Daphne @ 3

My plan to organise a simple DIY party for my little princes finally happened last weekend. It just felt so amazing that the inner party planner in me is coming out in the open. Naks! And more than anything else, I'm overjoyed that my girl even loved the small details I came up with for her party. She was still in her pj's when she first saw the Princess Sofia the First party favors and screamed a big "SURPRISE!!!!" in a really loud voice! It was an unexpected reaction, neither one in the house did. I felt a lump in my throat because of happiness and fulfillment. Thank you for noticing our efforts..

I'd also like to give my special shout-out to Seshalyn'sPartyIdeas and SevenThirtyThree for every inspirational ideas and free printables they shared on their respective blogs. Big THANK YOU, ladies, for adding more character to this DIY party. To my dear husband who helped the cut and paste tasks, thanks for extending your patience (I know this is never your thing), to Mom who volunteered to cook a few special dishes and helped our visitors feel welcomed, and to my close friends and family and their kids who joined this celebration. 

Who knew we could pull up a party for 35 visitors with only three people on hand? Yes, no household help at all. I'm proud to claim that I washed the dishes while enjoying chikka with my friends. Ha ha! 

This is how much we love you, my little princess. And my only wish is you continue to grow up with a kind and generous heart whilst young. Happy 3rd birthday! ♥

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Papa John's

Exactly two weeks ago, hubby and I had our first date night this year. I read from MommyTopaz' blog how it helps the husband-wife relationship keep intact despite of a non-free from distraction environment. I couldn't agree more! There are gadgets, internet, cable channels, social media sites - everything that could take away even our few minutes from talking with our spouses. It is that crazy so we couples really need to find a way to squeeze in from busy schedules.

Choosing a perfect spot is also a challenge so I try to plan ahead to also make sure we both enjoy the quick date. At this age, which I think is not too old I suppose, loud places turn me off a lot. Sorry to say but I don't understand how a 35 year old can keep up partying hard all night. Serve me a macchiato and lend me an old book in one corner and I'd probably be  the most contented woman in the whole Manila. Chos!

 

Going back to our date, we went to Papa John's Pizza. That's not Papa John below, okay? Ha ha! Just a disclaimer, a date for me doesn't necessarily mean we need to dress up and eat in fancier restos. Of course, we can be maarte at times but if only called for special occasions. Anyway, have you dined recently in Papa John's? I actually liked it there because it wasn't as crowded as I had expected and our bill was fairly reasonable.

I got tired of drinking iced tea so I chose Sprite with a twist of green apple. I rarely see sodas with cherry on top and you might think it's Vodka with ice. We settled for Potato Wedges for appetizer, Margherita Pizza and Mediterranean Seafood Linguini. That pasta was so good and unique because of the crab meat. I had fun cleaning up my plate. Hubby enjoyed it more by sprinkling a few chili flakes. The potato wedges were thick, piping hot and definitely crunchy on the outside and soft in the inside.

As for the pizza, I feel bad because it did not stand out for me. It's like I've tasted something similar before but couldn't recall when and where. But I have to commend the pizza dough, excuse my expertise but I can tell that it was fresh. We kept our take outs refrigerated and come next day, pizza were still soft and with a finer taste of Mozarella cheese. Weird but maybe the Seafood Linguine overpowered our Margherita that night, something like that. If ever you visit Papa John's for an Italian fix, Php1K budget is good enough for two, no service charge added.

PAPA JOHN'S PIZZA
3rd Level, SM Megamall A,
Mandaluyong City

Heart's Day 2014

 

Hubby and I were never the mushy type of couple. Although we make time for several date nights in a month, I only have one documented formal date we had. Click here for that short story. So last night, just as how every single human being in the universe proclaimed,  I shared the same sentiment that this too shall pass (pertaining to Feb14).. Just like a normal, ordinary day.

It was a terrible night actually, I left the office around 630pm and found myself standing for an hour to get a ride home. A few couples passed in front of me holding hands while the ladies seemed uncomfortable with their bouquet of roses. To each his own, but my gosh, I really can't carry that in public. On a positive note, may mas sweet pa ba sa Pinoy lover boys? Ha ha!

When the hubby arrived home, he surprised me with 6 red roses plus a bar of Toblerone. I thought, ano kayang nakain nito? Chocolates have always been my request and I well knew we both have the same "allergy" carrying flowers, so it definitely took him that huge amount of effort. And I'm more thankful because he brought it home for me.

For that, I think it deserves a space here in my blog. :-)

 

The price for 6 long stems is too steep! Like twice the price of a dozen roses on regular days.

This morning, I thought of creating a table centerpiece so I placed them all in a vase with some warm water. They all bloomed and looked so beautiful! Mas na-appreciate ko sya. THANK YOU again, my dear husband, for the effort and for making me feel well loved. Happy heart's day to all of us! :-)

Kinder Joy

 

My daughter has been watching YouTube videos of Kinder Joy for over a year now. She even calls it "egg surprise" and we both got giddy when we finally saw heaps of them in a grocery store. It was actually her who saw it first. We were paying for our grocery items when she started screaming " Kinder Joy, Kinder Joy, Mommy!". I really thought it's locally available only on selected stores.

 

So when we got home, I took the opportunity to document her first Kinder Joy encounter! I could be silly sometimes you know, but hey, these eggs brought joy to my daughter and the excitement was really contagious. She well knew what to do with these eggs but asked for Mommy's assistance. You need to pull the tip off to split it into two.

  

The first half in gold plastic foil contains the yummy and gooey chocolate, while the other half has the surprise toy. Kids her age would find it difficult to open the sealed part. Of course, she opened the chocolate part first but funny thing, she didn't even want to taste it! I think she was more thrilled to open all the egg surprises at once. For me, the chocolate tasted real good, it reminded me of a simpler version of Ferrero Rocher! There were two crispy wafer balls smothered in milk and chocolate. We placed the other chocolate halves in the fridge to make it firm but I'd still prefer the melted version.

 

And here's the surprise toy parts that are needed to be assembled. A simple flyer is provided which includes instructions on how to create the actual toy. There's also a sticker. To be honest, I don't understand what this toy is, though the sticker shows two guys playing basketball. I guess Kinder Joy just wanted to promote the element of surprise to little kids, like how they open gift boxes during special occasions. Opening one egg will never be enough so make sure buy at least two.

 

Here are the rest of the toys inside. I think they look cuter if there's a handful of them together. We got this for Php45 each which I think is quite pricey if you base it on the quality of the toys. But if these could give your kid that cheerful smile then why would it be an issue? Bumawi naman with the chocolate eh! :-)

Have you tried Kinder Joy too? How was it?

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Woman of the hour

For the record, I am not writing this because I want to take part in bullying, calling her names and bad-mouthing the woman of the hour, Deniece. Wait, I think that should be "woman of the week" instead as it has been so since Vhong (with an H) appeared on national TV like a beaten sparring partner of Pacquiao. Though I'm irritated with names having an irrelevant H, I do wish for his speedy recovery from that unimaginable trauma. No one ever deserves to be treated like that.

Every house, I believe, is waiting how this scandal will end. And even if I knew how people raged on the CCTV footages presented by the NBI, I once tried to put myself in Deniece's situation to be able to understand where her "courage" is coming from. Yung tipong "bilang isang kapwa babae" point of view.

You know it's not easy being interviewed just by yourself, answering accusations alone, proving your statements from interviewers who has each own judgement, and most of all, logging in to all your social media accounts only to be bombarded with so much hate from the whole world. This is definitely not the best way to gain followers on IG and Twitter. Can she still sleep soundly pa kaya these days? And how are her parents coping up with the issue? For these, I give her my sympathy. For all we know, she could be a victim as well. But if you ask me about her TV interviews, well that's a different story.

Teka, how did it all start ba? Was there an infidelity issue in the first place? Or it's just that people nowadays are fond of being too casual, like giving out mobile numbers, inviting someone to your place on your second meet and making out with someone you barely knew. Jusmiyo, whatever happened to golden rule "never trust a stranger?". Tsk! 

Sana lang talaga, justice will be served asap to whoever is proven guilty, because seriously, madami pang problema ang bansa natin na dapat unahin! I hope the pork barrel scam and the Yolanda victims were not like calendar pages flipped when we bid farewell to 2013. I wonder how the worldwide donations are being liquidated? How much billions again?? Hmmm...