Luzon with the boys.

For me, a 20-day vacation leave comes as rare as a blue moon. The only time I was officially allowed to get was during my wedding day. To allow me more time to prepare, I suppose. So you see how hard one has to try to get it. One actually has to kill to get it! A gruesome murder later, surprise suprise! I got it this! Hahah! So with every living breath of me, with every thread of my muscle and with every beat of my heart, I swore with all that I can to enjoy this vacation to the fullest. That was very easy. I spent it with my two most favorite boys in the world.

Our last family getaway felt like eons ago. Our little Yugix was very little then. Little enough for him to wear anything that I put on him. Now is a different story. Every changing time is a mighty struggle because what he wears does not depend on what Mommy likes anymore. It depends on Justin Bieber.

My little family in Hong Kong and Macau.

Time to add new photos in our family holiday album.

We checked in at The Resorts World on the first day. Kuya Yugix loved the hotel at first sight. He said it was the biggest hotel in the whole wide world. 🙂 I loved it too. Especially Ric’s grandmother who was having a ball at the casino.

Someone misses Mommy Lalang so badly.

With Kuya Phillip.

The Paras brothers and baby girl, Anika.

This is how you babysit two kids at the same time.

This is how you babysit three kids.

A few days later, had a short stint at Party Pilipinas–as an audience. Thanks to our dear friend Jeff for getting me and my husband in. It got boring around halfway into the show. There were too many newcomers that we could not identify 70% of the artists. The only time I was starstrucked was that brief moment when Jolina Magdangal sat beside me and talked to me. She looked like a life-sized doll that I wanna play dress up with. I would have taken her home with me if I could. Then I would keep her in a box inside my glass drawer. Hehehe.

P. S. Marian Rivera was an eye candy without a doubt.

Jeff and husband

After the show, I dragged the boys to the mall and got myself a new tattoo. It is a four leaf clover for a daily dose of good luck. 🙂

JULY 2

Husband’s birthday.

Woke him up so he could blow his 30th birthday cake candles. I love these photos. I am a lucky woman to be in a relationship with these two boys 🙂

A birthday dinner date later in the evening.  Happy birthday to you too, Papa Recto.

The giant burger of Yugix.

The giant iced tea of Kuya Yugix.

Justin Bieber a.k.a. Manny Pacquiao’s hairstyle. Same same so just choose.

JULY 3

Haircut before Tita Lan’s wedding day. Justin Bieber’s hair a.ka. Manny Pacquiao’s hair was gone. And he hated me for it. He said he looked like a rock with little grass growing on it. What a very original description! Sorry baby boy. 🙂

You will notice in the later photos that he was always covering his head with a hoodie. Yep, blame it on the haircut.

JULY 4

And the fun begins.

Even in the midst of a brewing typhoon in Luzon, the clouds parted to give us a little sunshine. Lucky? Very. Special? I’d like to think so. 🙂 Thank you, dear God.

Unfortunately, our first day did not make a great start. We missed our flight to Naga City due to the infamous Manila traffic jam. We had to wait for a few more hours to get to the next booking.

Hours and bad moods later, here we are at the CamSur Water Sports Complex (CWC). We took a cab from the airport to the CWC. We learned later on that CWC offers free shuttle bus service from the airport to the resort every 30 minutes.

With dad.

With mom.

Our sweet little home for a night. Our log cabin looked really neat, cozy, unusual, spacious enough and our money well-spent. I was surprised and floored. Even the other types of accommodations looked very interesting. They have trailer parks and various cottages. Any choice is a good choice when it comes to CWC, I have to say.

World’s cutest bat.

Yugix: “Mommy, let’s call out.”

Me: Huh? What do you mean by call out?

Yugix: I mean when we call them to order food. Me: Ah. You mean room service.

And that is one of the reasons why I need to work extra hard.

Looking for what we came here for–the water.

The trailer house accommodation.

The water park for the pro, so this was not the one for us.

Yes, this was for me. But not yet. This time was to satisfy the need for some speed.

The little boy was so ready. Scared, but nonetheless ready.

Keep looking…

Nope. Those are cows.

Yes, finally found them! It was quite a walk. Wakeboarding fee with equipments for an hour was I think 250 pesos. Not bad at all. In fact, it was very cheap! The instructor is inclusive with the rental.

Hunny’s turn. I was feeling a little chicken. I was never a sports-minded girl for like EVER. I only played chess in high school. I tried swimming too. But I only made a fool out of myself most of the time.

Mr. Paras in action. Woohoo!

Someone was very proud of himself.

When it started to grow dark, the rest of the resort guests walked back to their cottages. I finally found the courage to put the wakeboards on.

Not bad! A pat on your back girl. 🙂

Just because not falling face down into the water was not enough…

So I did it with one hand. 🙂

I was a happy traveling bee.

For some strange reason, this adorable little boy is scared of anything that may involve falling. I had to use my mommy card to coerce him to get into the wakeboard with the instructor.

He was scared beyond his wits at first, but after one smooth round, he told me, “I want to do it again.”

Kisses for being so brave, young man.

Then comes dinner. We enjoyed everything that we ordered from this resort. Hunny’s favorite was the Pasta Alfredo.

The most abused Gucci wallet in the world.

Time for a good night’s sleep. The next day is going to be a long day.

The little big boy.

A quick shower before going to bed. Five years from now, please don’t hate me for posting this photo online. 🙂

Fresh mommy.

A quick photo session before calling it a night.

JULY 5

Good morning! Our baby lost his first tooth!

This photo of my boys is priceless. And you can clearly see how comfortable the bed was by the look on their faces. They were in bed heaven! ❤

Say good bye to the front tooth.

“Calling out” for breakfast.

Feeling comfortable for the first time to have my photos taken without makeup on my face.

Natural light is the best light.

Our little visitors in the morning.

It was such a shame that we were having so much fun yet we had to leave too soon. But Mayon Volcano was the next stop, so it couldn’t be so bad.

A free shuttle bus from CamSur Water Complex took us to the public market in Naga where we took a van to the city of Legazpi. It took us around one hour and less than two hundred pesos per person. By the time we arrived in Legazpi,  it was raining like there was no tomorrow. There was not a shadow of a taxi anywhere. The only way to find our hotel was by a motorcycle. Our hotel, which was Oriental’s Jasmine Hotel, was not very far from where the van dropped us off. It was about 15 minutes for maybe 200 pesos. The drivers were not familiar of the hotel’s name, though. It was more known of its old name during Marcos’ time. Too bad, as for the hotel’s old name, my memory never fails to fail me again this time. If it is going to help, the Queen of Spain stayed in this hotel during her brief visit this year.

Finally, here we are. I was instantly impressed by its pristine white and spacious lobby. The scent of jasmine floating in the air. The not so friendly wet welcome of the rain roaring from all directions inside that vulnerable carriage of the motorcab was totally out the window.

Our very inviting bed!

It was past lunchtime when we arrived. Expectedly, the boys were very hungry. The restaurant on the ground floor did not disappoint. I believed my taste buds were most pleased in this restaurant than in any restaurants in the Philippines that I have been to.

These boys could eat a carabao right now.

Nothing beats enjoying a hot cappuccino on a cool, typhoon season while waiting for a big lunch fresh from the chef’s kitchen.

The FOOD. I had a creamy pumpkin and carrot soup for appetiser and I think a Pad Thai for the main course. My husband had a spicy lechon kawali something. Everything was yum, even my baby’s humongous sandwich platter.

We only caught a glimpse of the ghost of the Mayon behind the fog. I was still very excited, though! I know she would show herself to us, eventually. A little patience can go a long way. 🙂

I knew it! There she is.

Extended our lunch by the viewing deck with espresso and sweets to enjoy her beauty even more. Every minute I spent gushing at sheer perfection.

“Mayon is the most beautiful mountain that I have ever seen, the world-renowned Fujiyama of Japan (Mt. Fuiji) sinking into perfect insignificance by comparison.  – British travel-writer A. Henry Savage Landor. ”

Even after erupting for more than 50 times in the past four centuries, its beauty remains timeless. I wish I could say the same for myself 30 years from now.

It’s time to explore the town. That’s our little jet setter right there. Will never say no to an out of town expedition.

The beautiful lady is playing coy again.

A series of family photographs.

Bought some really cheap mountain orchids for our dear mothers before we left. We only paid for 50 pesos to 100 pesos per plant. I think it was a steal.

Now is time to go.

Beautiful lady, I really wish to see you again.

A short pit stop. What’s a vacation without pasalubongs, right?

Back at the hotel, it was SNOOZE time.

The only thing that rivaled the beauty of the Mayon are these adorable photos of my two boys.

JULY 6

Then came morning. Had breakfast buffet at the hotel. It was really tasty, though not as much as most breakfast buffets in hotels.

Watermelons and sampaguita plants growing by our room deck. A hotel stay can’t get any sweeter than that.

My husband can attest to how much I hated the cold, but the chance to dip my toes or more in the infity pool with the Mayon in the background was too good to pass up. My son, of course, was more than happy to get himself wet.

Time to leave again. It was really tiring to have to pack up and leave every day. But whenever I get another chance, I will do it again!

A very interesting row of toilet cubicles en route to the airport.

While waiting for our plane.

Blind massage at the airport.

JULY 8

Paula’s wedding in Capas.

Auntie Fely and I

Paras Family

JULY 9

Back in Mindanao.

Just because I couldn’t get too much holiday…

A surprise wedding vows renewal for my parents in Paradise.

Loving the au natural look. Makeup free and edit free.

One week later…

At NAIA Terminal 1. Time to make some money so I can spend some more.

A quick call to our beloved Yugix before the flight. See you soon, baby love. Loving you always and missing you everyday, Mommy and daddy.

❤ The END.

A love letter.

I haven’t received a love letter for a very long time despite my occasional hints and sometimes violent nagging. 🙂

Today, is a change. An angel must have heard me.

I got this from my Facebook wall. My heart melted one more time.

I cannot stress enough how lucky a mother I am. I am usually not lucky in so many things, but at least in being a mother I hit the jackpot. I have the sweetest, most caring, most loving, respectful, brilliant, funny and hyperactive little boy. A little mischievous at times but still very adorable.

Years from now, you will be a grown boy. Things will definitely change. Most likely you will love another woman more than you will love me. You will spend more time with her or with your friends than be with your aging mother in the house. That will hurt me, of course. I will get jealous. Just give me a little love note like this and I will be a happy old woman again. Still jealous but happy.

As I grow older too, I will be less reasonable. I will be more annoying.  I might be stricter. But I want you to know that once upon a time in your old Mama’s life, a tiny bundle of joy came kicking and screaming into her world. This little boy is loved dearly as much as his mother is blessed so much to have him. You have given me, as well as the people around me, this wonderful gift of making our lives a little bit…more. More laughter. More warmth. More reasons to smile. More ways to love. You are our gift that keeps on giving.

Years is a long time to be sure about anything. But my love for you is too strong to measure that I am very confident it will stay as strong throughout the years. I hope yours is too.

Today, is indeed, a Happy Mother’s Day to me.

I love you so much, son.

All I ask is for you to take care of yourself because I cannot be there for you as much as I want to. Nothing else can make me happier than knowing that you don’t cough anymore or have fever or have that have that perennial runny nose every time I see you. Every suffering in your fragile little body leaves two stab wounds in my heart.

See you soon, my angel. All my love, hugs and kisses from this very lonely land.

My first smile with Lola Conching.

My godmother, Lynnette.

Phoenix holding Mommy Sharon’s baby picture.

Phoenix helping Lola Conching make macaroni salad during Christmas in Dubai.

On our way to our desert safari.

His first gingerbread man cookie during our HKG airport camping.

Years from now when you google your name, Phoenix Janne Dumagat Paras, hopefully you will stumble into this.

A day for us, mommies.

Today is a special day. I want to greet all the mommies out there for a job well done. There is no job more noble than sustaining the human race, right? So happy Mother’s Day to all mothers, who are basically every woman I know, except for one, my sister Maricon who is most likely a man in secret. 🙂 Peace.

I don’t really give too much fuss to Mother’s Day. With a family this cute, every day is a celebration. Let’s run away again to somewhere very far, please.

A few snapshots during our trip to Hongkong and Macau around 3 years ago. Our little baby started traveling very early. He is going to grow up like, Mommy. Forever restless in one spot.

I greeted the dawn of my 5th year of Mother’s Day celebration I don’t know how many feet above sea level. But it was very high up for sure because I was looking down at the Himalayas, most probably at similar mountain range where Mount Everest is located.

This was how the sun rises above the world’s tallest peaks.

17 hours later into the flight, we touched down at DFW in Dallas where the I know the softest bed known to me is waiting. It feels like sinking into a bed of baby feathers and dreaming of marshmallows and pink unicorns.

I have two double beds just for me at Marriott. We should have Marriott in every ultra long haul flights. We deserve sleep therapy after a long day’s mental and physical challenge.

I was supposed to go to the mall with Shuang, my colleague from China, but the two alarms that I set in my phone did not go off for some reason. Shuang did not call me either. I am starting to have a bad feeling for this room. Hahah!

So I followed the sidewalk to the right of the hotel. Three blocks away later, I did not find anything. My stomach monsters were growling like desperate lionesses on a prowl. I told myself that I would take the first restaurant that I would find. I did exactly that.

This was my pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Of course, a pot of gold does not come cheap. I paid my dinner with my hard-earned blood and sweat. Hahah! But it was a delectable dinner. And it always feels good to be surrounded with people who dress up for dinner. The men came marching in with their suits and pomade in their hair. The ladies sashayed into the room in long dresses and high heels and some vintage pieces here and there. About 85% were senior citizens. That was how I know that I was going to have good food tonight.

I ordered the Lawry’s cut prime steak. The serving was humungous. It made my heart cry for the hungry people. It was weird to feel guilty with a very satisfied stomach.

The evil sauces. I tried first the one on the right. It tasted like a sour soap. The one on the left was like wasabi with a friendlier face. It attacked my nose and mouth like a Samurai warrior that I had to spit it out into my black colored table napkin.

I had buttered corn on the side which was simply heavenly.

My food was delivered by the chef in this cart. He cut my meat right in front of me.

Even an order of salad was a show. The chef would come with a cart to your table and would do some culinary action of salad mixing before delivering the plate to you.

A reserved table.

My imaginary date in front of me. Cheers to this lovely mother who was brave enough to take herself out on a dinner date. 🙂

Lawry’s prime rib waitress in the 50’s.

Lawry’s Prime Rib in Chicago.

That is all, ladies. Cheers and good night!

His first pair of cufflinks.

My feet in high heels landed once again into Dubai, very fresh with pleasant encounters from the largest city in China only two days ago. That would be Shanghai, in case you did not know. I came home with my cutest purchase so far–my little bumblebee’s, Buyugix, first pair of cufflinks.

And what spells royalty more than a horse in a turquoise background color?

Surprisingly, I found them in one of Shanghai’s underground market. That is the place to buy imitation products and kill for your dear life just to get the best bargain with your haggling skills.  A friend of mine told me that the trick was to pretend you are really interested into the product. Then whatever price they will give you, agree only to half of that. If they refuse, say no thank you and leave the store. The owner will always call you back and give you the price that you want. It works 99% of the time, believe me.

Personally, I hate going to any bargain markets. I have no patience with haggling and I prefer quality over savings at any day. But for the love of some kinky wigs and clip-on fringe, I marched to the market with my girlfriends at ten in the morning.

That day was absolutely mine because I found the clip-on fringe too. I paid 30 Yuan only and I am quite happy. Forget about the wigs because they made me look 15 kilos heavier on the face alone. Eww.

So after I was done with my shopping, some cute tweed ensemble for little girls and boys on the window display caught my eyes. They were absolutely the cutest and poshest tweed outfits that I have ever seen, complete with leather and metal details and Burberry silk linings. Each coat was around 1,300 yuan each (6, 000 Php). I could imagine Victoria Beckham’s baby girl wearing those clothes. They were not the mass produced Chinese clothes at all! Whatever that shop owner was thinking of putting up a shop in that area, it was beyond my understanding. But I was glad he was there at the same time I passed by.

I immediately rummaged through the boys’ shirts on a 50% discount. They were pricey. But for a reduced price with an additional 50% discount, I paid only 200 yuan (1, 000 Php) for each shirt. I usually pay 80% of that amount for a crappy kid’s shirt from H&M so I was more than satisfied with the deal.

Here is what I bought. The attention to detail was impeccable. And it is a shirt with cufflinks. Seriously, where can you find kid’s boutique that sells shirt that has cufflink holes? It would be very rare. Perhaps if you go to Armani or Gucci then you might find them.

It has several pleats at the back for a better fitting.

The cufflink on the shirt.
By tradition, cufflinks are worn only when the man is over 30 years of age. But recently, as long as you have fun wearing them, do as you please. Too bad for my husband, the store owner, who also made the clothes himself, only make clothes for kids.

I only had an embarassing amount of Yuan currency with me, but I just could not resist to buy this white shirt on the hanger.

Up-close, you will also notice that it has a dedicated space for the necktie. That is why I love the tailor so much. His attention to detail was very amazing.

He only uses shell buttons, never plastic.

I even found the hood jacket that I really like inside his store. But it was not for sale. He said he was not proud of it. He needed to make adjustments and will later on add some leg straps which are necessary for horseback riding. He told me that the clothes that he made were designed for those of Royal Blood. The details on his clothes were consistent with traditional gentleman clothing. His brand’s name, Esquire, in fact, meant a boy training to be a gentleman. While he was packing my purchase, he was also giving me lessons on how men should wear their suit 101. Told you he was the most fascinating boutique owner ever.

Before I left, he gave me something extra for my husband. That is a top secret at the moment. Will tell about it later.

By the way, we have moved to a new hotel in Shanghai. I hope the reason was not because the previous hotel kicked us out. We now stay at the Jumeirah Himalayas. Prepare to be awed. This has got to be my most favorite hotel facade so far. It is a piece of art on a grand scale. No wonder, it is owned by a company from Dubai.

photo is grabbed from destinasion.com

Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel - Shanghai at night

Sky lanterns at the ceiling of the lobby.

Reception desk

Very chic lobby furnitures

Updated Chinese furniture design.

White carpet moment in my bedroom. Hubby will love the wood floors, for sure.

This very stylish chair has balls on four corners so it glides smoothly on the floor.
Anne Hathaway gave me the creeps.

The closet matches the furniture theme of the room.

Opaque view of the bedroom from the bath.

It was no less than love at first sight.

Phoenix and Mother visit Dubai.

This is a very long overdue post. How long had it been since my last decent post? Two months? Three months? I believe now is the ripe time, at 40 minutes past one in the morning, with my husband snoring in the bedroom, and my eyes half distracted by the film showing on the television. Anyways, I need to put an end to this never ending procrastination. Big problem is–how? 🙂

P. S. This blog entry is two weeks in the making. Hahah!!! Did that really surprise me? No thanks, partly to my internet connection that kept on refusing my blog inputs and mostly to my disease called procrastination a.k.a. PanAm tv series. I have to have this blue vintage PanAm travel bag. I am very high on PanAm fever right now!

DECEMBER 18, 2012

My bag was ready for adventure. Recently, I have this obsession with traincases. Anything vintage just makes me feel like a rich, posh lady from the 80s. A girl can dream anytime of the day.

Mother and Buyugix had landed.

Met up with mother and baby at the airport for our Jordan trip. Caught my ever restless baby marching up and down the airport while mother did what she does best—pray.

Petra-bound on board Emirates flight to Amman.

TV games kept him busy.

Crew doing manual safety demo due to IFE failure before takeoff.

Landing at Jordan

Poor Buyugix. He was knocked out after hours on the flight. So proud of you, baby.

Finally in Dubai. Starting the day right by waking up early.

…and staying fresh with a bath.

What’s Christmas without gifts to open, right? Buyugix opening some of his pre-Christmas day gifts.

Spongebob electric toothbrush and matching toothpaste

And the shoes that he loves “so very, very” much. Glow-in-the-dark Dr. Seuss chucks by Converse.

SECOND DAY IN DUBAI–to the world’s biggest mall, Mall of Emirates.

Bad-ass car for a bad-ass baby

Contrary to popular belief, we do get to have our Christmas decorations in the mall in this Muslim country.

The giant Christmas tree with giant polar bears.

Mommy Lalang and Baby Yugz

Buyugix learning the glory of sensor technology by himself.

His favorite cakes–blueberry cheesecake and applepie. He was ecstatic to learn that it was applepie because he said he finally found the way to bake one. 🙂

Mama Connie enjoying her slice of cake or two, but still preferred her cheap cup of Nescafe over the barista-brewed coffee.

TIME TO SKATE ON ICE.

This was probably one of the best moments I had with Buyugix. It was a rewarding feeling to have shared my son’s first ice skating experience with me. I thought he would be having a very hard time with balancing because he has a fear of falling, but he aced it. He definitely did so much better than his mommy a year ago.

Mama Connie was documenting from behind the glass while praying the rosary on the side too.

Yugix and his training penguin.

Buyugix took this photo of his mommy.

…he wanted to sit on the snow.

Visiting the house of Santa Claus…

After taking two photos of me, Buyog said, “Mommy, I want to go skating. If you want more photos take them yourself.”

Ouch!

Fooling around before going home.

Mommy and Lola’s adorable baby dinosaur.

Baby Buyugix and his Mama Connie.

Baby Buyugix and his Mommy Lalang.

These are the two lovely keepsakes of Buyug’s first time to ice skate. It was everything that is memorable.

our snow globe with Mr. Penguin

A DAY FOR SWIMMING

It was winter in Dubai and the water was naturally freezing. But Buyog loved the water so much that nothing else could ever matter.

My little hotstuff was so excited.

All the photo credits go to my very cute photographer.

If only I could upload that video of Buyugix shaking his butt cheeks. 🙂

DESERT SAFARI

A trip to the Middle East will not be complete without doing the desert safari. Nothing like a crazy welcome of your car hanging on a 180 degrees angle of the sand wall and plunging down the sand dunes without warning.

The fun continues into a traditional Arabian welcome in a Bedouin campsite where guests can have a chance to ride a camel, savor delicious sips of Arabic brew, enjoy a shisha smoking facility, try a henna tattoo, feast on a splendid buffet Arabic dinner and be entertained with a graceful belly dancer. All of that at a price of only 100-125 United Arab Emirates dirhams, approximately 1, 300 Php per head.

But before all of that, I need to give my mother a makeover first. 🙂

My mother’s usual get up.

My mother was reborn aft receiving the blessing of my mad skills. 🙂

Our pickup had arrived.

My adorable baby with his sun-kissed skin.

Mother was saying hello to the desert sun.

sleeping on post

The entire dune bashing experience were on photo, thus, the absence of any photos. Let us just say that Mother was praying for her dear life for every minute and every second that we were in the car. 🙂

Photo Opportunity

It was one cold day out there in the desert.

Missing daddy…

One step closer to our camel ride. 🙂

AND HERE WE GO…

The Russian family that rode together with us in the car.

the camel’s tail

Baby was scared to ride the camel so Mommy Lalang had to ride with him.

This was the closest that Mama Cons had with the camel ride. Hahhah!

Our kind friend, Rashid.

This has got to be one of my most favorite photos.

Mama Connie was not scared. Nah. ;P

our appetiser

He looked so cute especially with those aviator hat by Gap.

our Arabic tent

It’s time for some Arabic entertainment. Too bad it was too cold in the desert that we left before the belly dancing show. I have seen it before and indeed, it would have been worth shivering out there in the cold.

Time to say goodbye…

But not without Mama Connie having her photo taken with our Russian buddies…

That is one adventure down, more to go…

A DAY BEFORE CHRISTMAS.

Morning. This was baby’s first trip to the gym and his energy level was up to the roof. I wish I could post here the video of him roughing it up with the treadmill then making a couple or more situps in the yoga mat. He told Mama Connie and I that we should go back the next day so he could grow abs in his tummy. 🙂

Ready for some workout in the morning.

Someone was really passionate about losing weight…

Afternoon. A long day trip to the salon. I am so proud of my baby for behaving impeccably for six hours at the salon while waiting for Mommy Lalang and Mama Connie do their hair. He got his training early in how to be a perfect boyfriend. 🙂

That is my mother’s favorite hobby–praying.

Thank God for iPad he found a way to amuse himself for six hours.

CHRISTMAS DAY.

This was only the second Christmas that we spent together so this means a lot to me. The third time if I count the time he was in my tummy. I am a horrible mother and I miss my baby a lot.

Preparation. Grocery shopping together. He was very excited, like usual. I did not even have to carry him around the very huge mall. 🙂

Starting shopping right with an elevator photo.

roar!!! I feel safe with my cute bodyguard.

Buyugix and the world’s tallest building.

Looking for the perfect Christmas Eve cake. We found one at Baskin Robin’s.

Our ice cream cake with Santa Town miniatures fresh from the store.

When we opened the cake box at home, we found this–courtesy of Buyog’s bum that was sitting comfortably on top of it.

Mama Connie’s little helper…

…and food tester.

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2011, WORLD.

All eyes on the cake!

Christmas Tree photo with Lola.

Mommy’s shoes were really pretty.

MY CHRISTMAS EVE HAIR that cost Mama Connie 10K pesos and seven hours of my waking time.

One of the reasons why I always ran out of battery too early.

OPENING OF GIFTS. Nothing for me to open on the eve of Christmas Day. Getting a Gucci bag a week earlier should cover it. 🙂

Baby and Mommy tandem

OPENING OF GIFTS. No gift for me to open. Receiving a Gucci bag a week before Christmas should suffice, I guess.

A gift for mama–the most comfortable walking shoes in the world, available only at Virgin Megastores. They feel like walking on padded socks.They came with pretty, shiny bags too. I have mine in gold color.

THE NIGHT BEFORE OUR FLIGHT BACK TO PHILIPPINES.

Time to mark my territory on Mommy’s bed and wet her brand new bed sheets.

Sleeping with Claire, mommy’s rag doll.

DUBAI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

This was only the start of our waiting game.

Manila flight was full as expected so we took the flight to Hongkong.

Ang maglola, onboard AIrbus 380 Emirates flight Dubai-HKG.

Traveling on the day after Christmas sucked. Fortunately we had wonderful cabin crew on our A380 flight, which was a surprise, to be honest. She even took a polaroid photo of Buyog wearing Santa’s red hat.

At the Hongkong International Airport with a gross guy in front of me with his hands inside his pants and newspaper pages with women in bikini on the floor. D-I-S-G-U-S-T-I-N-G.

Buyug loving his first gingerbread man cookie from Starbuck’s.

Camping at the airport was no laughing matter at all, but coming home was all worth it.

Airport camping was not easy at all, but coming home was all worth it.

More about Petra.

Petra-bound.

with Mother

Worst day evah! I’m not going to talk about this. If I have nothing good to say, better not say anything at all.

At least I found a Gucci bag under the Christmas tree. ❤

#Lovelovelove.

See you soon, Santa Claus.

Travel Plans

Plane Tickets √

Hotel accommodation √

This baby and I are…

…Petra-bound very soon. 🙂

The Treasury of Petra

Kids these days.

My son got his nth toy from his daddy. It was a scan to go car, requested by him with specifics. He wanted the car with color red, blue and white. Like always, he got it.

His reaction when he saw the photo that his daddy posted in Facebook:

That’s what I’m talking about!

Me:

Ayayay!

Report card

I don’t want to be the type of parent who pressures his child to be the best in school. I went through that type of intense supervision and I did not like it. But maybe it is time for me to worry.

This is what my baby boy’s most recent report card said:

He is only four so I am not really concerned at the moment. Besides, the very well-known Economist Steven D. Levitt stated in his book Freakonomics that a child’s intellectual capability is mostly decided by the parent’s intelligence, in other words it runs in the blood, rather than on the quality of his school or the number of books that he has read. Anything that is scientific is good enough for me. If that is the case, then he is pretty much saved. Hahah! That should keep me at ease, right?

What do you think?

But seriously, Babylove, do your homework before watching TV!!!!!

Only HE who matters most to me deserves to be in my first post.

I am a single mother. I am never proud to have conceived a child out of wedlock. I still would have preferred having a love child in the legal way even if I may be considered as more liberal than most Filipinos. I know all about a-woman-does-not-need-a-man-to-complete/support-herself stuff, but all those women liberation drama can never discount the fact that getting pregnant with a marriage license to weild infront of the faces of the judgmental, hypocrite Catholics is still the most convenient emotionally, socially, most especially, FINANCIALLY.

And I ADMIT…I was a fool for getting disillusioned by my overrated young love. I was a bigger fool for failing my parents dreams for me and breaking their hearts a hundred times. But from where I am standing, looking back, I will be forever proud of myself. I remained strong during the times when my whole perfect little world came crashing down on me even and I had no one to rely on but myself. My being overly optimistic and overly independent paid off. I held on to my religious opiate, gathered all my remaining strength, get as much inspiration from my baby, and slowly worked on redeeming myself. And I did. I survived through the biggest ordeal of my life gracefully…and with a huge paycheck. *grins*

At this moment, my life is almost perfect. It could never have happened without the tiny angel shaking my world right to the core. Without him, I still would have been a student, depending on my parents for my every expenses, being a fool on young love, driven by crazy hormones, and not inspired enough to make it big. Thanks to him, I’ve been to places I could only dream of visiting a few months back. I’ve fulfilled my mother’s own pipedream to be a flight attendant. My dad respects me more than ever. I am earning six figures. I am living a fabulous life!

This is too cliche but I have to say it. Phoenix completes me. Not only me but the rest of my family as well. I could never imagine how so much love and warmth my baby has brought into our tired and stressed out home. He is the missing link that connects us back whole. If I have to live my life again, I would love to commit the same mistake over and over…and over.

I may not be the best person to give advice, but the belowmentioned are definitely worth noting down. Believe me, I learned them the hard way:

Always keep yourself protected.

Your parents and friends are always right about your boyfriend.

A baby will always be a blessing, with or without a marriage license.

A single mother can still get her dignity back, as long as she provides for herself and her baby and she doesn’t make a similar mistake.