchen and more and more time literally out of the house.

Anyway, with the advent of cable tv (which we didn't have back then) and HGTV (LOL!), those memories of my time working in the kitchen slowly grow back. Besides wanting to cook up dinners and desserts, I come drooling at the lovely kitchens that they show on tv. I'm not exactly complaining on the look and beauty of my own kitchen. However, if only I had a chance, I'll get myself some kitchen remodeling contractors to make my kitchen look a little bit more like the kitchen of Ina Garten or Martha Stewart. A newly-refurbished kitchen like that would be so awesome and will surely make me stay longer in the kitchen!

I Need to Have my Eyes Checked

I was telling my husband the other day that I seem to have enough reason to have my eyes checked and my eyeglasses replaced. I told him that first, ever since I gave birth to Luigi, even with my glasses on, my sight still seems blurred. Second, I told him that even if I have to replace my frames, I know that I can get the lowest price progressive glasses at Zenni Optical, the #1 online Rx glasses store.

He was sceptical at first, but of course, after reading Eric's Review of Zenni Optical, he's definitely willing to make me buy a new pair that looks like this:

Planning a Home Office

I am currently on the lookout for nice computer desks for the home office that I want to put up at our house’s attic area. You see, I’ve been forever prodding my husband to give me a nook where I can do my home management tasks and a place where I can do my on-the-side writing jobs. And knowing how passionate I am in my doing my daily work as a home manager (making menu and grocery lists, filing different house bills and insurance papers, doing my family’s financial accounting, etc.) and also in my work as a blogger, he agreed to buy me some home office furniture to be put at our attic. I actually already have a design in mind. I’m planning on painting the walls first into a dark red color and then going for a desk style that is sleek, minimalist and in the color white. I also have to measure the correct dimensions of the desk and cabinets so that it will fit perfectly in our attic space.

Speaking of building things, as a result, I think we also need to find a new place for the kids to play because in order to give way to my new office furniture, the kids’ stuff would have to be moved and placed elsewhere. Besides, it’s inevitable to transfer the kids’ toys and books to a different place since these are just too many! Plus, the kids often find it hard to play in the attic during the afternoons since the afternoon sunlight causes the room to be extra hot and it’s not comfortable to be playing there at all. At least, if that will be my future office, I wouldn’t normal work in the afternoons since I have a full-time job. Most likely, I would be using that work space on weekend mornings or in the evenings when I come home from work.

Happy Bonus

I just finished a major project at work which concerns our annual variable bonus. We released the letters today and all the people concerned are ecstatic on how much their bonus will be.

While many are just itching to use their money for shopping for new stuff, like an cellphones or luxury bags, I’m keeping the air of temperance this time and opting to use the money for paying off some debts and hopefully closing some accounts. I also allotted part of it for the enrollment of our daughter for this next school year (and this doesn’t come cheap these days). And of course, another percent of the total will go to some house renovation and house stuff. I am looking at some address plaques because I want to replace our old one with a new address sign. You see the two wall address plaques (one with the number and the other with a religious image) that we currently have both got rusty when it was submerged in flood water last September.

Anyway, I am realizing now that it was much different then when I was single and didn’t have a family yet. Now the mother and home manager in me just wants to look after my family’s welfare ALL THE TIME.

Instant House

I was watching a TV show one time and it was about a home makeover project. In that episode, they featured a humble family which they would like to give appreciation to for a generous deed done and they wanted to do it by giving them the gift of a new home. Based on the initial shots, the family’s home was literally falling apart. It was old, rickety and very unsafe. Thus, it was very apt that this family be given a new house. The catch was, the TV crew only had one week to build the house from scratch. They first needed to destroy the old house and build a new one from the ground. If they were just to repair the house, it would be too easy. They knew that this family deserved not just a newly-renovated house but a totally new house.

The first thing they did was to outsource the building of the house by contacting a supplier of Manufactured Homes in Oregon in order to send them a factory-made house that can be put up within the number of days that they had.

In the United States, there are getting to be more and more options for people who are interested in buying their own house. Now there are high quality Manufactured Homes Oregon which are available in the market. These kinds of houses have a modern and functional design. When you order one of these Mobile Homes Oregon, the “parts of the house” are transported to your location and the house is assembled right there. These kinds of houses are relatively cheap and are manufactured according the safety guidelines and laws provided for houses of this kind. Anyway, going back to the TV show, the house that they ordered was beautiful. It was put up fast and its interior was decorated with style and with the nicest furniture around. And even with the pressure and time-constraint that was there in building any structure, it was evident that it was built with a lot of love – truly a wonderful gift that any family could receive.

My Wish

I was just talking to a good friend over the phone earlier and we were talking about our many expenses. She told me that from her side line business, she is able to earn more for her family. Sometimes, she earns even bigger from this business than from her monthly salary. As a result, she doesn’t have any huge debts on her credit cards and when she does use her small business credit card, she always pays it in full and on time.

That really got me into thinking on when I’ll finally be debt-free. With the hard times we’re experiencing, I want to be free from high interest rates and be able to pay off all that we’ve spent using the best credit cards.

Hopefully when my “secret” plan pushes through, that wish would soon be a reality and we will be debt-free at long last!

Is It Summer Already?

We just finished celebrating Valentines over the weekend and now we’re already at the start of the Lenten season with the coming of Ash Wednesday.

I don’t know about you but for me, I’ve noticed that the weather is getting to be hotter than usual these days. Maybe summer is arriving a little earlier than before, I’m not so sure. Anyway, whenever I travel these days, I have made it a point to bring my summer necessities: a bottle of water, my foldable fan and umbrella. You know that I don’t want to be looking harassed and smelling like sweat when I get to the office.

Actually, if I were to choose between summer days and rainy days, I’d pick rainy days. Except for the huge typhoons that come with the rainy season (God forbid that another Ondoy storm happens again), I love waking up to cold misty mornings. And I think it doesn’t hurt to be walking in the rain, especially when you’re snuggled tightly to your husband and you only have one umbrella to share. ♥

I also love the practically of having available rain water. With rain barrels you can carefully save up some rain water for household use. Apart from that rain harvesting is a good practice that can save you money on your monthly water bill. And what many do not realize is that rain water barrels have a decorative effect to your house or garden. It brings a bit of glamour to your mediocre landscape or your boring backyard. Hey, I know where there are rain barrels for sale so just shoot me a comment or a private email so I can tell you more about it. ☻

These Days...

...I've actually taken notice of my face.

Work has always been awfully busy that many times, I am too busy to even put on a little effort. But lately, I've miraculously managed to put a little moisturizer on my face, a dab a mix of complexion creams on it (yes, they are in trend these days) and put on a sunblock. I've also have rediscovered a lip gloss that I had and found it so yummy plus it actually did a lot of good for my dry chapped lips. I've also managed to have time to fix my hair. All I need to do now is find the time to have a trim for the ends of my hair are now in a wreck.

Anyway, I guess there's something about the season of Valentine's which makes me feel more inspired and more romantic. :-) And I hope the spirit of this season of love will last a long time.

My Dad, the Gardener

Have I ever mentioned here that among the members of our family, it is my Dad who really has a green thumb? He certainly has a knack for planting and gardening that most, if not all, of the trees and bushes in our home was planted and grown by him. Having lived in the province in his early years and being a son of a true-blue farmer, my Dad can literally grow any kind of vegetable and fruit-bearing tree. It's actually very fascinating!

Anyway, now that my Dad has retired, he always spends his mornings doing gardening. He recently harvested some root crops, fruits and vegetables and gave part of it to us. Now I'm thinking that maybe I can send him several vegetable seed packets this summer so he can grow more varieties of vegetables in their garden. Or maybe I can also ask him to train me or even my daughter Zoe on the basics of gardening and turn our mini-garden at home into a kid-friendly garden. It's never too late or too early to learn, right? In fact, I've been noticing lately that Zoe may have a natural inclination towards plants and trees too. She always seems to want to help out in watering the plants in the morning and often asks me to get her a leaf or flower from the plaza whenever we go out. You'll never know, she might have inherited her grandpa's green thumb.

Dinner at Eastwood

Our dear friend Cleng just arrived from London last week. She went home to tie the knot with her boyfriend this weekend. And since the wedding is already this weekend, we took some time out (before everything gets crazy!) to go have dinner together last night. We were with Mike, the groom-to-be, Cleng’s younger sister (and her significant other) and our good, good friends, Cris and Joan.

With everybody’s uber-busy schedules, we met in Eastwood Mall later than what was planned. Anyway, our feet led us to Cyma for dinner and Cheesecake, etc. for coffee and dessert (deserves a separate post!).

Dinner was, as usual, filled with a lot of funny stories. The food was sumptuous and the company was great. These friends of mine are all definitely friends for life (and as Joan would joke – FFAE ~ friends forever and ever). It’s because no matter how long we have not seen each other, all is the same, as if we never really were apart for months and years. We can still talk about anything, from serious concerns to the most trivial things such as our crazy past lives, bags, ford accessories (except for Cleng, we all know how to drive, you see) and many other things.

I guess, as friends, we've reached the point that in spite of our differences (which were more pronounced when we were younger) and peculiarities, we love and accept each other as we are and there are no more biases and no more ill-feelings, only happy memories of our friendship which is already more than 25 years and counting.

Here are some pictures.

Group pic at Cyma:

B2B, G2B, and MOH.


BFFs.


You-know-who.


Group pic at Cheesecake, Etc.

Trying a no-smile pose ala-Familia Zaragoza (I couldn't contain my smile!!!!):

After a few trysts...we finally made the pose. CrazY! Hahahaha!

Till next time guys!

New Plants

We visited my uncle in the nearby town last Sunday for lunch. They served us the usual food traditional in our hometown in Quezon and I found it so yummy.

Anyway, after eating lunch, my uncle told me that he will give me two plants for our house. He told me to buy new planters for it. It's actually a lovely little plant. It can be a good indoor plant because the leaves are wide and shiny. And I think it would add a bit more decorative quality to it if I put it on indoor planters, particularly the ceramic type with designs on it.

Thank you Tito Botch for the new plants!

Love the Weather, Love the Bed

My husband and I took advantage of enjoying the cold weather that we are having these days by bringing out our Donna Karan Home bedding. Believe it or not, this bedding and comforter was a gift to us our way back during our wedding and we never had a chance to use it until now. Talk about finding a long lost treasure! Now, we sleep like a king and queen. And as my husband puts it, “Feels as if we are in a hotel tonight, Honey.” Ha ha!

While browsing the site online, I learned that they not only have beddings but the whole range of home accesories. They also have nice drapes and lovely bath accessories which I definitely want to have too! If only I could have the whole line from DonnaKaranHome.com and the money to buy it.

I heard that they have a SALE! (wink, wink)

Ceiling Fans Galore!

One of my favorite things about our house is that it has a very high ceiling. My dad designed it that way so that it looks grander, more elegant and has better good ventilation for the different rooms in the house such as the living, dining room and bedrooms compared to when the ceiling is just flat and simple. And so when the architect was building the house, instead of just having plain lighting panels on the ceiling, my Dad suggested that we also canvass for a ceiling fan so that there is an added touch to the design plus additional fans especially helpful during the summer months.

In the course of our search, we found various styles of ceiling fans. I stumbled upon the products available at Hansen Wholesale Ceiling Fans and saw so many delightful choices and brands such as Hunter ceiling fans and Minka Aire ceiling fans. Oh, I love how rustic and stylish these types of ceiling fans go!

Anyway, before we transferred to the new house, we were able to install not just one but three ceiling fans, that is, one in the living room and one in master’s bedroom and a simpler one at the guest room. Talk about love for ceiling fans!

Super Bowl, Clean Bowl

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of 2000 Flushes. All opinions are 100% mine.

As a homeowner, one of my pet peeves is a clean bathroom, particularly a clean toilet. I hate finding the toilet with stains, dirt and grime. That is why I always make sure that I use a good cleanser that can fight off those unwanted germs and bacteria and leaves the bowl smelling fresh and clean.

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Kicking the Habit

I’ve been so moved to really do better this year 2010. I have so much to improve on, you know. On the topic of bad habits, I’m trying to get rid of some of my personal bad habits. So here’s another round of (New Year’s) resolutions which I thought I needed for myself:

1. I need to stop going to bed with makeup on. Sometimes (or all the time, I must say), I feel so dead tired at the end of the day that I head off to sleep as soon as I change into my sleep clothes. I hate having to wash my face with water (I feel that it causes my eyesight to get worse than how it already is) but I am all too lazy to grab a cotton and use my cleansing oil.

2. I also need to get out of the habit of going for seconds. Yup, I am an emotional eater and I talk a lot too while eating dinner. So when my talking isn’t finished yet, my eating isn’t finished either. LOL. Well, you can clearly see I’m a crazy girl.

3. I need to stop buying shoes…and more shoes! Maybe I should divert this addiction into bags this year. Hahahaha!

4. I have to be more on time in paying bills. Punctuality has to be in all areas of your life and that includes paying the monthly bills before it’s due.

5. I also resolve to brush my teeth a bit longer. Well, it’s a whole myriad of doing things longer actually. You see, I have a tendency to rush around my morning ritual and that includes hurrying to take a bath, dressing up, brushing my teeth and many other small things that I do without thinking much. Bottom line really is: WAKE UP EARLIER so I don’t need to RUSH anymore.

What do you guys think? Obviously, my list of bad habits is just about small things, thank God. Unlike others who cannot kick the habit of smoking or drug addiction, for example. Oh, that’s so much of a bigger struggle if you ask me. Addiction Treatment is no joke for someone who is in denial. Drug Treatment, even if it’s readily available, is something that is not yet an option for many who are hooked on drugs and need to go for drug rehab.

Anyway, I’m hoping I would make a follow through on these resolutions of mine. Wish me luck!!!

House Preps

Some relatives are coming from the States this month and we’re very excited! I think they will be staying with us for a month. In this regard, we are trying to make the necessary house preparations for their coming.

First off, I scoured through our closets and made sure that it’s all in order and ready for use by our relatives. We also have been scouting around for the past week for new upholstery for our living room set. But it’s so hard to find nice textile that will fit our needs so I’m also open to buying a new living set altogether. I’ve managed to visit this site where they offer a variety of styles in modern furniture. They have great furniture that’s great for those living rooms that are almost always the main attraction in any house. There are also elegant pieces for bedrooms which designs are very updated and elegant. Most of the styles are couldn’t be found locally so I’m almost tempted to order online!

Thinking of getting a mailbox

We had just watched the animated movie "Up" on DVD the other day and it made me cry. The movie was lovely and very touching. One of the moving parts of the movie was when the main character and his wife were depicted as building their home together, even putting a mailbox out their front yard which they personalized by putting on their names and handprints on it.

This got me thinking that it would be nice if our family also had a personalized mailbox for our home just like in the movie. Yeah, I think I ought to be really getting mail boxes for our frontyard soon also to make sure our mails are safe and secure. For sure I'll be able to find all kinds and varieties of mailboxes online, whether it be a single wall mount mailbox, column-style, etc. etc. Not only will it serve as a great frontyard decor, it will also serve as a family thingy.

This Christmas

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Bidazzled. All opinions are 100% mine.

For those who want to live the true spirit of giving especially with the holiday season, there are new ways available for you to share your love to others or share in a good cause, for that matter. One way is by joining Bidazzled, an online auction market that allows you to buy new brand merchandise through bids and at the same time help a lung cancer foundation. Whether you win or lose the bid, you are still helping out in a very important way.

With the season of Christmas, we can sometimes be too into ourselves that we forget how it is to give. On the side, my reflections for Christmas has gravitated on forgetting myself and learning to focus on the baby Jesus which comes in the face of those many people around you: the street kids, the sick people in hospitals, the elderly, the dying, the "scrooge" in the office, your child in tantrums, etc., etc., depending on your state in life. Christmas comes to remind us that we are faced to live the virtues in a heroic degree albeit, maybe more emphasized now with what the season brings.

Have a very merry and worthwhile Christmas everyone! Stay warm!