Bela’s New Pet – Dory & Nemo

Most of you might know how much our daughter loves animals. So we have long been planning to get an aquarium and buy fishes for her as her first pet. But we kept on postponing our plan as we are really busy that we don’t have time to go to a pet shop and we haven’t clean up our house so we can’t find a nice spot in our house to put the aquarium.

But thanks to the long weekend (well actually it is not that long for me as I went back to work on the 28th and my only holiday for this week is only on the 1st of January), we were able to clean up our house and we were able to go to Pet Center at Cartimar in Pasay.


It is all our first time to go there and Bela really went crazy upon seeing all the puppies, the birds, the hamsters, the fishes, etc. I asked her if she wants a puppy or a bird but she is really firm on her decision that she wants a fish.

We check out all the stores first to scout for the best price and we are also looking for a cage for our Labrador. Then we decided to buy the first one that we saw which is an 8 gallon aquarium complete with all the setup – lamp, pump, rocks, sand, and even corals (this one I really love). Then we bought a clown fish at a nearby store and a blue fish which resembles like Dory.

Bela is really happy after seeing her aquarium. She is in front of it almost every minute and she will sometimes sit down in front of it so she can talk and play with her new pet. I am just a little worried as the blue fish is dying one by one. I don’t know if we are doing something wrong as we follow the instructions given to us down to the last dot. There is one blue fish left (out of the four that we initially bought) and hopefully it will survive.

Bela's Loots

Before I do my search for car insurance quote online, let me post first a picture of Bela’s loots last Christmas:


* Talking Little Einsteins dolls and Lion Robotic Stuffed toy from mom and dad
* Sleep wear and blouses from her grand dad June and grand mom Jenny and grandd ad Bong and grand mom Penn
* Pocketville Playhouse from her tito JP
* Baby Alive doll from her Tita Veejay
* Tiger stuffed toy from my in laws

Even though Bela knew already what her gifts were (she was with me when I was doing my shopping online and I let her choose what she wants to receive for Christmas. She was also with her Tito Jp when her tito bought his gift for her and he let Bela choose also what she wants. The same is true for her Baby Alive doll), we asked her to promise that she will act surprised when she open her gifts on Christmas day. And true to her word she didn’t forget her lines after she opened each of the gifts that she received.

Bela: “Oh I’m surprised. I am so excited. I am so happy”

But I guess she is not pretending at all when she said this as we can see how excited and happy she was with all the gifts that she received. Thanks again to all our loved ones for all of your gifts for our princess Bela. You really made her very happy and left her with a very memorable Christmas for 2008.

Weekend Snapshot # 9 - Christmas Program at TU

Last December 17 was Bela’s Christmas Program at school. I went home early and they fetch me at the office after fetching Howell and we head straight to the Social Hall of Sanctuario de San Antonio.

We are a little late as the students are already lined up outside of the social hall when we arrived. Bela took a nap on the way to the Sanctuario so she was really in the mood when we arrived. As soon as she saw her classmates, she said:

Bela: “Oh my classmates. I want to go there.”

So we lined up right away with her other classmates. But since they are the last one to perform, I decided to go inside the social hall first with Bela to watch the other class’s performance. After each performance, Bela will clap her hands and will shout “Bravo!”

When it is time for them to perform, Teacher Maica didn’t have a hard time convincing the kids to go up the stage. Bela was quiet at first but she starts to strut her stuff and she was like an energizer bunny, jumping up and down, swirling and she even wiggled to the tune of Joy to the World.


I am one proud mommy again. More pictures can be viewed here.

For later

I have been very busy lately (with work and with the preparations for the holiday season) that I miss to blog about Bela’s recent activities. So just so I will not forget, here is a list of the things that I need to blog about:

1. Bela’s Christmas party at Toddler’s Unlimited
2. Bela’s Christmas party at my office
3. Bela’s Christmas program at Toddlers Unlimited

I already sorted and resize some of the photos but I can’t find the time to upload. Hopefully I will not be too busy in the coming days (or I will not be attack by laziness) so I will have the time to blog about this.

Her name is Baby Alive

Bela’s Baby Alive doll finally arrived last Friday. I ordered it from Amazon and it was paid by her beautiful and sexy tita as her Christmas gift to Bela.

Bela already knows that she will get a Baby Alive on Christmas from her tita as we already told her that when she is asking us to buy the Baby Alive doll when she saw it at Toy Kingdom. So yesterday, since I am excited already, we showed her the Baby Alive doll. Of course we asked her to promise that she will not ask us to open it as her tita will still wrap it and she will open it on Christmas day.

Upon seeing the doll:

Bela: “Oh, oh, it’s the Baby Alive.”

And so I showed her how it works and she was jumping with excitement.

Me: “Tita will wrap it okay and you will open it on Christmas.”
Bela: “Where’s tita?”
Me: “She is still at school”
Me: “When you open your gift on Christmas, pretend that you will be surprise for the doll, ok”
Bela: “Oh it’s a surprise.”
Me: “So what is the name of your doll? You are Bela, I am Abie and dad is Howell. What is your doll’s name? Is it Annie or June?”
Bela: “Her name is Baby……Alive”

Flower Girl to be

I made a post on my other blog about the upcoming wedding of my brother. Of course, Bela will be one of the flower girls and being the stage mom that I am, I can’t help but be excited as early as now about the wedding. She will be four year old by then so she might walk the aisle on her own and I can imagine her to be the cutest flower girl (of course, you should love your own. LOL).

I am excited too for this wedding, because finally after more than a decade of going out with his now fiancé, my brother finally decided to tie the knot. And since I have been a hands on bride when I prepared for our wedding three years ago, I will give them some unsolicited advice which I have learned when we are preparing for our wedding.

1. Do scout around for suppliers. Don’t book right away a supplier and check out feedbacks from their previous clients first before booking them to be sure that they can deliver on your wedding.
2. Don’t let others influence you about your wedding. Your wedding should be about the two of you so everything that makes up your wedding should be about the two of you.
3. Try getting wholesale flowers instead of getting a local florist. I assure you that it will be more affordable but at the same time the flowers will be delivered fresh and beautiful on your wedding day.
4. Hire a wedding coordinator or if you don’t have a budget for a wedding coordinator, assign someone from your family or your entourage to manage the event so you don’t have to worry on the day of your wedding.
5. And lastly, the day before your wedding, let go. Stop worrying about the little things because the most important thing is you will be marrying the person that you love the most.

Etc, Etc

Bela is not feeling well today. Her grandma has cough and colds and since they are together the whole day, she now has colds too. And she is really irritated every time she has colds. Sometimes she can’t sleep straight at night and she has to wake up every now and then because she is having difficult time breathing. Of course, Howell and I has to be awake too to attend to her so there are times that we only have 2-3 hours of sleep and we have to go to work the next day (There are even times that I look like a zombie or I like I have been using weight loss pills). I hope she gets better soon as I am sure we will really busy with family gatherings next week.

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Last Wednesday was Bela’s Christmas program at Toddlers Unlimited. Since she was able to take a nap on our way to school, she was in a good mood and she really made us proud with her performance. Howell hasn’t downloaded the pictures yet, but I will post it soon.

Last Wednesday was also their last day at school so she has a few weeks off from school. I am sure she will miss her classmates and teachers as she really enjoys having playmates now. Just last week, we had a conversation about this:

Bela: “Mommy, mommy where are my friends? Where are the girls?”
Me: “They went home already because it is already dark.”
Bela: “I want a playmate mommy.”
Me: “Tomorrow, you can play again with your friends.”
Bela: “I want a playmate mommy!”
Me: “Do you want a baby brother?”
Bela: “Yes, yes, yes. I will share my toys with baby brother”

Home Visit and Jumping Joeys Xmas Party

In line for their theme this month which is “Christmas Season”, Bela’s class will have a Home Visit and a Class Christmas Party at Sam’s (one of Bela’s classmates) house. It will be held on Friday, December 12, 2008.

The Itinerary for the day will be as follows:

1:20 – 1:30 – Assembly at Samantha’s House
1:30 – 2:15 – Free Play
2:25 – 2:25 – Circle Time
2:25 – 2:35 – Tour around the house
2:35 – 2:45 – Special Activity
2:45 – 3:20 – Snack Time
3:20 – 3:30 – Story Time

They will also be having an exchange gift. Last Friday they ask all the students to pick their “monitos / monitas.” Then they ask each of the kids what they want to receive as gifts and they posted it outside of the classrooms so parents can see and buy the gifts for the kids’ “monitor/monita”

I wouldn’t have guessed what Bela wants. Of course she wants animals again. And I was really laughing since one of Bela’s classmate’s wants “pancit” for her gift. Simple things can really make a kid happy.

Christmas Program at Toddlers Unlimited

Bela will have another program at Toddlers Unlimited. The Christmas program will be held on December 17 at the Social Hall of the San Antonio Church. Bela’s class will perform to “Joy the World.”

I am excited as ever again. The program will not start until 4:00 PM so I can just leave work early to attend the program. I am sure all parents are excited as me to see their kids perform. I was even talking to one of the parents and she is already preparing for it including the clothes that she will wear on the day of the program. Since I really don’t like dressing up, she was telling me that it is also important that we look good since it makes our kids proud also if other kids find us attractive.

She has a point there. But I don’t think I will have time now to loose weight even if I use diet pills. I just have to look for a wardrobe that will not emphasize my excess fat. LOL.

Anecdotal Report: December 5, 2008

TODDLER’S UNLIMITED
Anecdotal Report

Child’s Name: Bela
Teacher/s: Maica and lei
Date: December 5, 2008
Class: Jumping Joeys

We thought you might like to know:

Bela loves the story "Brown Bear Brown Bear." One time, she told her teacher to read the story again. Her teacher read to her the book but did not turn on the music. Bela instantly stood up and grabbed her teacher’s hand and said “Teacher don’t sing, turn the radio. I want music please!”

US Recession

Can you really feel that our economy is improving? I often hear our president say that. But as I searched the net, I see a lot of articles on how people can get out of debt? Does this mean that there are a lot of people who really need help to debt free? America is experiencing recession right now and a lot of people are loosing their jobs. A lot of banks are also in the brink of filling bankruptcy all of this is due to the fact that their clients can’t pay their debts anymore.

Good thing there are a lot of companies that can help individuals make a financial plan that can guide them on how to be debt free. Maybe those who are in deep debts can use the help of these companies to help them make a good agreement with the bank that will benefit both the bank and the individual.

The recession in the US really has a lot of effect. It will not just affect the US alone but will produce a domino effect especially to third world countries like us. I hope the recession will end soon and people will find ways to pay their debts.

Don't cry mommy!

Last night, Bela handed me my Breaking Dawn book and she said:

Bela: “Here mommy. Here is your book. Let us read. Story time.”

So I read the book with her. But then she got all excited to turn the page and she accidentally ripped two pages of my book.

I got shocked and I shouted “Oh no” without me realizing that I scared Bela.

She run to her bed and hide with her blanky. Then I pretended to be crying to tease her more. Bela then approached me and she gives me a kiss and a hug and she said:

Bela: “Don’t cry mommy. I will buy you a book at the bookstore.”

She is one sweet little girl.

Bela’s 3rd Birthday at Kidz Republic

This is a very late post of Bela’s 3rd birthday party at Kidz Republic. But like they always say, it is better late than never. LOL.

I promised my husband that we won’t be having a party to celebrate Bela’s third birthday but of course, I was not able to keep my promise again. A few months before Bela’s birthday, we watched her first birthday video and she was so happy watching it that I got really convinced to have a small party for her.

Since she loves animals, we didn’t have a hard time deciding what will be her theme. So we knew from the start that if we are having a party, the theme will definitely be Madagascar.

We went to the Macapagal area to check out the branch of Jollibee there and then we went to Mall of Asia and saw Kidz Republic. I inquired and since their package is ok (they offer 3 hours use of the party room and 2 hours play for the kids. Not like Active fun where they will only give you 3 hours for the whole party – which includes the use of the party room and the use of the play area for the kids after the party), I made a pencil booking without even checking my budget. LOL.

I only started booking for suppliers around June already and we initially booked Kidz Republic on November 16 which is Bela’s actual birthday. But all the magicians that I like (Alex, Arnold, Wanlu, and Leodini) are already booked on the 16th. Good thing Kidz Republic is still available on the 15th so we moved our reservations there on the 15th and booked Leodini as our magician through Jelly Bellies.

I didn’t give any fuss about the souvenirs and just ordered animal stuffed toys for the girls and animal caps for the boys from Oriental Trading. Then I also ordered some Jungle Safari items for the prices from Oriental Trading too and bought additional items from Divisoria.

Two weeks before the birthday, the Madagascar Happy meal was released by McDonalds so we ordered the happy meal for the kids so they can get a Madagascar toy which is perfect for our birthday theme.

On the day of the party, Howell, I, my cousin and their house help went to Kidz Republic early so we can prepare in advance. We brought with us the cake and cupcakes (which Howell picked up from Little Royalties), the game prices and the souvenirs. There is still a party when we arrived so we had lunch first at Yellow Cab and it is only around 1:30 PM when we started with the preparations of the venue. The staffs of Kidz Republic are efficient so they helped us set up too.

By 2:00 PM most of the visitors arrived already and we started the party around 2:30 PM. We were so happy that almost all of our friends and relatives were able to make it on Bela’s birthday to celebrate with us. The room is so full that there are some visitors who are already standing up (So sorry guys. But I hope you did enjoy the party). Leodini was a hit to all my guests as he was really funny and his magic tricks really amazed all of us. The food they say was ok but I was not able to taste it as we were not able to eat. And the kids really had a blast playing at the play area. Even Bela didn’t want to go home because she still wants to play at the play area.

To all our friends and relatives, thank you for making Bela’s third birthday extra special again with your presence. We really appreciate it. Till next year….LOL.

We hired a photographer to cover the event but he is an hour late and he left early too. Good thing Howell brought with him his camera so he became the official photographer that day. You can view more pictures here.

For my Mom

Since Bela is the first grand child in my family, you can expect how so much attention and love she is getting from my parents. When I gave birth to her, my mom doesn’t want to get a nanny and she volunteered that she will personally take care of Bela. But when she turned one, she proved to be a handful and since my mom is not getting any younger, she admitted that its time for us to get a nanny since she can’t cope up with how active my daughter is.

But even though we hired a nanny for our daughter, she is still at our house everyday to oversee the nanny and to make sure that Bela is well taken care of.

That is something that we owe to her. Imagine, we don’t have to worry if we leave Bela at home with a nanny while we work since we are sure that my mother is there to look after her. And so this coming Christmas, we want to give my mom something extra special like fashion jewelry sets as a sign of our gratitude for all that she is doing for our family.

My mom is a very fashionable and stylish person and so I am sure she will love the jewelry set that we will pick for her from Holsted Jewelers as they have a wide collection of fashionable and high quality jewelry. I am so excited since I know that my mom will really be thrilled if she receives our gift for her.

Weekend Snapshot # 8 - Bears, Tigers and Bela

Last year, during the holiday season, there were Polar Bears on display at the Rockwell mall. We went there and Bela had a great time posing with the Polar Bears.

This year, I was informed by my cousin that the polar bears are back and this time some of them are even moving and they were even joined by a group of wolves, white tigers and penguins.

We went there last weekend, and as always, Bela had a grand time posing with them. Here are some pictures.

Cebu Pacific's Zero Fare Promo

Cebu Pacific just had another zero fare promo last week. I checked and I tried to make a reservation and the price is the same when I availed of their zero fare promo for our Singapore and Hong Kong trip. I am so tempted to book another trip again but then again I realized that we just got back from our Hong Kong vacation and we will have another Davao trip this coming January so there is really no way that we can afford another international vacation.

It would really been nice to get one of those vacation rentals and we would stay there for a week away from the stress at work, the traffic in the city, the hustle and bustle of everyday life and just have a relaxing time together with Howell and Bela. But of course, there always comes a price if we want to have that relaxing vacation that I am planning.

Maybe next time. I am sure this is not the last time that Cebu Pacific will offer zero fare to all their loyal customers.

Christmas Program at TU

Save the Date!
Christmas Program

17 December 2008 (Wednesday)
3:30 – 5:30 PM

Social Hall
San Antonio Church
Mc Kinley Road, Forbes Park, Makati City

I got this save the date information from Bela’s teachers. They will be having a Christmas program where the entire school from the youngest lamb classes to the oldest Pups are working together to present a Christmas Musical entitled “Christmas Around the World.” The Pups Class are going to stage the Nativity Story (with a twist) while the younger children (the class where Bela belongs) will perform the music to accompany the play.

I’m so excited. I remember during their Halloween program, we were the typical stage parents. We took a leave from work and we are armed with our video camera and Howell’s DSLR to capture every moment. I am sure it will still be the same this time. This reminds me, I have to contact Bela’s teachers if they need a costume or not so I can contact Mrs. Prim as soon as possible. LOL.

Bela’s Boo-Boo

I forgot to blog about this. I just remembered now since I was able to catch up a bit with my blogging world.

This happen exactly on the day of Bela’s birthday. We are not using our shower for Bela since we don’t have a water heater so we just use a pail and her bath tub every time we give her a bath. She was grumpy that day and she just wants her dad to give her a bath. Every time she goes to bath, she has to bring any one of her animals so she has something to play with while taking a bath.

She brought her penguins that day and Howell put the penguins in the pail. While Howell was in he middle of giving her a bath, Bela stood up to reach for the penguins in the pail and she slipped and her mouth hit the pail. It left a big wound on Bela’s lips.

Bela cried a bit but after a while she is not even minding the wound. But Howell really feels guilty about what happened. I tried to convince her that it’s just okay and accidents really happen but he really feels responsible for what happened. He said that we should really have a tankless water heater installed so we can get rid of the pail and the tub and just use the shower to avoid accidents. And of course, we have to add additional baby proofing tools in our rest room.

It took days before Howell finally got over what happened. You can’t blame her. He just felt that he just hurt her precious princess.

Christmas Preparations

It is only 24 days to go before Christmas. Our Christmas tree is now up but hubby hasn’t taken a picture of it yet. All the gifts for our cousins and god children are all under the tree. I am also finish buying clothes that Bela will wear on Christmas day, New Year’s day and for her party at school (you see it has been a tradition in our family when we are still kids that we should have new clothes and shoes for Christmas and New Year and so I want to have that tradition too for Bela). We also received the boxes containing our presents for Bela and all I have to do is wrap them and it is ready to be put under the tree too.

For our food, I told my aunt (who is always in charge of the cooking every time there is a special occasion) that we will just order from CCME instead so she will not be stressed out and harassed on Christmas day. I have tried CCME twice during MBAPs and my twitter buddies’ Christmas party and the food is good, yummy and affordable. So I showed my aunt the menu and she totally agreed with my suggestion.

I bet I will need diet supplement after the holiday season but who cares. Christmas is the time for festive gatherings so I should not think of having a diet and just enjoy the holiday season.

Anecdotal Report - Nov 28, 2008

I can’t remember the last time I posted Bela’s Anecdotal Report here. I think the last one I posted was months ago. So here is one of the latest reports that I go from Bela’s teachers for this month.

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TODDLER’S UNLIMITED
Anecdotal Report

Child’s Name: Bela
Teacher/s: Maica and lei
Date: November 28, 2008
Class: Jumping Joeys

We thought you might like to know:

It’s great to have Bela back in school! She seemed to enjoy the new books that we put like “Color Zoo” and “Where’s my Mother?”
We’ve also noticed that Bela is a very observant girl. When Teacher took out all the animal marks on the floor, and Teacher asked everyone to line up outside, Bela said “Where did all the animals go?” It’s good to know that she remembers the things we have in school! She has a very good memory.

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Every time I read Bela’s anecdotal report, it really makes us feel happy with how Bela is growing up and I know part of her development, we owe to Toddlers Unlimited. I really like their progressive way of teaching kids as I can see how effective it is to Bela.

Bela will not be enrolling to a big school yet this coming school year and we plan to enroll her again to a progressive school. If I have a choice and if only Toddlers is just near our place, I will not hesitate to enroll her again here. But for next school year, she will have to go to school 5x a week so the travel time will be too much for Bela.

Hopefully I will be able to find a school in the QC area which is as good as Toddlers Unlimited. Otherwise, I really don’t know where to enroll Bela next year.

Our Xmas Gifts for Bela

They’re here:


Our boxes containing toys that I ordered from Amazon arrived last Friday. These will our Christmas gifts for Bela.

I’m so excited for the robotic lion stuffed toy as it looks really real. I bet Bela will have a great time playing with and pretending that it is her pet.

Bela is into Nickelodeon channel now and yesterday, while we are watching she saw the commercial of the Baby Alive doll. She said “Mom, I like a baby doll. She is so alive.”

The Baby Alive doll is one of my options when I was selecting the gifts that we will give her but hubby said that Bela is not into dolls so I decided not to buy it. If only I knew that she will start to like dolls, I would have bought it instead of the Little Einsteins dolls since the price of the Baby Alive at malls here is more than double compared if I will but it from Amazon.

Oh well there is always a next time. But I have to get back to work now and look for life insurance quote because I might get tempted to check the Amazon site and order the doll for Bela. LOL.

Christmas Shopping almost done

We went out yesterday and did some Christmas shopping. I have a long Christmas shopping list and I am glad we were able to start with it yesterday as I am pretty sure that malls will be packed starting December.

I was actually quite a bit surprise since Robinson’s Place is not that busy and I was able to finish buying gifts for all my god children and hubby’s god children yesterday. We even finish buying gifts for all our cousins.

I was also able to buy nice Mickey Mouse club house educational toys for Bela’s classmates. Actually I just bought one kind of toy for all of them as it is much easier.

Now all that is left in my list are my adult relatives and hubby’s relatives and Bela’s teachers at school. Actually I already have something in mind on what to give them. I saw a site that sells promotional pens, mugs and all kinds of personalized stuffs so I am thinking of getting a personalized gift for them like a personalized calendar or stationary set. But I guess if I want personalized items for our gifts, I better start ordering now as it is just a few days away before Christmas.

Anecdotal Report - Nov 14, 2008

I can’t remember the last time I posted Bela’s Anecdotal Report here. I think the last one I posted was months ago. So here is one of the latest reports that I go from Bela’s teachers for this month.

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TODDLER’S UNLIMITED
Anecdotal Report

Child’s Name: Bela
Teacher/s: Maica and lei
Date: November 14, 2008
Class: Jumping Joeys

We thought you might like to know:

Bela enjoys playing with different materials in the Yellow Room. She likes playing with puzzles, blocks and most of all the animals. During Free Play, Bela saw the egg shaker and sat on it. Then suddenly said “look teacher, I am a chicken, you try!”

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She really has a wider vocabulary now and she is constructing real sentences every she talks. And she does ask a lot of questions that sometimes I ran out of answers for her. She enjoys reading books now and every night, she will ask us to read books for her before she goes to sleep. She is also showing interest for arts now as there are times that she will ask us for some paper and crayons and she will start to draw or doodle. She also likes to play with play doh and create different kinds of shapes.

The Venetian

So you think this is one of the hotel las vegas like the famous Venetian Hotel? How I wish but, no. These pictures were taken during our last vacation in Macau.

The Venetian Macao is owned by the Las Vegas Sand Corporation which is also the owner of the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas. The Venetian Macau just opened last August 2007 and is pattered to its sister hotel, the Venetian in Las Vegas. It is a luxury resort hotel with 3000 suites and is considered the biggest single building construction in Asia.

I am still not finished sorting and resizing the thousands of pictures that Howell took during our last four day vacation. We only have one day free to go to Macau but we really see to it that we would be able to check out the Venetian Hotel in Macau. Almost all of us were able to visit the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas and the Venetian in Macau is indeed bigger compared to the one in Las Vegas.

We were really not able to check out all the shops but we really see to it that we try the Gondola Ride along the Grand Canal. It was a very relaxing ride especially we are being serenaded by our handsome gondolier, Allisio.

Hope next time we are in Macau, we will have the budget to at least stay overnight and experience a luxurious vacation in Venetian Hotel, Macau.

Look Alike

Do you think they really look alike? And I don’t think we would need DNA testing to prove that Howell is Bela’s dad.

They always say that if your first born is a girl, she will almost always end up looking like her father. I never really believe that especially when I was pregnant as I really want my baby girl to look like me. LOL. But I was proven wrong as you can see in the picture since Bela looks like a little Howell.

All our friends are saying that they can never really deny that Bela is Howell’s daughter. Almost all of Bela’s features, from her eyes, nose and even her complexion, she got from Howell.

Oh well, as some of them say, this only reflects how truly in love I am with my husband since he is the one that is always on my mind when I was still pregnant that is why Bela looks exactly alike like Howell. I guess I have to agree to that!!

Bela's 3rd at Toddlers Unlimited

Bela had her first 3rd birthday celebration with her classmates and teachers at Toddlers Unlimited. The decision to have a party for Bela at Toddlers was a last minute decision as I initially want to just invite her classmates and teachers to her party at Kidz Republic. But since Iall of her classmate celebrated their party at school, I thought that it will be a great experience for Bela to celebrate with her classmates and teachers too. At least this way, I will have a much better chance that all her classmates and teachers will be present to celebrate with Bela which I know Bela will really love.

I just ordered the Happy Meal at Mc Donalds with the Madagascar toys for the kids and Bunch of Lunch from Shakeys for the adults. I also ordered caramel apples from Sanfo Treats for the yayas and the teachers.

I initially want to order balloons from Oriental Trading as it is much cheaper compared to getting it from a party planner but then I thought that I don’t want to go to all the trouble of setting up everything so I ordered the cakes, the cookie lollies and the balloons from a party planner. But we ended up doing and setting up everything as we have to meet with our supplier the night before to get the balloons and cakes and we have to set it up ourselves on the day of the party. But maybe that is the norm for party planners since I only ordered cakes and balloons.

I also ordered backpacks and director’s chair from Sheila, the bag supplier at 168. Honestly, I did not like Sheila’s customer service and how our final order turned out but like what hubby said “Pwede na din” since the kids enjoyed Bela’s souvenirs anyways. The contents of the backpacks, I ordered from Oriental Trading.

Bela was so happy after the party and she keep on telling us stories on how her party went. I was really glad that I made a decision to have a party for Bela at her school.

Wordless Wednesday # 9 - I Love Jollibee

3 @ 3

I told hubby that this is the last time that I will ever be thinking of having three parties for Bela but he just smiled and looks like there is no way he is going to believe me.

But I swear I was so tired after our last party last Sunday that even I was complaining on why I ever thought of having three parties for Bela. LOL. Well like I said before, the party at the orphanage is something that I can’t give up so that is already a given fact that Bela might have a party every year. Then I decided to book Kidz Republic when we checked it out and then decided to just invite Bela’s classmates at the party too. But then I realized that if I really want all of Bela’s classmates to celebrate with her (which I think Bela will really love since I know how much she enjoys her classmates and teachers’ company) then I should just have a party for her at school. So that’s how I end up having three parties.

But by Sunday evening, I was really so tired and I did not even have a decent meal on all those three parties (and so I thought I will need Apidexin to burn my excess fats after pigging out on all those three parties).

Oh well. I really have no right to complain as I am the one who plan for all of this. LOL. And nothing can be better than seeing my daughter had a great time celebrating her special day with all the people that is important in her life.

I will post pictures and stories for Bela’s party at school and at Kidz Republic soon. And you can view pictures of Bela’s party at the orphanage here.

Bela’s 3rd Bday @ Hospicio de San Jose

Yesterday we had a small party at the Hospicio de San Jose to celebrate Bela’s 3rd birthday. It is a Thanksgiving celebration as how my husband puts it.

I just ordered food from Jollibee for a simple merienda and I hired a magician this time to add entertainment for the kids. Of course, Jollibee mascot (who never ceases to please the kids) is present in the party also. The magician performed first then the host from Jollibee conducted some games for the kids before serving merienda. Then all the kids joined in to sing the happy birthday song for Bela. Two kids performed a song number and Bela joined them in singing. The party ended with the thank you song sang by all the kids who joined the party.

This is our second year to celebrate Bela’s birthday at Hospicio and I am glad to see familiar faces that were present during Bela’s party last year. My heart was full of joy upon seeing the kids having a great time. I was deeply touched while I was watching one 9 year old girl who was helping a younger kid eat before she ate her food. I even offered to help her feed the younger kid so she can eat but she said that she is ok. Moments like this makes me really realize that there are still unselfish people out there who would think of others first before themselves.

I was glad while looking at the pictures since I think they really enjoyed having us visit them. If only I can bring all of them home…

We survived

We survived three parties. I never thought that having three parties three days in a row would be this tiring.

We had a celebration at Bela’s school last Friday then a second one with our friends and relatives last Saturday then the final leg of Bela’s 3rd birthday celebration was held today at Hospicio de San Jose. It was indeed very tiring but we did this all for our dear Bela.

After three parties, Howell end up with 2 GB of pictures from last Friday’s celebration, then another 8.7 GB of pictures from the Saturday party and 6 GB of pictures from today’s party. I am not sure now when I can start looking at these pictures, sort them and resize them so I can post it on my blog. LOL. I guess I have to postpone my search for car insurance online and start to take a look at all the pictures that hubby was able to take during those three parties.

Breakfast in Bed

That’s what we had this morning. Bela was so tired from her party yesterday that even though she went to bed early last night, she is still sleeping like a log until 9 AM. Howell and I woke up early today since we have a lot of pending tasks to finish before we start our busy day. And so we when our orders from Jollibee arrived, Howell just brought it upstairs so we can work while we eat.

I have been working really hard as I need to earn extra money since I am saving for the following things:

1. Pocket money for our upcoming Davao trip
2. Donations for the Christmas party that my friend is organizing for the children cancer patient at PGH
3. My LV bag (if ever I decide to finally get one this week).
4. tv lifts for our room
5. Shoes and clothes for Bela for Christmas
6. Budget for my Christmas shopping for all our friends, relatives and god children

I have a long list that is why I really have to work double this because looks like I need a big budget especially for the coming holiday season.

Happy Birthday!!

To our dear Princess Bela,

Happy, Happy Birthday.

We love you very, very much!

~ Mom & Dad ~

My Friend

Yesterday, I got a phone call from my good friend who is now living in Indiana. She made a long distance call so she can greet Bela a very happy birthday.

My friend moved to Indiana with her family a few years ago when her parents decided to migrate there. She was not really that thrilled when she learned that they will be moving since she already have a stable job here. But good thing she found her new passion. She decided to enroll in one of the beauty schools in indiana where she got good training in cosmetology. And after graduating, they even helped her got a job in one of the famous salons in Indiana. And now she is enjoying every bit of her new found career.

To my friend, I am glad things are really turning well for you and you’re family there. Thank you for remembering Bela’s birthday and hope to see you soon.

Tired

The princess is still sleeping like a log. She was so tired after partying, after playing at the play area and after opening all her gifts last night. But we know that she really had a time of her life.

This afternoon will be her thanksgiving party at Hospicio de San Jose so more party pictures to come….

Presents

Bela opened all her gifts last night and she was ecstatic and was really excited for all the gifts that she received. She asked us to open all the boxes and she played with each one of them and she tried on all the clothes that she got before opening her next gift.

Howell took a picture while we are opening the gifts but as usual, I haven’t sorted the pictures yet. I promise to post all the pictures and stories soon….

Thanks to everybody for celebrating with us. We really, really appreciate it. Till next year!! (LOL).

Supplies

We were so tired yesterday after Bela’s party at Kidz Republic in Mall of Asia. So after having dinner we are so looking forward to bed time. But when I was preparing Bela’s milk, I discovered that her can of milk is already empty so even though my husband was twice as tired as I am (as he was also the photographer for the party), he has to run to the nearest store to buy milk for our daughter.

I suddenly remembered about Allegro Medical where my friend buys duocal for her daughter. It is an online store where they sell all kinds of medical stuff and home health care supplies. What she is doing is that she has set an auto order system so the milk of her daughter is being delivered to her on a regular basis automatically. So she doesn’t have to worry since everything is done for her.

I told my husband about this and he immediately checked the site and set the re-order system for our daughter’s milk supply as well.

Bela is a winner

We attended the 2nd birthday party of Bianca last week at Shakey’s in Katipunan. Bela was able to take a nap so by the time the party started; she was really in the mood.

The first game was we have to look for eggs that they hid and whoever finds an egg will get a price. Since we arrive early (because hubby is the official photographer), Bela was able to roam around the restaurant and she pointed to me all the eggs that she saw as she wants me to get it for her (although I don’t have an idea that the eggs are for the games). So even before the game started, I already know where they are hidden so when it is game time already, we easily got an egg and won a prize.

She also joined the Pass the Balloon game. We were seated when the host is calling the kids to join and when I asked her if she wants to join (after I briefly explained to her how the game goes), she quickly said Yes. She was so excited and she had so much fun passing the balloon around. She was the first one to get eliminated but I was really laughing since she got all excited when they gave her a consolation prize for getting eliminated and she kept on shouting “Yes, yes, I got a prize. Bela is a winner!” while she jumped in joy. She got a Dora activity book and when she saw it, she asked me to take our seat and she said “Mom story time.”

I can’t wait for her party this weekend. Hope she will enjoy it too.

Xmas Gifts

I made a post here about my Christmas shopping wish list for Bela. And here is what I end up ordering from Amazon:


This will be our Christmas gift for her. I just checked and the WowWee Alive Lion Cub Plush Robotic Toy in Tan already arrived in Virginia last week so we will probably receive it this week or early next week. While the Little Einstein toys are already in transit. I was only planning to buy the Leo and the June doll but hubby said to complete the whole set since it is only cheap ($8 - $10 per doll) and it is not available here in Manila so I ordered Quincy and Annie doll too.

I’m pretty excited for the lion plush robotic toy since I know how much Bela adores animals. And since it is the closest thing for a pet lion (LOL) that we can give Bela, I know she will really like it. I showed her the video that I found in youtube and she got all excited when she saw it. I told her that it will be her pet and she named it Alex (from the movie Madagascar).

Capsule of Hope

Thirty years and counting with the good five years of that have helped me tremendously hewn and reaped the fruits of professional fulfillment and the gaiety of motherhood. Throughout those years my life was focused on family and career, so busy and occupied that I failed to notice that I am already gaining weight.

My closes peers who like me were equally a mother yet the vanguard of glamour continue to live in their bodies and make their exact age simply hard to tell, all deeply concerned came to my rescue. They engage me into some serious tête-à-tête conversations and introduced me to the wonderful world of diet pill, their secret that keeps their symmetry looking good and feel beautiful. They let me understood that when it comes to weight loss it’s the best diet pill that matters and formed part to a small decision that adds up and works well to eventually win over unwanted pounds without compromising the health of its users.

As the conversations end its where my voyage begin and start my daily intake and became the newest member of the best diet pill supplement which has become the premier choice among women who wants to bring some heft back to pulchritude. I found out it is formulated with health friendly ingredients that melts and burns my accumulated fats and ubiquitously work by regulating the amount of fats calories intake and speeding its passage through the digestive track preventing my body to take excess and unwanted fats which is the main cause of weight gain without making me feel deprived and down. After just a few days I could feel and see the wonders of this pill worked in my body by the lower numbers register on the scale. About a week, I have to buy new sets of clothing as the former were so loose. This is indeed the true best capsule that I have discovered.

First Time without a Nappy

Last Wednesday, Bela went back to school after their 1.5 week of semestral break. Since we no longer have a free weekend before her birthday, we decided to drop by at Robinson’s Place to buy Bela’s birthday outfit.

On our way there, she made poo-poo and so we decided to not let her wear her nappy after washing her up. I was a bit hesitant to that idea as I am afraid that we might make a mess while inside the mall but I said, what the heck, she will never learn if she doesn’t commit accidents.

We were inside the Guess shop and I was asking her to try on some clothes when she said:

“I’m making wee-wee mom!”

Good thing that the restroom is just beside the Guess store so we hurriedly run there and she did it. She was able to wait until she is seated on the toilet bowl before she did her thing. This is the first time that we went out and we did not let her wear her nappy.

Today, she went to school without her nappy again and we were surprised when she went out of their classroom with Yaya Yenyen. Yaya Yen Yen told us that Bela told them that she is making wee-wee so she accompanied Bela in the restroom and she is successful again.

So I think we are almost done with Potty Training No 1. Now it is time to work on Potty Training No 2.

Fruit-Fully Delicious

Standing out among the prominent fruit bearing trees that typified the generosity of our dear planet earth for the welfare of mankind, Fig trees make a tangible example that had ever hit our soil. The fruits harvested from these fine trees that come in hues of green, white, black and black purple are posit packed with high concentration of vitamins like iron, potassium and fiber have long been recognized way back far beyond the ancient times and figured in one of the greatest biblical parables.

Despite the passage of time, the sting of the ethereal taste of the fruits that came from the trees of fig’s heightened even more and continued to porous universally. It’s a delicious handful of eating pleasure ripened or dried. Fig’s fruits without distinction on their colors as they are all known to be so sweet are a perfect choice to make for a good dessert. Nutritional values are not just what these fruits are made of they also provide medicinal effect to the consumers as the figs contain protein digestive enzymes that help relieved constipation. The leaves can be made into a fine perfume with a fragrant scent of aromatic wood so soothing for the smell.

No wonder why the popularity of these fruits never wane and always whistled and keep the market of its staple supply. They are truly fruit-fully delicious!

New Goal

How time really flies. I can’t believe it is already November and in just a few months it is already a start of a new year. I panicked when I had this realization as it means that it is the start of another fiscal year at work which means that another performance evaluation is coming.

I read my performance evaluation last year and I was reminded of the long term career plan that I wrote on my evaluation and I realized that I haven’t accomplished the major ones that I wrote there like finishing my masteral degree.

My husband has been reminding me that I should really take time to finish my masteral degree. But how can I do that if I have a full time work plus I have a job as a mother to Bela?

But I know that if I really wanted to, I will definitely find a means to finish my masteral degree. That is why I am really considering taking a degree online. I know this is the perfect option for working professionals like me since I can do everything online in my own convenient and preferred time. This means that I can still be able to keep my full time job even if I am studying.

Finishing a masteral degree is really a big plus for my job so I know that this should really be one of my top priorities. I will definitely not be able to finish it before the new evaluation period begins but I should really target to finish my Masteral Degree before the next evaluation period starts again.

This blog post is based on information provided by Blogitive. For more information, please visit Blogitive.com.

Wordless Wednesday # 8 - Magic or Illusion?

Weekend Snapshot # 7 - On her Own

We bought our daughter a new bed two Saturdays ago and since last week, she started sleeping on her own on her new bed. But we are still not ready to let her sleep on her own room so we placed the bed beside ours.

On the first night after her dad assembled the bed, she was excited upon seeing it and she asked me to read her book while she lie down on her new bed. But when she got sleepy, she transferred to our bed. I explained to her that the pink bed is her new bed now but still she preferred to sleep beside us.

On the second night, she fell asleep on her new bed but then she woke up around 4:30 AM and she moved beside us again. But on the third night she started sleeping on her new bed and claims that the pink bed is for Bela only. She won’t even let us sleep beside her and she will tell us to sleep on our bed.

I can’t believe that she is sleeping on her own bed now. Time really moves so fast.

Kidz Republic & Mc Donalds: Booked

I am almost done for the party preparations for Bela’s party. Last week, we went to Kidz Republic to sign the contract, pay the 50% down payment and finalize the menu and the package that we will be getting from them.

Kidz Republic is just above McDonalds and before going to Kidz Republic, hubby suggested checking out their food package and just the perfect timing since the toy that will be included with their happy meal starting November 4 is the toy characters from the movie Madagascar.


Good thing hubby thought of inquiring about it so we decided to get the additional food for the kids from McDonalds so all kids will get to have the Madagascar toy. And hubby was able to make a good deal that we can get the toys in advance so we can add it in our loot bags. We also ordered extra happy meal package so Bela will have the complete set too.

Hubby will be picking up the toys on November 4. Hubby and I are so excited (I think we are more excited than the celebrant. LOL).

And we were also able to pick up our orders of director’s chairs and backpacks for Bela’s school party from Sheila last Friday. I posted my supplier ratings (or should I say rant) here.

Her Pink Bed

Last Thursday, we were at SM San Lazaro to buy a pumpkin for Bela’s Trick or Treat at school. We passed by the Baby section and we saw the 5 piece Toddler Room in a box on display.


It really caught my attention that I immediately inquired about it. The set contains a 28x52 toddler bed, a toy organizer, table and two chairs. It is available in Cars and Disney Princess design. The Disney Princess design is out of stock but will be delivered the next day so I made a reservation right then and there without thinking. LOL. But it is a good deal since they are offering it at 0% deferred payment for six months.

We really had no plans of buying a toddler bed for Bela but we noticed that there are times that she doesn’t want to sleep beside us and would prefer to sleep on the mat alone. And so when I received an SMS form the store manager the next day that my order is already available, hubby and I didn’t think twice and we picked it up that same day. We thought it is really a good dead and the payment scheme is very light since we can pay for it in six months.

Hubby finally had the chance to assemble it yesterday after we picked up the mattress that we ordered. Bela was so excited with her new bed. Here are some pictures while Howell and Bela are busy assembling the bed.

Oasis of Fun and Love

Taking time out from the busy activities to splurge on vacation away from the frenetic pace, hustle and bustle of city life is not only a good chance to give some peace and stillness to our mind but likewise it provides precious bonding moments with our love ones. The best place that compliments the fun and love filled vacation of a lifetime is the beach resort nestled at North Carolina, a professional expert that gives accommodation to all outer banks rentals of every guest. It is the choice destination for an increasing numbers of international tourists and domestic residence who shares a common confidence in a world class beach resort that pushes the boundaries of excellence and an ideal place to bask in the greatest luxury of life. Indulge in the luxury of its classic room accommodations and claim your reprieve for a sweet slumber. Feel a great sense of relief on its well appointed amenities, the piazza of life’s little pleasure. Haute cuisine that guarantees to satiate your most exotic taste is what awaits you at the dining tables.

Set sights to this hottest spot and sanctuary of the senses. Life has become the sum of moments to be cherished. Enjoy the most out of it at North Carolina beach resort at the company of your most beloved and spread your wings at the commanding view of the sea with extraordinary natural beauty in perfect harmony with nature and oasis of tranquility.

Weekend Snapshot # 6 - Halloween 2008 at Toddlers Unlimited

Last Friday was the Halloween Program at Toddlers Unlimited. Bela was a lion and their class danced to the tune of Jungle Adventure. I left work early while Howell took a half day leave just to be with Bela for her program. The lolas and titas are all busy in dressing up Bela and putting her face painting on. While they are at home, Bela was throwing tantrums and would not want to wear her lion costume. Since she was crying, the face painting applied to her was really a mess and so they just decided to remove it.

The lolas got worried but I know that my daughter will warm up as soon she sees all her other classmates wearing their costumes and I was right. As soon as we arrived at the venue, she wore her costume complete with all the accessories and she quickly joined all the other students playing in front while waiting for the program to start.

They are the last one who performed and Bela was already sleepy even before the start their dance number so I got worried that she might throw tantrums again. Good thing she went up in front when it is time for her class to perform and she wiggled and danced and followed her teachers and classmates. I was one happy mommy.

They went trick or treating at the nearby establishments also after the program and Bela went home with a lot of loots too.

Visage of beauty

I want to be slim was a sentiment I used to expressed some years back. To this date I am very much gratified and thanks dearly to the magical power of diet supplements that allowed me to savor the victory on my battle over unwanted pounds. Formulated with the best natural ingredients that targets the main cause of weight gain at the same time works fast to melts fats cells faster than any other brand the market has to offer, no wonder my diet pill has continue to enjoy the trust and be the most popular choice of women who want immediate shaping and toning result since then and heretofore.

Without reservation my subscription to this diet pill has continue from every year in and year out and ever since none of any noisome effect have come my way. I am truly very grateful to be one of the numerous beneficiaries of this wonder pill, my one true friend that helped me in my every step of the way to achieve my greatest monumental makeover of my portly outlook into a rejuvenated and arresting visage of beauty and confidence.

Barney Live in Manila @ SM Cinemas

Barney will have another live show in Manila this coming November. We were able to catch the Barney show last year (you can watch the full story here) and Bela really had so much fun but I was the one who got a bit disappointed though since I was expecting more from the show. I was expecting that the stage will be filled with props and backdrops since that is what I normally see from the live show of Barney that we see on DVD. But instead what they had was a big screen where they show the props and scenes. And so I felt that they could have spend more with the props (as that is what brings the stage come to life) since the price that we paid for the ticket is not cheap.

So when I learned that Barney is having another show here, it made me really think if we should watch it. Add to that the fact that Bela got scared with the last two shows that we watched (Dora the Explorer’s Pirate Adventure at the Aliw Theater and Disney’s Mulan at Greenbelt).

I told hubby about the show and he immediately said No and told me that we should just pass this time and maybe we can try watching show again next year.

Oh well. I still reserved tickets online today (shh, hubby doesn’t know this) so I have at least a day or two to think about it.

For those who are interested to watch the show, here is the schedule:

Nov 22 to Nov 23
12:00NN / 3:00PM / 6:00PM
SM NORTH EDSA CINEMA 8

Nov 29 to Nov 30
12:00NN / 3:00PM / 6:00PM
SM MALL OF ASIA CENTERSTAGE CINEMA

Dec 6
12:00NN / 3:00PM / 6:00PM
SM STA. ROSA CINEMA 3

Dec 13
12:00NN / 3:00PM / 6:00PM
SM DASMARINAS CINEMA 2

Dec 14
12:00NN / 3:00PM / 6:00PM
SM MEGAMALL CINEMA 4
Tickets are priced at:

VIP (Reserved Seating) 1450
Deluxe (Reserved Seating) 930
Premiere (Reserved Seating) 590

You can also check the Ticketnet website for more information.