Random Sunday: An Accidental Euphoria

Nov 15, 2010: I am watching the movie Inception today and can’t help but think what a convenient life I still have. For all that, I get to watch a good movie despite of being broke.
 Thank God for cheap DVDs! Happy Friday!

It was an entry in my journal the other last Friday. I don’t know if it was the movie that moved me or the surge of happiness that fills me. I feel genuinely blessed because despite of having just enough, we still get to enjoy simple pleasures in life.

Here are 5 circumstances that I’m thankful for being broke or having just enough:

1. I’m thankful for TIME

I’m not really good in time management, in fact, I sucked at it. It’s one reason why I can’t work in an office and do my maternal duties afterwards in a timely basis. Since I resigned from work, I was able to have all the time that I need to take care of my family, strategically planning my own version of a gourmet meal to please their impeccable taste in food choices and being a hands-on Mom to my youngest, Polie.

Cezanne and Theodore

And finishing 2-3 books in a week, writing in a weekly basis, and organizing our closet space in a daily basis which is therapeutic for me.  

I’m thankful because I have all the time I need to be a mom, a wife and an individual.

2. I’m thankful for GOOD HEALTH

We have a Pescetarian household. Our food menu consists mainly of tofu, vegetables and fish. My hubby is hypertensive and it helped lowered down his blood pressure. My eldest learned to eat his greens. We seldom get sick and our skin is glowing.

I’m thankful because I encouraged my family to eat sensibly,

 keeping them on top of their health.

a typical meal in our home

3. I’m thankful for FAMILY BONDING

Because watching in a movie house would cost us more money to spend, I decided to have weekly DVD marathons instead. It’ll be cartoon night every Friday and chic flick night every Saturday. It has been a routine that we do for 4mos now. We would eat chips, popcorn, chocolates, cheese and drink wine. We would talk, laugh and reminisce the good old times. My eldest would watch with us on a Friday cartoon night eating cheese and discussing movie synopsis with his Dad.

I’m thankful because we still get to watch a good movie, pig out on junk food and drink wine, the three of us together, talking and laughing to our hearts’ content.

Our typical Friday or Saturday night

4. I’m thankful for MOM & DAD ALONE TIME

We still go out every payday. Hubby would treat me to food joints or budget-friendly restos that we haven’t tried yet. We made it a vow to go out on dates and pretend that we’re still on our dating/courtship stage which I think, helped us to keep the fire burning after years of being together. It gave us ample quality time to talk about almost anything, from food cravings, workloads and stress, to raising our kids and personal issues we need to resolve, giving us a better understanding of how a marriage works.

Because we just love to eat together,

 I’m thankful we could still go out on dates and eat good food.

at Bag of Beans, Tagaytay

5. I’m thankful for FAMILY VALUES

At an early age, my eldest learned to improvise. Instead of asking for expensive gadgets, he opted to ask for books and art supplies. I’d like to think that in a way, I taught and encouraged him to be creative and helped in honing his artistic skills. Unlike other kids his age, he’s not into materialistic gains. He’s more mature for his age, smarter, articulate and kind-hearted.

I’m thankful that I was able to raise a wonderful kid.

Eric's early artworks at 4yo

We’re not a religious family, we seldom go to church, but we make sure to pray and ask for guidance everyday. We may have different beliefs in life, my husband and I, but I’m thankful we remained grounded in our faith and rely in God.

                                

I’m thankful we have this universal ground we call faith.

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I could never be more blessed for having just enough. Most importantly, I’m thankful for a husband whose sole purpose in life is to make life easier for me, who gave me not just financial security but emotional stability as well and I couldn't be more thankful enough.

Trick of Treat '10

I’m thankful for having a family I call my own.

Kuya, Polie and Dad

Obviously Oblivious

Cleaning is a way of how I cope up with "too-much-to handle" situations.

I'm quite obsessed with cleaning the house. Arranging and disarranging my books and dvds, throwing out things that I don't need anymore, organizing our closet space, cleaning the kitchen counter and etcetera. I'm obsessed with cleaning because I badly hoped that it'll be that easy when it comes to dealing with real life problems. It'll be easy as sweeping or dusting off furniture, sadly it's not.

Pain and suffering are integral part of our life.

But it's not always about pain. You don't need to suffer, you need to live. You don't need to lose, you need to be open to risk. You don't impress people, you stick your neck out and be judged. It's not about suffering, but how you see things and deal with it. It's about allowing yourself to feel. It's about being real.

"Mahirap maging babae. mahirap maging kapatid, anak, asawa, ina." from my friend Jen (It’s hard to be a woman. It’s hard to be a sister, daughter, wife and mother.)

How do you cope up with tragedies when you have your own problems to worry about? 

I'm taking a step back. Distressing as it may seem, but I have to escape from it for the time being. I just hope I'm making the right decision this time.

photo credits to: funnycoloring.com

Good Cheap Eats: ATC Food Court

Because we had bad lunch.

My son's Twistix-- surprisingly yummy!
costs around 45-55PHP

Hubby's Beef Yakiniku and my Vegetable Tempura
costs around 200-250PHP for the two meals

We went to ATC food court so we could satisfy our food cravings. 

Nobody beats the food court on affordable food choices!

*Twistix Potato and Tokyo-Tokyo*

Food Trip Friday: Food de Sentosa

First timers to try Singaporean food.

I love how their menu looks like.
 It looks like an ancient tablet.

My Air Bandung or "Rose Tea", YUMMY tea. :)

Mapo-Tofu

Tatay's and Bes's beef and lamb Satay

Soya Garlic Prawns--
 we initially intended to order Cereal Prawn but we want
 something w/ sauce so we ordered this one instead,
 now we regret not getting the Cereal Prawn because
 according to our friend Jen it is to die for.
 Well, there's always a next time. :p

I'm bad at remembering food names,
 but I checked Food de Sentosa's menu and
 this one is called: "Pulot Hitam". It's like champorado
 w/out the chocolate and it has coconut milk,
 extraordinarily yummy! Best thing about it--
it's on the house! Nice, eh? :) 

the aftermath

Hubby and Bes

The verdict:

Food's yummy and reasonably priced for an authentic Singaporean food. 

Cozy place, owner's super nice, making food suggestions and patient enough in answering our queries cos we're clueless on what to eat that night, Lol. Definitely worth trying and next time we'll make sure to order the Cereal Prawn. Great food and service! Kudos! :)

Learn more about it at:

Food De Sentosa

Location:

298 Aguirre Ave., BF Homes (In front of Puregold Jr.)

Random: Monday Morning Blues

Polie at 8.5 mos

Shaking my Monday morning blues away :)

GIGA Seaweed Soap

photo credits: GIGA website

I ran out of soap last month. To avoid the hassle of ordering online and because I badly need it and I can't use commercial soaps due to my allergies, I thought of buying a milder body wash like a baby bath, a temporary replacement for the time being. While doing our groceries last month, to my delight, I stumbled upon GIGA soaps.

I know this product well because I was able to test some of it last year during AAV Cuenca Christmas Bazaar. I was so surprised to find it in a supermarket because I know; we seldom see organic products in a commercial supermarket. But there, they have it in South Supermarket Alabang.

Since, the only two variants are the VCO and the Seaweed Slimming Soap, I chose the latter, not because of its slimming effect- no I don't believe in that shit, but because of the heavenly smell! It's so darn good, it smells like peppermint and the soap is as good as a scrub, plus it's cheaper. A bar only costs 55PHP. But you have to lather on lotion after using it because it tends to dry your skin. After a month of using it, the appearance of my cellulite (on my thighs) improved. It's less visible now, I don't know if it's because of the soap or just because I'm losing weight lately.

I'll definitely purchase some more. Kudos to Pinoy Organic Products! :)

Read more about it at: Giga Website

Buff Time Tuesday: Everything Is Illumenated

This is something I look forward to every Tuesday morning. Good morning everyone! :)

Dexter Season 5 Episode 6 Everything Is Illumenated