Mommy Moments - Look At That Mess

First of all, look at that new button! ka-sweet di ba!?

I was watering the plants and when I looked, the little boy was soiled top to bottom.

The other pictures show how delighted my boys eat ice cream. Actually what's left is of course the cream coz it melted from the fridge. Got to get a bigger freezer. Or just wait coz "this too shall pass."

Apart from toys all around, food, sauces, bread crumbs, cheese crumbs, any crumbs are what hurts the most. I just haven't caught in photo my little one's recent habit. Diving on to his weewee.

Kung di lang talaga sila cute...hay!

Click on the badge above to get on the messy stuff with us.

Bitter-melon, Sweet!

We've been constantly harvesting bitter-melon or bitter-gourd aka ampalaya (in the Philippines) from our garden...fresh and organic. On average, we get five fruits per week. But it's been raining lately so we don't expect plenty during this month.


Now what more could I do with our ampalaya that's just steps away from me?

Ampalaya Leaves

- grounded and juiced. Drink a spoonful everyday to relieve cough, fever, worms, diarrhea, diabetes

- warmed leaves. For headaches, wounds, burns and other skin diseases, apply to the affected area.

- powdered leaves and the root decoction. may be used as stringent and applied to treat hemorrhoids.

- juiced. Internal parasites are proven to be expelled when the ampalaya juice, made from its leaves, is extracted.

Leaves and Fruits

- juiced. Helps in the treatment of constipation

Seeds

- ampalaya juice and grounded seeds is to be taken one spoonful three times a day, which also treats diarrhea, dysentery, and chronic colitis.

I've heard that ampalaya has been used by our grandmothers to cure different ailments since then but I was surprised to recently learn that herbal medicine from ampalaya is most significant for the cure of diabetes. And do you know that the Philippine variety is the most potent?

The ampalaya fruit is not only good to aid constipation but it also helps in stimulating the liver for proper secretion of bile juices that are useful for the metabolism of body fat. So if you're on a diet, munch, I mean, include ampalaya in your menu.

Isn't that sweet!

source and source

Mugg Family

Been crazy about making mugg faces in facebook.


Daddy, mommy, Zach and Gabe

Wish my hair is as manageable as in the pic.

You can try making your own muggs here. It's easy and fun.

She Bloggers' Day Out 2

A she blogger comes home to the Philippines, hence, a second meet up. The first this month was successful. Oh! i wish i could be there. Ang layo ko naman kasi. Bandang south naman...

Click the badge above for more info.

What's keeping me busy?

1. Guiding Zach with his worksheets everyday.

2. Daily tasks of a mommy with two highly spirited, highly energetic boys.

They've been biking outside lately after Zach's bike is up again and Gabe received a bike from cousin Dani....which is what the kuya is using coz it's easier to pedal. I think because the pedals are located at the front wheels and it's lighter than his own true bike.

3. Looking at Satellite TV Comparisons since there's no cable connection in our area. I'm itching to use our tv but needs to be mounted first.

4. Making muggfaces at Fb. Soon to be posted the mugg faces of our family.

Oh! the hubby fell asleep already waiting for me to finish posting. We're going to watch a movie tonight.

Good noyt!

Mommy Moments - First Steps

Kuya Zach's first eager steps trying to walk was captured on video. You will see him tiring out his tito Edwin at the end. hehehehe



Gabe was still learning how to walk when his first birthday came.

From Gabe turns 1 12/23/08 12:21 AM

See some more first steps at the

6th Wedding Anniv (supposed) Date

I think this kiddo is the one who enjoyed the "date" the most. Can't sneak from him who woke up earlier than expected from his nap. We went to the mall and he rode the cuddly rides...twice. We were surprised and inquired "kuya" why the ride was too short so he let the kiddo ride one more time for free.

We were disappointed with the food in Reyes Barbecue. We ordered grilled pusit, asparagus wrapped in pork, and sotanghon soup. To my dismay, the food didn't taste like how inviting it was in the photos.

Our moods were then patched up with Country Style donuts.


As we walked around the mall, the kiddo asked for a purple cotton candy. Then hubby decided to buy our anniversary cake. tadah! a slice of mango cashew roll. It's so yummy!

Hubby was telling me that before it's only him and me. And now after 6 years, we might not have a new car with a supercharger, but we have two highly-spirited kids. We're just happy to be enjoying the blessing and joy of having them.

Mommy Moments - Playing Time

I caught my kids playing harmoniously (WOW!) this afternoon. A rare occasion that's why I didn't think twice to take a pic.

The second frame looks like they're fighting but don't worry, they're just playing . No kid was seriously harmed in shooting this photo.


Play along with us at Mommy Moments.

Zach Hates Writing

We're having quite a problem with Zach's studies.

I posted in here how well he was doing previously. He started to learn how to read after being in Kumon for only about 6 weeks. He even perfected his two achievement tests.

The problem now is that he doesn't want to do his worksheets. He hates writing. He does the reading but doesn't want to do the writing. Previously, he answers his homeworks but really slowly and I needed to push him for him to be able to finish it. There's one time when he told his teacher "I don't like you!" while the teacher was telling him to finish his worksheets. If he fights his teacher like that, how much more with me at home?

The head of the center talked to me and told me that we need to reduce his load of worksheets from ten pages to five pages per day. The reason she told me is so that Zach won't have a negative implication about studying. Until he gets the hang of it.

He still does the worksheets with lots of motivation, prodding, convincing and bola-bola about the pictures in the worksheets or just about anything. To tell you honestly, it even comes to fighting.

As his teacher suggested the last time we went to Kumon center, I give every page of worksheets to him one by one. At first, it works. But later on he doesn't want to do it again. I also don't quite approve of this technique coz I want Zach to build a study habit that is regular and focused to his studies when it's study time.

I felt that I've tried everything already. And I thought once that I want to quit teaching him.

Do you have the same dilemma? How did you deal with it?

How well do you know yourself? A Personality Test

Yami requested me to take a Personality Test and share the results. Thanks Yami!

Here are the rules:

1. Open this web site: Personality Test.

2. Take the Personality Quiz.

3. Copy and paste the result on your blog.

4.Tag as many friends as you can and link to the friend who tagged you.

My result:

Your view on yourself:

You are down-to-earth and people like you because you are so straightforward. You are an efficient problem solver because you will listen to both sides of an argument before making a decision that usually appeals to both parties.

The type of girlfriend/boyfriend you are looking for:

You are a true romantic. When you are in love, you will do anything and everything to keep your love true.

Your readiness to commit to a relationship:

You are ready to commit as soon as you meet the right person. And you believe you will pretty much know as soon as you might that person.

The seriousness of your love:

You like to flirt and behave seductively. The opposite sex finds this very attractive, and that's why you'll always have admirers hanging off your arms. But how serious are you about choosing someone to be in a relationship with?

Your views on education

Education is very important in life. You want to study hard and learn as much as you can.

The right job for you:

You're a practical person and will choose a secure job with a steady income. Knowing what you like to do is important. Find a regular job doing just that and you'll be set for life.

How do you view success:

You are afraid of failure and scared to have a go at the career you would like to have in case you don't succeed. Don't give up when you haven't yet even started! Be courageous.

What are you most afraid of:

You are concerned about your image and the way others see you. This means that you try very hard to be accepted by other people. It's time for you to believe in who you are, not what you wear.

Who is your true self:

You are full of energy and confidence. You are unpredictable, with moods changing as quickly as an ocean. You might occasionally be calm and still, but never for long.

Want to get to know more about yourself? Try this test please Swami and Laine.

2009 is 6th

July 13, 2009...6th year anniversary.

Happy 6th Year Anniversary my Love!

Hep hep...This photo was in Coron, we have yet to celebrate.

2 Corinthians 1:21-22

²¹Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, ²²set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

^{Song of Songs 1:2}

² Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—
for your love is more delightful than wine.

Mommy Moments x 2

Catching up two previous Mommy Moments themes from the previous weeks.

Encounter with Pets or Animals

We visited Ark Avilon Zoo last December 2007. What's good about is that you can actually go inside the dens to feed or touch the animals. Zach and Dani enjoyed petting and feeding the rabbits.

After a lot of convincing, Zach tried to go inside the turtles' den inspite of his fear.
Entrance: P250pax










This time in Manila Zoo, Zach wasn't afraid of the snake. He obviously has more guts than the mommy.

Entrance: P20

Photo with Snake: P100







This was in Paradizoo. You will really meet different kinds of animals here. According to kuya Zach, the pony ride was enjoyable.

Entrance: P200pax

Pony Ride: P30 per round






Pouting Face

Mommy was so busy shopping for shoes...I might try Online Kids Wear from India next time.


Join us in

Zach's Birthday: Simple Joy

We're happy to see Zach with all smiles as he went downstairs from the bedroom yesterday morning. We greeted him with a happy birthday song and a birthday cake with the no. 4 candle on top. He was really happy to see the balloons and the decorations that we made while he's asleep the night before.

He was even more delighted to open our gift for him, a Starscream Transformers robot. Bumblebee and Starscream are now comrades. :P

We were happy as well to have friends, our bible talk group, come over for our bible talk last night. They brought food so my spaghetti was not lonely on the table. Our friends' kids and our kids = party! We sang again the birthday song for Zach before we started the bible talk.

I was again fulfilled to see the pureness of a kid's happiness with just a simple celebration of his day.

A Friendship Chain

One of my friends here in blogsville want to let me join the friendship chain. Thank you for remembering me Enchie and including me in the list. She is one extraordinary mommy who never neglects to take care of her family's needs without abandoning her own stuff as well. She's one of my idols when it comes to photography.

~~Begin Copy~~

This is the easy way and the fastest way to :

1. Make your Authority Technorati explode.

2. Increase your Google Page Rank.

3. Get more traffic to your blog.

4. Makes more new friends.

Rules :

1. Start copy from “Begin Copy” until “End Copy” to your blog.

2. Put your own blog name and link. 3. Tag your friends as much as you can.

1.Picturing of Life 2. Juliana’s Site 3. Hazel-My Life, My Hope, My Future.4. Jeanne-The Callalily Space5.My Family is my Life 6. The Simple Life of a Baghag 7. On A Wonderful Day Like Today 8. House Everything 9. The Creativity in Me 10. Travel and Photography 11. Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow 12. You Are My Sunshine 13.Song to Remember 14. Super Blog 15. Philiippine Tv Marathon 16.Simply Blue 17. Breaking the Boundaries 18. Top Five 19. A Simple Life 20. Simple Happy Life 21. A Great Pleasure 22. Glossa~licious 23. Time Goes By 24. Sweet Nothings 25. A Time To Weep And A Time To Laugh 26. You're Next

~~End Copy~~

Please join us: Yami, Tricia, Kikamz, Shimumsy, Shuhow, Sexymom, Sassy Mom, Roselle, Rona, Pinaymama, Phebie, Mommy Ruby, Mitch, Mira, Mhay, Meryl, Mel, Maxi, Maureen, and last but not the least, Jes.

Zac Turns 4

July 8 is my eldest's birthday. He's now turning 4. How time flies so fast. If I could just stop him from growing...But before the emo comes to me I should be cramming now and I'm indeed out of time, planning out how to make him feel special and loved on his birthday tomorrow.

I'm not done yet with planning for Zac's birthday and maybe I got to check out the internet for more great ideas like DIY decorations and games for kids.

Coron Palawan: Day 1 - More Serene

Getting There

The kids unexpectedly woke up as I and hubby are getting ready to leave at dawn. Inspite of stopping by 7-eleven with Zach, I still needed to shut my ears from my kids' cries as we left home later than planned.

Going to Coron Palawan by plane takes only 50 minutes from Naia Terminal 3. We got tickets for only 2K/person from a promo earlier in the year.

Mejo nanibago ko sa ride na to. There were thick clouds on the way that's why the ride was bumpy and jittery. Got a little nervous and was now pinching on hubby's arm. This was the first time I had a bumpy plane ride. Maybe because the plane was rather small, I felt like we were easily blown by the wind there up high.

When the black clouds disappeared, the scene atop was awesome!


Red Earth
We arrived Busuanga Island (Coron is a town in Busuanga) at nearly 11 AM. A van was already waiting for us and took us to the town of Coron. 40-minute ride mostly on rough road.

The soil here is amazingly reddish brown in color. It's like powdered flower pots all around.

We ate lunch at Trining Bacsa Restaurant and a meal of about P350 filled us up. And while we're filling our tummies, the tour guide was buying our food in the market. The food is included in the island hopping package of P3,300 pax. We were then fetched by the tour guide with 2 tricycles and were taken to our boat.

Oops! where's my sunblock? I need to put it now or else I'll be needing southern california plastic surgery sooner.

Malcapuya Island


More than halfway to Banana Island, we had a short stop by. Malcapuya Island looks like little Bora, only more serene and cleaner *wink*. The owner is so kind to let visitors without requiring entrance or cottage fees!

Can you see me running from the beach? Luckily, this pic doesn't show that I need breast augmentation in los angeles.

Banana Island

We finally hit Banana Island after 2 hours at sea. Our boatman said that the island is shaped like a banana that's why it's called as such.

Green grass, blue sea and white clouds all at once refreshed our eyes and soul. Corals and different kinds of fish are visible, you just need to watch out for sea urchins.

Come dinner time, we had a sumptuous feast of crabs, steamed fish, shrimps, fresh seaweeds on vinegar dip, vegetable salad and ripe mangoes for desert. We will surely need los angeles tummy tuck if this would be an everyday meal.

Took a rest in one of the hammocks, which I realized are effective tranquilizers. I retired for the day as early as 9PM. Or there's just nothing to do but sleep.

To be continued...