100 Day Photo Challenge: Day 7

Day 7: A picture of your most treasured item

Some of the most expensive things that I’ve bought with my own hard-earned money are books. Yep, not clothes, shoes, bags, cosmetics or gadgets. I used to spend a lot of money on books. So when Ondoy ruined almost half of my well-loved hardbounds, I was completely devastated. Okay, nuff said. My books are my most treasured possessions.

100 Day Photo Challenge: Day 6

Day 6
A picture of a person you'd love to trade places with for a day

I didn’t think it would be this hard. There are lots of people I’d love to trade places with. First of, Anne Sexton (when she was still alive), then there’s Yoko Ono (well because she’s John’s wife and I’m a Lennon fan). I narrowed it down to one based on my mood today. I would love to trade places with Kat Von D.

This is pretty obvious without explanation. So yeah, even if it’s just for a day.

100 Day Photo Challenge: Day 5

Day 5
A picture of your favorite memory

You’ve probably read this a dozen times now. I’ve said/blogged about this before and I’ll say/blog about it again. Tagaytay has always been my perk-me up place. Besides its alluring cold weather, it’s the nostalgic bearing with which brings back freeing memories. This photo was taken during Tatay’s birthday almost three years ago.

This was our first photo together. :)   

100 Day Photo Challenge: Day 4

Day 4
A picture of your night

Exactly a year ago (the night of February 24th), I was all curled up and snugly next to hubby while watching the Uncanny X-men Animated series and have no idea what awaits us the following day. Little did we know that I was about to go into labor upon waking up. It’s my little boy’s birthday tomorrow! How fast time flies especially when you’re having fun! :)   

100 Day Photo Challenge: Day 3 (Oh Dexter, How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count The Ways)

Day 03
A picture of the cast from your favorite show

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways

I love thee to the depth of sleepless nights

My eyes will puff just to have a glimpse of your sight 

For the end of each season I longed for more

I love thee to the level of everyday’s chore

 Most quiet need, by wine and cheese

I love thee freely, as you slice abductees

I love thee purely, as they turned into pieces

I love thee with a passion each day it increases

I love thee with a novel in hand

With my lost wits—I love thee with the book’s strand

With eyes closed tight I dream of you  

I shall love thee better when the season is through

100 Day Photo Challenge: Day 1 & 2

I’ve been seeing this 60 day photo challenge in FB and since I want to encourage the camwhore/photo enthusiast in me, I’m giving it a go (so I could blog more too), but I’m going for the 100 day photo challenge. (Hahaha! it’s too much for the camwhore in me). I don’t want this to be routinary so I’m keeping it in random. I’m doing Day 1 & 2 today (I was supposed to start yesterday but got lazy) Here it goes. :)

Day 1
  A picture of yourself with fifteen facts

15 Facts: 

1) I love being alone.

2) I’m a sucker for white lilies. 

3) I love wearing hats/bonnets.

4) My belly button piercing was a DIY.

5) I shaved my head once (well the barber did).

6) I have a high tolerance for pain. 

7) I’m afraid of heights.

8) I love zombie flicks. 

9) The movie; The Exorcism of Emily Rose scared the shit out of me for weeks!

10) I make mini sculptures from (my/our) used coffee cups,

paper cartons/towels when hanging out at a coffee shop. 

11) I love facial hair on men, and glasses too!

12) I love listening to sad songs.

13) I love red high heels.

14) I can’t sleep alone.

15) I’m a big crybaby.

Day 2
A picture of you and the person
 you have been close with for the longest

(Badminton Days, circa ’05) I’ve known Paula since yr ’03. Like my Mom, we used to have a love-hate relationship. We’re complete opposites and somehow managed to get along so well. She’s the queen bee of bargain hunting and the original cheapskate. ;)

Here’s the FB link to the 60 Day Photo Challenge. Try it! It seems fun! :) 

To Cut Or Not To Cut (My Hair, That Is)

Is it just me?

 I think I look a lot better without hair.

 (Pardon my crappy duster)

Don't you think so? 

Valentine's Kick Off

Hubby decided to have a Valentine’s kick off weekend. He’s always looking forward to celebrating the heart’s day that he has planned to have a weekend long celebration because according to him, he wants to make it extra special. Every weekend, we always go to our parents’ house (either mine or his). Last Saturday was an exception. The kids stayed at my in-laws’ house and we decided to just stay at home. Yes, we had the house all to ourselves.

When we’re too engrossed with parental bliss, we took some time off from it. That way, we can talk and discuss matters without worrying about the kids. So here’s what we did while the kids were out.

Saturday: I did a major house cleaning. Haha! Would you believe? Because the house was so quiet and I have nothing else to do, I swept and scrubbed floors while waiting for hubby to come home. Yes, OC at its finest! We had a movie night, some cheese and wine. :)

     

Nay & Tay alone time. Little Fockers. Wine. Popcorn. Cheese. 

Because talking and laughing to our hearts’ content always gives us our much needed boost.

Sunday: We woke up extra early and went jogging. Well, hubby did. I mostly did the walking. I’m not wearing my running shoes (I’m saving my feet and battered TOMS from an early death) which by the way, resulted into leg pain. And since it was still early that time, we decided to passed by the church to have an early morning prayer. :)

  

Commerce Ave, Alabang: w/ early morning joggers

Because we’ll always find a reason to talk about silly things so we could laugh some more.

Weekend’s over. Back to mom & dad duties. Our last hurrah for the weekend. :)

cezanne's still down w/ colds
cheetos and movie night last night! :)

 Because we can’t bear to be without the kids for a long time,

 we always look forward to those sleepless nights. Oh, pure bliss.

nay and tay: w/ our matching puffy and baggy eyes :)

Happy Hearts' Day, everyone! :)

Juana; A Failed Yogi

Practicing vegetarianism led me to yoga. Exactly five years ago, my materialistic and shallow self used to think that yoga is just a trendy fashion statement. Models, celebrities are raving about it and since I was also stick-thin that time, why not give it a try?

my shallow yoga practice

In a spiritual context, yoga is a state of union with the Divine or an experience of oneness with the great Reality. Yoga means to direct your mind towards God, to realize your oneness with the Divine Consciousness. Beyond the postures and exercises, the ancient teachings of yoga aim at lasting, loving union with the Supreme. That’s how my love for yoga started (if you’ve read Eat Pray Love by Liz Gilbert, you’ll know exactly what I meant).

I have a love-hate relationship with it. At times, I still think that it’s just a fad. A confusion, like I’m caged in my own hyped up contraption. But I keep coming back, like an old beaten up record player that keeps on playing the same old ratty song. So I just let it be.   
                                

It’s good to be confused sometimes. It’s what keeps me grounded. :)

Raising a Creative Child: Theodore's Doodling Skills

Do you know how important it is to compliment your child? However, not all praises are beneficial if it’s not accurate or well earned. I know the importance of being complimented. It plays a vital part in your child’s growing up years. It’s essential so you could raise a confident and secure child. Sometimes, being a young Mom is an advantage. When you’re young, you’re more adventurous, thus, you’re eager to learn and explore new things. And because I don’t want my child to experience what I’ve gone through, I always make it a point to compliment him. I make sure that every time he does something he’s proud of, whether an artwork or a perfect score in Math, he’s getting that needed boost, in a balanced way, of course.  

My eldest, Theodore, loves to draw. He prefers doodling rather than answering homeworks. So sometimes, I have to be beside him, just to make sure he’s doing his school works and getting it done. He started to draw when he was three. And every year he’s getting better.

Kuya's first finger painting. 02.21.2005

He used to make these when he was just 4yo.
Now, he's already talking about hair gum and Vans. How time flies! 

When Eric was 4, he already knew what he wants to be
when he grew up, he'll be an underdog cartoonist.
At Lola's, trying to hone his tattooing skills. :P

circa '05:
 he eats crayons for breakfast

His drawing methods are pretty much the same. But he’s obsessed with details. I know, he’s still got a long way to go, but I’m happy he gets to enjoy it. His passion for arts and music is something I’m particularly proud of (because mommy’s a frustrated artist, LOL). I just hope I’m doing a good job of raising him to be a well rounded person.

His attempt at making a heavily polluted river.
 Baby, really, a skull?? No wonder your teachers won't allow you
 to make posters for the school, LOL. :)) 

Trying out Paul's (our friend) doodling skills.  

getting better and better
look at those tiny details! :) 

Hi baby! I know sometimes, you visit Mommy’s blog

 (believe it or not, he’s into reading too)

 and I just want you to know that I’m so proud of you.

 Keep doing what you love. I’ll always be your no1 fan.

Trying to play the electric guitar. :)

Join Earth Gym, It's Free!

I’ve read about Earth Gym in Bo Sanchez’s Simplify and Live the Good Life about a year ago (believe it or not, I read a lot of self help books, I’m semi-neurotic, you know).

my wall climbing days, i miss!

When I lack time for a decent workout (or just simply lazy), I resort to Earth Gym to get physical. In Earth Gym, there is no membership fee. And it is found right where you are. It’s really simple; look for patterns in your day or week where you could get exercise.    

A few examples:

Take the stairs instead of escalator or elevator.

I used to do this when I was still working,
 except when I’m in a hurry.

Choose the farthest parking space to park your vehicle.

Shopping, grocery shopping and window-shopping!

Make your house chores an exercise. Go back to the basics of mopping and scrubbing.

 I clean our own bedroom and the boys’ bedroom
 (when I’m bored). It gives me a good 30-minute workout! :D

See? It’s really simple. A zero-cost workout and you’ll have all the time you need. No excuses. :)

Birthday Glory

celebrating my mom's birthday :)
manual baking 101: EPIC FAIL, my mom and dad, w/ the kids,
with hubby and Polie, my brother (who has autism), our detox juice
after consuming too much pizza and chips. :P

I might not have that picture perfect family but I love them all to bits.
Happy Birthday, Mame! We may argue and fight a lot but you still mean the world to me. 
I love you so much and I’m grateful that you're my Mom. :) 

Sustainable Beauty: BN Herbal Wonder Cream

I’ve been using this since December and I think it’s just in time for a review.

I bought this together with the Bare Naturals BB Cream. Both products claim to reduce age spots, acne scars and effectively lighten the skin. According to its manufacturer, the Bare Naturals Herbal Wonder Cream is highly recommended for the face, and other dark areas such as armpit, elbows, bikini line. I need this for my freckles! :D  

Bare Naturals Herbal Wonder Cream’s 18 effective skin lightening herbal ingredients:

aloe vera, emu oil, aragan oil, alpha arbutin, gigawhite [Glycerine, Malva Sylvestris (Mallow Extract), Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Leaf Extract, Primula Veris Extract, Alchemilla Vulgaris Extract, Veronica Officinalis Extract, Melissa Officinalis LE, Achillea Milefolium Extract]melawhite, melfade and papaya extract

SLS and Paraben-free! Hooray!

What I love about it:

It’s creamy but not too heavy

 Moisturizing enough but if you’re suffering from dry skin,

 you still need to apply a moisturizer after applying it.  

Easily absorbed by the skin

Has a light and subtle scent

No stingy feel considering it has skin lightening ingredients

 (and I have sensitive skin as well!)

No unsightly peeling

light-medium consistency 

What I don’t:

I prefer pump bottles for hygienic purposes

 This comes in a tub container and since it claims to be herbal and all,

 it’s more prone to spoilage so make sure to avoid double dipping.

 Use a spatula to scoop out the cream to prevent contamination.

Price is steep for a 15g pack (costs P398)

 Plus, tub’s not completely full; it’s almost half a tub! (or maybe I just got a bad stock)

It has no plastic seal or cover (like almost all organic/herbal/natural products sold locally)
Not readily available as you need to purchase the products online
(But I think they already have a physical store in Tunasan, Muntinlupa)

at least it has an inner seal

The Verdict:

It did lighten my freckles! The brightening effect worked.

 My skintone has become much more even
 (although I have fairly white skin to begin with).

 And no breakouts from these two products! Yey!

pardon the sheets, I just woke up :P

see?? :)

To maximize its benefits, use the Herbal Wonder Cream twice a day. Best when used with Bare Naturals BB cream. Use a gentle facial scrub at least once a week to ensure you’re sloughing off unnecessary dead skin cells. Avoid spending time in direct sunlight. Use a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15 or higher. Use an alcohol free cleanser and toner to avoid skin irritation. And like any other skin lightening product, avoid prolonged use.  

Care to give it a try? You may go to: Bare Naturals Site to order one. :)

**This is not a paid review. The views expressed here are solely those of the author. What works for me, might not work for you. So keep an open mind and use at your own risk.**

It's not Sunburn, It's Windburn!

We had a short beach trip last weekend in Calatagan, Batangas with our closest friends and my siblings and a Tagaytay stopover for a sumptuous lunch (which my siblings enjoyed immensely, as you know I don’t eat Sisig and Bulalo, LOL) before heading home.

I noticed the following day that my face has started to itch, leaving it slightly red. At first I thought it was sunburn (I swam on the beach at three in the afternoon and the sun was very hot that time). But my face wasn’t that red and as you know, a sunburn is tender to touch, and my face wasn’t. I slathered on vitamin E (pricked from the caplet) to have it moisturized, day and night. It lessened the itch and the redness. It looked a lot better the following day. It’s not itchy anymore but it left me a very dry skin and rough blotchy patches on the sides of my face (jaw line, chin, hairline, sides of my nose and brow line).

very dry skin and rough blotchy patches

It’s not sunburn; it’s windburn from our Tagaytay trip last Sunday! The weather in Tagaytay is almost Baguio-like (plus the strong winds that could literally blew a thin person off his/her feet)! I’m not exaggerating here. It’s really that cold and windy.         

What the hell is windburn anyway?      

Windburn results from a combination of cold wind and low humidity, which depletes the oil layer on your skin. It looks like a burn and certainly feels like a burn but it’s actually a skin irritation leaving your skin severely dry. A windburn can hurt just as much as a sunburn, but fortunately it is far less serious. It will usually fade away on its own in a couple of days.

my windburned skin on day 5
looking a lot better

Here are some tips that you can consider to speed the healing process of your windburned skin.

Keep your skin covered. Wear a scarf or neck warmer to keep your neck and chin protected and hat or a bonnet for your cheeks and forehead. Now, this was my big mistake. We were on those overlooking Bulalo houses and I’m having a hard time keeping my hair off my face because of the strong wind so I pulled my hair back in a bun making my face more exposed to the chilly weather. Yes, it’s entirely my fault. :(

When you’re going to be out for a long time, lather on a moisturizing sunblock/sunscreen (preferably with a higher SPF than 15). This will protect your skin from both sun and windburn. Don’t forget to lube up your lips too, again, with an SPF. Apply sunscreen every two hours to maximize its benefits.

Windburned skin craves moisture. Apply a thick moisturizer (preferably the ones without fragrances to avoid further irritation) three to four times a day. Aloe gel from the plant would be your best bet (as it contains zero chemicals) to soothe and alleviate the itchiness and swelling of the affected skin. If aloe gel’s not readily available, there are plenty of organic products with aloe which works just fine. I bought mine from Watsons. It has tea tree and peppermint oil and has worked wonders for my windburned skin.

Use a mild cleanser to clean the affected area. Choose the ones without added preservatives and fragrances. You want to keep as much natural oils on your skin as possible to avoid further drying. Avoid washing your skin too much as it may result to a drier skin making it more susceptible to irritation.

If your skin is sore, take an OTC anti-inflammatory meds such as aspirin or if you’re allergic to aspirin, ibuprofen or paracetamol will do the job as well. It’ll help in easing the pain and promote healing. Get checked by a doctor if your skin looks really swollen.

Prevention is always better than cure.

I should have brought my trusty bonnet with me! Oh well.

Sustainable Beauty: Superdrug Tea Tree Moisturiser

Don’t you just love it when there’s a new beauty product that’s:

 cheap, readily available, Paraben-free, suitable for vegans and vegetarians and not tested on animals? We do! Well, my friend and I do (and hubby too)! :)  

I am suffering from a mild windburn since our Tagaytay trip last weekend, 

a go signal that I need to get a heavy moisturizer to treat it. I was with a friend yesterday and we’re supposed to buy an anti-ageing cream but saw this instead:

Tea Tree Moisturizer with Natural Tea Tree

 and Peppermint oils and Aloe Vera extract 

Tea tree oil is a natural antibacterial agent known for its antiseptic

 healing properties. Tea tree oil can change the chemical compositions

 in our skin making it more resistant to infections.

click to see list of ingredients

This light non-greasy moisturizer is enriched with Pro-vitamin B5

 and soothing Aloe Vera. Easily absorbed into the skin, this refreshing

 formula is ideal for use on oily or spot prone skin. 

lightweight consistency: CHECK! :)

when blended:
has a cooling effect and minty scent

But we don’t have oily or spot prone skin.

 Then we saw the magic words: PARABEN FREE. 

What the heck, we still bought it anyway. Hahahaha! 

Another sustainable beauty find!

Available at all Watsons store for only Php139! :) 

bestfriend bonding: our matching Watsons haul
w/ my good friend, Paula :)

Read more about Tea Tree benefits at:

becomegorgeous.com  

Online Hiatus

I’ve been thinking about going cold turkey from this online frenzy or what I call cyberdrama. The constant need to update your status and necessity to be virtually connected to the world. And it’s starting to annoy the hell out of me for the nth time.

I made a little experiment to see which of my FB friends, are really my friends.

I turned off my FB wall the day before and during my birthday to see which of them would actually greet me a personal birthday message. My real life friends sent me PMs and text messages wishing me a happy birthday. I’m not really surprised because those who greeted me are those people whom I had expected. And I’m grateful for those who even tagged me in their wall posts just to greet me. It’s then that I realized how I badly miss the old ways of communicating with people.

I always look forward to writing letters. Be it a simple note or a long one. It’s the old soul in me, and it’s also one reason why I prefer texting/sending emails rather than engaging in a phone conversation. I’m not much of a talker. The only time I get to talk non-stop is when I’m with my family, my sister and some of our closest friends.

I’m quitting this cyberdrama for the meantime and resorting to good old ways of reaching out to old friends and keeping in touch with them. But I am still as always; blogging, using email, texting and available for coffee or tea anytime!

I miss my old self. I guess I’m officially getting old to be feeling this way. 

my junk food fix with a good old friend of mine