Adrianne's Baptism

We finally had Adrianne’s baptism last Dec 23. Though it was all last minute I was able to book the church, did the seminar, booked a restaurant for the reception and booked a photographer. It was a no fuss, no frills event.

Church: Mary Star of The Sea 870 W 8^th St , San Pedro, CA 90731

Actually di namin plan na gawin sa parish namin ang binyag plano sana namin dun sa malapit sa house ng tita ko sa Los Angeles or sa malapit sa sister ko sa Corona. Kaso naisip ko teka nga pala dapat una yung convenience namin kesa sa ibang tao. If di sila makapunta okay lang kesa naman kami mahirapan kasi malayo. Ang original schedule ng binyag ay dapat January 13.Kaya lang nung nalaman namin na puede pa kami ma-accommodate sa Dec 23 na date nagpalista na kami. Kaya okay na rin kasi 3 families lang kami more time for picture taking. It was a great experience.

Reception Venue: The Golden Pheasant 1077 W Carson St Torrance, CA 90502

Ang unang choice ni Philbert was a buffet restaurant kaso tumawag ba naman sa amin ng 6PM na din na daw nila kami ma accommodate the next day kasi shut down ang kitchen nila. Naku po nag panic talaga ako kasi nasabihan na namin lahat ng tao na dun gagawin ang reception. Buti na lang may alam si Philbert na restaurant. So we went there and nagpa book na kami agad. Buti na lang nasabihan agad na nagpalit ng venue. Madami rin naman yung food nakapag pauwi pa kami sa mga bisita.

BAPTISMAL GOWN: Something I found on EBAY

I really liked her baptismal gown so simple and yet so nice. Unfortunately she barely wore it because it was a bit too tight. Sinuot na lang naming sa kanya nung picture taking na.

BAPTISMAL DRESS: Something I found on EBAY/

I really loved her dress it wasn’t pure white It had touches of pink on it. But It was a great and she was comfortable in it.

PHOTOGRAPHER: Julie Livingstone

She was a member in one of my egroups she was honest enough to say that she had no experience in taking photos of a baptism but it was okay I told her because I would tell her what to do. She showed up on time much earlier than me which was great. She gave me a great deal and I can’t wait to see her photos.

Mamaya Na...

Mamaya na ang binyag hayy salamat mangyayari na rin ito..
Dapat talaga natutulog na ako. Pero may aayusin na lang ako
bago matulog.I thought we couldn't pull this off but we did..
Kanina habang nasa labas kami biglang tumawag yung
restaurant kung saan gaganapin ang reception.
Di daw puede sa place nila kasi daw sarado kitchen nila
kasi may nasira sa kusina nila.. Buti na
lang may alam si Philbert na ibang chinese restaurant na
masarap din naman kaya dun na lang kami nag dinner
tapos nag pa reserve na rin kami ng 2 tables. Habang nag
dinner kami taranta ako sa pag text sa mga tao to let them
know na may change of plans.

Will definitely be posting photos of the binyag.

Adrianne's Birth Announcement Card

An Early Gift

I received the packages in the mail. Thanks so much
to my kumareng Pinky for the wonderful gifts.
What makes this so special is that Pinky lives in the Philippines.
So talagang super touched ako that she thought
of sending us a gift. So to you my
dearest friend thanks so much. .
I ready mo na ang famous Hello Kitty collection
kasi susunduin namin yan ng inaanak mo.
(hahahhaha!!! baka isauli bigla ang kandila)

My Trio

Binyag..updates

Finally nagawa na namin ang seminar.. The baptism will be done
next Sunday. December 23 tamang tama ika 2nd month ni
Adrianne. May slot kasi na open and sabi baka 2 or 3 families
lang ang magpapabinyag.Naisip ko agad ayan maraming time
magpa picture for the scrapbook.Thankfully open pa yung
photographer na kausap ko.

We will be hosting a small dinner for those that
will be coming. Pero the major event, the

reception (parang kasal ano) will be on January kasabay na
rin ng celebration ng 7th birthday ni Kuya Joshwa.


Grabe na ito parang production number ang binyag na ito

sobra sobra ang logistics involved. Pero salamat at
evertyhing is falling into place.


Ang kailangan na lang bilhin this week ay damit ni Philbert
and Joshwa. Gusto ko sana pareho sila nang polo.


2 sets of godparents will be there this Sunday.

Namely:

Nets---- My sister
Kuya Ariel-- Brother in Law
Floyd---- Friend ni Philbert
Ces--- Neighbor namin



Karamihan ng Ninangs nya are based in the Philippines
there are Ninangs na based in the US pero di sila makakapunta.


I know na maski malayo sila they will still be able to give
guidance and be great ninangs kasi there's always
technology to help bridge the gap.

Ang Binyag..

Tomorrow will be the seminar for Adrianne's baptism.
Problem lang is kailan nga ba talaga ang binyag.
Naka schedule ang binyag sa January 13. 3PM
sya tapos dinner ang kainan. Im tempted to have her
baptised on December 23 tapos have the reception
on January 13 para lunch time ang kainan
kaso baka wala nang slot sa December 23.
Kasi parang ang weird na dinner ang kainan sa binyag
tapos Sunday night pa. Di pa rin kami decided sa venue
kung saan ang reception. Definitely it will be in a restaurant.
I know we can pull this off. I hope maging okay
ang kakalabasan.

Ano na ba nagawa ko sa far?

---Bought the outfits

---Booked the church
--- Attend the Seminar
---Found a supplier that will make the invites
---Found a supplier that will make the give aways
--- Booked a Photographer for the church.
I was able to get a good rate kasi taga San Pedro
lang sya pero mahal pa kung pati yung reception kasama.
Lalo na yung reception will be most likely 30-45 miles away.

Ano pa ba dapat gawin
--- Find a reception venue
--- Buy outfits for the 3 of us
---Order a Special Cake for Joshwa
---Order Joshwa's birthday gift
---Find an entertainer preferrably a magician para may kaunting
entertainment kasi nga birthday din ni Joshwa
--- Call and Confirm with friends and family na Ninong sila
or Ninang sila.

Madami pang dapat gawin pero may nasimulan na
rin pala ako.

Joshwa's Latest School Photo

My Only Fan

I admit i'm not a singer.. The singer sewing machine sounds
better than me. I like to sing my heart out much to my
family's embarrassment Philbert and especially Joshwa
when I would start singing he would cover my mouth
if he could speak he would definitely tell me to stop singing.
My mom once described my singing voice as the sound
of the siren of a big ship.

But still I sing because I know I would find someone
who will just listen to me and not react and kind of enjoy it
and that is Adrianne.

Lately when she starts getting fussy I would open
youtube and look for Darius Ranesh's song
Colourblind and she would stop crying and I would
sing along to it and she would look at me as if
telling to sing. Of course I have other songs
on my playlist and she seems to have a preferrence
for boyband songs.

The downside is that my voice is a little
bit hoarse from all the singing. But what
job doesn't have an occupational hazard?

Joshwa

Here are some photos of Joshwa.. He'll be turning 7 next month..

Joshwa

I haven't been blogging about Joshwa lately..
He's been adjusting really well to the new baby.
He knows her because when we tell him Joshwa
where's Adrianne your baby sister he will come and
kiss her on the forehead. I keep telling him that
he will not be replaced and we love them both.

He's not as demanding with me when I'm with
the baby but he's more clingy with Philbert.
He reacts a bit when Philbert is holding the baby
but he's getting used to it.

Academically he's doing great and winter break is almost here.
On December 5 and we're going to have his yearly
Individualized Education Program(IEP) meeting. Where
we will be discussing his goals for the year. Let
me just discuss briefly what it is.

What is an an Individualized Education Program (IEP)?
It describes the educational program that has
been designed to meet that child's unique needs. Here in the US
each child who receives special education and related services must have an IEP.
Even if you are applying for outside services like from the Regional Center.
Each IEP must be designed for one student and must
be a truly individualized document. The IEP creates an
opportunity for teachers, parents, school administrators,
related services personnel, and students (when age appropriate)
to work together to improve educational results for children
with disabilities. The IEP is the cornerstone of a quality education
for each child with a disability. For me IEP meetings can be
at times a cause of stress because if you feel that your child should be
getting more then you have to be prepared to fight for it. I'm lucky that we
found a great advocate who has been helping us navigate this process.

December na???

Ay grabe December na where does the time go? I can't believe it
malapit na ang pasko. Tagal na rin akong di nakaka scrapbook.
I've started work on Adrianne's 8x8 scrapbook. Guilty ako kasi
di na talaga kaya na gumawa ng 12x12. Pag ginawa ko yung baby
scrapbook album nya baka 7 years old na sya ginagawa ko pa rin.
So much to do so little time pero on the other hand If you want it
so much you'll make time for it. Saan nga ba ako dun?? ah ewan ko
in between siguro. I started making christmas cards na from my
stash goodluck sa akin sana matapos ko. In fairness nagawa ko na
ang isa naipadala ko na sa Christmas Card Exchange buddy ko.
1 down 29 to go na lang goodluck na lang sa akin sana kayanin ko.
My goal is to finish as much as I can so it can be sent out ASAP.

Our New Toy

For the longest time I have been on a lookout for a new camera.We really needed a new one. I was debating to either get a wishblade or a new camera it can't be both so the camera won.The best part is I didn't have to fall in line to buy it. I just have to wait for it. Hopefully it will be here by Dec 5.

Here are the details of our new toy.

Fuji FinePix S800 SLR-Style 8MP 10X Zoom Digital Camera

Resolution (in pixels): 8 megapixels - delivers high quality with sharper,

more brilliant, higher-resolution pictures

Zoom: 10X optical, 4.8X digital, 14.8X total - get up to 10 times

closer with the touch of a button; equal to 38 - 380mm camera

Display: 2.5" LCD or viewfinder - easy to see what you're shooting

Memory: 27MB built in, expandable to 2GB with xD or SD cards

(sold separately) - so you always have plenty of memory available

Other Differentiators:
· High light sensitivity up to ISO 1600 - shoot even in low

light without a flash for more natural-looking photos
· Picture Stabilization Mode - reduces blur caused by camera

shake or subject movement
· Intelligent Flash - when needed, flash pops up; flash output

is adjusted to give you ideal pictures without wash-out common to other flashes
· Camera can function like a camcorder with camcorder functions
· Natural Light and Natural Flash mode - takes two shots in quick

succession, one with flash and one without, displaying them side by side

on the LCD screen; less likelihood of missing a good shot due to the wrong setting

Additional Features and Specifications:
· File Formats: JPEG. AVI, Wave
· Storage Media: Choice of xD or SD
· Lens Focal Length: 6.33 to 63.3 (35mm=38 to 380mm)
· Image Sensor: 1-2.5 CCD
· Focus: Auto focus
· Focus Range: .4 to infinity
· Flash: Automatic
· Aperture: f3.5 - 3.7
· Viewfinder: 2.5" LCD or eye level electronic
· Exposure Control: Automatic
· Exposure/Shooting Modes: Choice of 25
· Color Modes: Normal, fine or black and white
· Shutter Speed: 4 seconds to 1/1000
· White Balance: Automatic
· Digital Interface: USB
· Power Source: 4 AA batteries
· Product Weight: 10.8 oz. without batteries or memory card
· Still Resolutions: 8MP F, 8MP N, 3:2, 4MP, 2MP, .3MP
· Frames Per Second: 30 fps
· Sensitivity: Up to ISO 1600
· Body Type: SLR style
· Measures approx. 4.2"L x 3.75"W x 3"H
· Made of metal, plastic and glass
· Made in China
· Comes with a manufacturer's 1-year limited warranty

Adrianne's Latest Photos

Adrianne's Latest Photos.. I can't believe it she'll be a month old on Friday..

Too Much TV!!

I know i'm watching too much tv and reading too much pinoy chismiss. Coz the other night I had a dream. Para nag ala Carlene daw ako (for those na di kilala ni si Carlene. Ex GF ni Dennis Trillo na dineny ang anak nila then inamin tinapon sya sa US para manganak tapos pag uwi nya ng Philippines eh naka move on na si Dennis at nag date na ng iba ang resulta sinugod ni Carlene ang dinedate ni Dennis..) it was liked I was placed in the same situation and nanugod daw ako pero the difference sa panaginip ko the other woman fought back sa dream ko tinulak ako and I even told Philbert pa daw pick me choose me, love me and I started crying and wailing out loud kaya ako nagising kasi Adrianne started crying..

Lately, I've been watching too much of Zaido di dahil kay Dennis but because it brings happy memories of childhood.. My last song syndrome is the Kuma dance song... Umm shigi shigi.. ganun na ba ako katanda..

I started watching La Vendetta last week and for someone na di mahilig sa nakakatakot im still watching it. Pero etong La Vendetta maski nakakatakot sige nuod pa rin ako kasi okay naman ang plot nakakatakot lang talaga once they play the music at biglang may multong sumusulpot and I scream out loud. Wala lang ako lang tumatakot sa sarili ko.

I admit matatakutin ako super I don't like watching horror ,scary, gory movies basta anything na may multo ayoko.Kaya nga when asked by Jaime Licauco if i want to open my third eye. I said no thank you and he said other people want to open their third eye bakit ako ayoko. Sabi ko kasi takot ako ano.. I believe in ghosts and elementals pero di ko na sila kailangan makita. There are things better left unseen.. Like for a fact I know maraming spirits sa hospital and strangely enough wala halso multo sa sementeryo. Basata ayoko sila makita kasi talagang matatakot talaga ako. I know people say matakot sa buhay wag sa patay. I don't care what they say basta takot ako talaga..

Another thing I don't like are Rats.. Diring diri lang talaga ako.. Parang pag nakakita ako nun feeling ko lang madumi sya saka may dala syang rabies. Kaya nga yung Ratatouille di ko talaga sya kayang panuorin.Kasi although they tried to put the rat in a different light its still a rat.

Thanksgiving

Excited na ako mag thanksgiving na..Im excitedly looking forward to it because I don't have to cook.. (hahaha) It will be so great to really give thanks and spend the day with Philbert, Joshwa and Adriannet. We are also spending that special day with our respective families who have been there for us in good times and in bad. I think that is what thanksgiving is all about..

Philbert's Tag

This tag is simple. If you feel comfortable and your better half does too, you can post a picture of him in your blog (but if not a description will do). May it be a baby picture anything that you like with the following:

1. First name: if he doesn’t like his name plastered all over the internet, a pet name will do.
2. How and where did you meet?
3. Characteristics
4. Your plans 20 to 30 years from now.

My Husband's name is Philbert we met through Ginger.
Actually the real story is that Philbert WAS TRYING
to hook up with Ginger.Since Ginger just got out
of a 5 year relationship and was starting to guys
who I felt were not right for her.I offered to screen
this latest acquaintance of hers. So I met up with
him and found myself to be always talking to
him on the phone and having lunch with him.
Since his office was one jeepney ride away
from my home. I was thinking he's a nice
guy and Ginger would be lucky to have him.
I caught myself wishing I wish I have someone
like him in my life. Someone who is constant
and someone who will love me and really take
care of me. I asked Philbert in one of our
phone conversations what his type when it
comes to girls. He said that once he has met the girl
he will know that she's the one. He says that
every girl that he meets is a potential girl
for him. Syempre ako naman nagpapacute
eh ako potential din ba for you. Sabi nya hindi
kasi ang tingin ko sa yo bestfriend kasi di ba
bestfriend ka ni Ginger. (Those words
haunt him til now)

Then we had a foursome date
Philbert, Ginger, Jason and I. We rode a cab
and ate at Shakey's in Park Square I.On the
way to the venue Philbert who was seated in front
of the cab kept glancing at the back and I was like
wow he must really like Ginger he kept glancing
at her. The date ended and Philbert brought me
home. We set a day to go to Ginger's home
on June 19 so he could see where she lived.

The next day I asked Ginger what the deal
was.. Does she like him? She said that she thinks of
him only as a friend. I took it upon myself to tell him.
Since he became my friend na lang din. We decided
to try out my chat software. Here's some part of
the conversation..

Me: Bakit tingin ka ng tingin sa likod sabi ko
kay Ginger nakatingin ka sa kanya.Sabi nya
hindi daw ikaw sa kanya nakatingin sa akin daw.
Totoo ba yun??

Philbert:Oo sa yo ako nakatingin

Me: Why? Eh di naman ako ang pinopormahan mo ano
Hello!! Si Ginger di ba?

Philbert: Nag iba na eh.. Nakita ko si Ginger wala na akong
na feel wala nang dating ikaw pala gusto ko

Me: Tama bang sa chat ka magtapat kausap kita
araw araw. Lagi ka andito sa chat ka magtatapat

Philbert: Natotorpe ako eh.. Parang di ako bagay
sa yo. Pero promise ko lahat gagawin ko para
sa yo.Gusto kita.. sana gusto mo ako

Me: Di ako sasagot sa chat.Ituloy pa rin natin
ang lakad natin sa Sat pero instead of
going to Ginger's home mag mall tayo then
maybe we could talk about this.

June 19.. Our First Date the date we decided to
give US our try.

Philbert is a good person, very great
husband and the best father.He really takes care
of me and the kids.

I just hate it when he has one
of his PMS moods..I hate those computer games
hayyy pag nag computer na wala nang kilala.
I know dapat masaya ako kasi he doesn't go
out and walang bisyo. No one is perfect and thats
what annoys me talaga sa kanya..

Ten, Twenty or Thirty years from now. We will still
be together that I know. We will still be the same
couple who argues alot but will be holding hands and
hugging and being sweet when we know that no one is watching.
We will still say I love you to each other and I know
that our kids will be proud of us because after
all the storms and the trials and the tests that have
come our way we are still together. I know because
I saw that example from my parents and my in laws.

My Top 5 Baby Things

Here is my list of 5 Baby Things I can't live without this is of course aside from the baby essentials like milk, diapers and wipes. This is ranked in no particular order

1. The Baby Sling- I thought i'd never be able to use of this things kasi nga lampa ako so iniisip ko baka mahulog ko lang sya. Pero di naman pala ganun kahirap gumamit nun. I use it when I need to go out and pick up Joshwa from the bus stop or when I need to carry her and yet I need to do somethng else. Lifesaver!!!

2. The Baby Bouncer-- I put her there and she's okay. I love the vibrate mode feature on the bouncer.

3. Playtex Drop In Liners- Another lifesaver for me coz I dont have so many bottles to clean. I only just to keep sterilizing and cleaning the nipples.

4. Johnson's Disposable WashCloths- This is such a great product..

5.First Years Close and Secure Sleeper--I'm so paranoid of SIDS so this is a great product.I use it on her crib and secures with velcro attachements. The sleeping surface is gentle, but firm for baby's safety. Though I know she doesn't like it at times but I dont want her to sleep on the bed just yet kasi baka madaganan sya ni Joshwa. Likot ni Joshwa matulog

Adrianne's First Bath

Here are photos of Adrianne's First Bath. Philbert gave her a bath. I'm scared that since she's slippery and wet that I might drop her and besides somebody had to document it for her scrapbook.

Etc

Slowly adjusting to our new life and I'm loving it.. Adrianne is an easy baby doesn't take much to calm her down. Thank God she's not colicky .. I couldn't imagine how our life would be without her. Can I just say that I love the baby plus gadget. Most of the testimonials that they say on the website is so true. It's a bit pricey but its a great investment.

Having Adrianne also gives me a second chance to start anew and do things that I never did with Joshwa. Like train her to sleep in her own crib, wake up for the night time feedings(Philbert did that with Joshwa), totally take care of her on our own with no outside help. The term sleep while the baby sleeps is totally true in my case.