Christmas 2014

I can’t believe that July is almost over and before I know it, we are already in the “BER” months which in the Philippines, signals the start of the Christmas season, which only means that 2014 is again almost over.

Last Christmas, I was pregnant with our 3rd child and so I was a bit lazy to move around and do some Christmas decorating. But this Christmas is extra special with a new addition to our family so we are all excited to decorate the house so we can really feel the Christmas spirit. That is why as early as now, we are already checking at christmasplace.com for department 56 as we wanted to buy Christmas village as a new decoration for Christmas in our living room.

But I am sure with or without these Christmas decors, we can definitely feel the Christmas spirit because of the love and joy that is overflowing in our home.

My Brave Girl

Just look at my brave girl:

 

This picture was taken when we went to Tagaytay 2 weeks ago. We went to Residence Inn so the kids can go horseback riding. And when Bela saw the zip line, she did not think twice and she tried it.

It is actually just a zip line for kids but Bela has tried the longer and higher zip line in Picnic Grove. I am glad that he is as adventurous as his dad and she is not like me who is scared of almost anything. LOL.

New Drum Class Teacher

Bela has a new teacher in Drum Class. He is the former drummer of Sponge Cola. Bela loves his former teacher, teacher Elmer, and she is already comfortable with him. But Academy of Rock has opened up their new branch in Megamall and Teacher Elmer has to take the weekend class for drums there. I asked Bela if she wants to follow Teacher Elmer in Megamall, but if I were to choose, I prefer Rockwell than Megamall as I find that mall too crowded.

Bela agreed to try Teacher Chris. During her first two sessions with Teacher Chris, she was just quiet and would even go out of the room or would request that we be with her inside the room during class. As per AOR’s manager, Teacher Chris has a different teaching style as he is stricter than the laid back style of Teacher Elmer, so maybe that's why Bela is having a hard time adjusting.

Bela completed one month session with Teacher Chris and Teacher Chris said that he noticed a big improvement with Bela. Bela is also comfortable now with Teacher Chris and Teacher Chris is even teaching her advance drum skills so Howell and I are really excited and happy with this big improvement.

And since we can really see that Bela is really serious with her drum lessons, Howell is thinking to really convert one of our spare rooms into a band studio complete with all the equipment like speakers and the like.

I am sure Bela would love this idea as she always enjoys spending time in her room, playing with her drums.

Skylanders Fan

My Bela is already 8 years old but she is still into toys. Her current addiction: Skylanders.

Every time she gets a good grade from school, or last Christmas or her last birthday, she requested that we give her any of her favorite Skylanders characters. This toy is actually played with an Xbox or PSP as it interacts with the game but Bela is just interested to play with it as an action figure. LOL.

I was checking her stack of Skylanders last week and I was surprised because she has a lot already. This makes me think that we should get a durable trunk like those Military Footlocker to keep her collections.

Bela's First Gig @ SSC Family Day

Last Saturday was Bela’s Family Day activity in school. I was part of the committee who organized the event and one of the activities that we included was a presentation per class. And for St. Walburga, Bela’s class, I asked teacher if she can help the kids practice the song Roar while Bela plays the drums.

I was actually hesitant at first because the logistics will be complicated as I either have to bring the drum set of Bela in school or I would have to rent. I asked Bela and she is really eager to perform so who am I to say No to that kind of request of my daughter.

And I am glad we pushed through with it because I can see the joy in Bela’s face as she performs. She played the song Roar while her classmates sing and dance to the tune. Here is a full video of the presentation:

And it gave me and hubby so much joy and pride that we were both teary eyed as we watch our princess rocks.

Her Gala Uniform

I was looking for lingerie here for a bridal shower that we are preparing for a friend who will be tying the knot soon but I have to do that some other time because I realized that I have to look for a doll shoes to match the Gala uniform that Bela will be wearing for her First Communion rites on February 23.

Look at how their Gala uniform will look like:

I need to find an ecru colored doll shoes to match the uniform. I thought that I still have a few weeks since the First Communion rites will not be until February 23 but they will have their pictorial next week. Hopefully we can find one later at SM. Any leads?

Skylanders Shirt by MB Project

Bela’s current favorite toy is Skylanders. It is actually an action figure that integrates with an Xbox or PSP. She does not want to play with the Skylanders game but she just like to play pretend with the action figures of the Skylanders, especially the dragon characters. Her favorite is Flashwing and when she showed me the new variation of the Flashwing character, which is the Jade Flashwing, I immediately thought of ordering a shirt with a print of Jade Flashwing for her from MB Project.

When I told her about it, she got really excited and she every minute she will ask me when she will the shirt. That is why when I got the shirt last Wednesday, she was really giddy with excitement. And she got to wear it yesterday when we went out. Of course I also ordered one for Cobi.

Here are the shirts made by MB Project:

They make all kinds of personalize shirts. Check them out in Facebook in Instagram.

No Longer a Baby

Just look at my Bela:

I realized that time flies by so fast and I no longer have a baby. This picture was taken a few weeks ago when they were asked to come in their Sunday dress in school because they will be watching the MidSummer Nights’ Dream play.

I super love the blazer that she is wearing in this picture. I bought it for her for Christmas but she was not able to wear it, that is why I got really excited when I found the perfect opportunity for her to wear it.

Her Own Drum Set

Just look at what we got for Bela for Christmas:

She has been attending drum lessons at Academy of Rock for more than 6 months now and we can see that it is really something that she likes. So hubby and I decided that it is about time that she gets her own drum set at home so she can practice whatever she learned from school.

Her drum teacher was even the one who went to our house to help us setup it up.

And now that we have the drum set, hubby is really keen on turning one of the rooms into a music room complete with high quality musical instruments, amplifiers, speakers and more.

I am sure Bela will enjoy playing with his new toy, especially after her dad finishes the setup of the music room.

Ocean Adventure Fun with the Santos

Last December, our good friends from Canada spent their holiday season here in the Philippines and we are happy that we were able to spend time with them even just for one day. We took them to Ocean Adventure in Subic as we know that their kids will love it there.

Ocean Adventure is one of Bela’s favorite place and she really enjoyed all the shows (even if she has seen it numerous times already), with Cobi, Alijah and Aaron. The highlight of our trip was the kids’ interaction with Tonka the whale, the dolphins and the Dakila, the Sea Lion. Here are some of the pictures: