Welcome to Summer!!!

      A whole summer is upon us here in the hot, sunny, sticky Manila.....but I am excited!

     It is a blessing, a much needed and deserved break not only for the kids but also for us, parents, our two aging cars, the entire household and a bratty family dog who gets lonely when the kids are in school. =-)

     Summer is like a Christmas tree with gifts at its foot, only the gifts this time will come in sweet installments; to exhale, inhale, learn, love, grow......

From minimegadesign.dk

               Now if you will excuse me, my family and I will enjoy our first summer weekend this year....

    Let us welcome 

the many gifts of SUMMER, shall we?

Cafe Ysabel: Some Things Never Change

     When H and I were dating Chef Gene Gonzalez’ Café Ysabel was D place to go on a date. We used to frequent other places but Café Ysabel was for special occasions.  Our relationship celebrated many milestones there. In fact the night H proposed, we had just had dinner there and it was my 27th birthday. Okay, let us all say in unison CHEEEEESY! ENOUGH!

    Fast forward to today. Eeek, we have not been there since, until last Tuesday which was Yellow’s grade school graduation.  H and I were feeling nostalgic and sentimental and we thought of going back to Café Ysabel. The justification? She was named after the restaurant. Okay, good enough, right? This calls for another outcry CHEEEEEEESY!!!! Despite the fact that she wanted to have lunch in a hotel that gave out graduation teddy bears. That's ok. I do not want one more teddy bear in my house!

    The moment we pulled up into the parking area one of my kids said,  “ Mom, you love to bring us to old houses.” GUILTY! (If they inherit my love and deep respect for old design and architecture, I will die a happy architect.) 

The beautiful facade

 

    
     It was lunchtime when we arrived. There was mix of people; old ladies, medical students, yuppies (Is that word still used?) and we were the only family with kids The place was almost the same as 13 years ago, save for more use of color in the architectural details like window frames and railings. The menu too had some changes but felt the same. I am missing the duck adobo dish which was favorite before and the only thing I ordered then aside from the carbonara. Overall, it was exciting for me to bring the kids there. It surely brought back wonderful memories.

A group of not so noisy lolas/ grandmothers

Pretty painted ceiling

     Sorry so little food pics. We were famished from the graduation rites that I forgot to take pics of some. I did manage to take these……

We could have had more of the delicious bread but we were saving space for real food.

Blue had what else spaghetti with meat balls

     We shared one dessert, the strawberry shortcake.

     Which was gone is 20 seconds. No joke!

     Like small kids after lunch, Blue and yellow went out to watch the koi pond. This made me smile as they are still kids after all. 

     It was good to be back in Café Ysabel. It's a relief that a lot of it is pleasantly unchanged. Old memories were not hard to remember and yesterday new ones with our kids won't be easy to forget…..

 

 Cafe Ysabel is located at

455 P. Guevarra Street, San Juan Metro Manila

How was YOUR Week?

      I openly complained through my facebook status recently how lonely it is for me to be without a job site. All my projects are either in the bidding stage, mobilization stage prior to actual construction or schematic design stage. leaving me job site- less. Before my mind even wonders about how to compare my current professional state to cliches like a jeepney without a driver or a captain without a ship, I would rather wonder about how the week went and did I live it well?

Saturday, March 10, 2012

     My friend and art teacher, Toots is insisting that our class is ready for a show. (Chattering teeth!)  I consider my Saturday art class one of my happy places but the idea of a show is not exactly daunting but HOW? In all trust and faith I look to Toots. Lead the way.....

        The photo above is my first struggling attempt at show worthy skill, I want to call them shoescapes. It looks better than it really is. I am doing this over....for the 5th time!



        That same Saturday, the kids and I finally got to back Homemade Oreo Cookies and they were yummy and so easy to make. =-) Click here for the recipe. 

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

        One of my goals this year is to start cooking again, I have so been out of the kitchen. I did not know where to start? Taking many steps back, I went all the way back to cooking school....and I was back in the kitchen of my teacher Chef Dorothy Ferreria. Dorothy is a generous teacher, She shares all her secrets with her students. ALL! If you are interested in her classes even for your kids this summer. Look here.
     

        We learned to cook Spanish Bacalao and other Lenten dishes. They were all so yummy!

    

       I told myself I will not attend another cooking class unless I try to cook two recipes from the previous class by myself.,,,,Haha! good luck!


Thursday, March 15, 2012
   
   Surprise! Surprise! I am all of a sudden doing crafts for Real Living and I had to work on that this week. I hate making you guess what the next craft project is but here are a few picture clues...

     

Friday, March 16, 2012

         Before long it was Friday and Blue is done with exams and we all turned to his school driveway to be greeted with this glorious sunlight and the heavenly Jesuit music on the background. 
 

 

HOORAY FOR THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!

   I just got back from Worldbex. It was an interesting show this year. I am excited about some new products. My fave booths are those of UST and UP. 

UST ID Booth

UP ID Booth

          This oh-so inviting bed reminds me how exhausted i am...Yep, it is 5 in the afternoon on a Friday as I write this and I want to end this week already and sleep early.

   And tomorrow.....is a brand new week. Who says Saturdays are the end of the week? 

   Saturdays are my beginnings....Good night, to a week well-spent! =-)

Keep Calm & Carry On

     I do not remember when I purchased my Keep Calm & Carry On poster on Etsy. I knew and have read that it was a British wartime propaganda poster. I loved its message instantly. We, Filipinas are loud mouthed drama queens deep inside, hence the attraction to the poster. Heee!  I placed it on one of our stair landings for everyone in the house to see and be reminded of. This comes in handy during mornings when we are running late, exam week or when we rip open envelopes of our credit card bills...Waaah! KEEP CALM & CARRY ON!

     A lot about its being so over-used have been said lately but I still appreciate and enjoy mine. I even don't mind its many variation. I like:

Gladly!

Yup, that could help!

Taking pictures and sharing them is therapeutic!

Lovely!

There are also hilarious ones like this....

     Maybe I will think twice about wearing a Keep Calm & Carry On shirt or cellphone case but as a poster it still rocks!Uh-oh, I sound like my 10 year old.

     This post is actually inspired by a video of the poster's history shared by Heima Store on their facebook page recently. Here is the link....

The Story of Keep Calm & Carry On 

      

    Even if you have no plans of buying a poster. It is a message that rings loud and mighty. 

    Now,guys let us actually keep calm and carry on....OMMMMM! =-) 

KEEP SMILING!

The Mags of March

         I have been a reader of Good Housekeeping Philippines since their first issue with Tweety De Leon in June 1998. H and I were newly weds then and settling into my parents' second home in Quezon City which we used to share with my brother.

     Keeping house was something I easily applied myself to. Months before I got married I took cooking lessons under Ms. Dorothy Ferreria. I was already scouting for pieces of  furniture to put together for our third floor room, complete with bedsheets and window treatments. 

     Living in our own home now, Good Housekeeping is still very much a good friend to have. I appreciate  that the local version is adjusted to the Filipino household. That is why I am tickled pink whenever Good Housekeeping's editor-in-chief, Tisha Alvarez Angluben offers me a writing or styling job. =-)For this month's issue, I wrote about what to do with your kids' old school supplies at the end of the school year. =-)

     Among my favorites in this issue are a summer reading list (love!!!) for the whole family, tips on making this the greatest summer ever and a very practical skin care article. 

     We, Filipinos never look forward to the summer heat but the March issue of Good Housekeeping Philippines will definitely make you embrace it and get you excited. I know I am.... Now to shop for a swimsuit for this gorgeous body of mine. NOT!

     Cheers to a glorious summer!=)

     Also don't miss the March issue of Real Living which is oh, so pretty and beefed up with new sections. =-)I am sure you will all love it!

Here & Now

     I have said this before and I am going to say it again. Being a parent is crazy bittersweet. Just this morning over breakfast H and I realized that we have been shuttling our kids to and from school and our home for the past nine years. Wow,  how can that be nine years already so fast? In a matter of months or hopefully years, Blue will no longer let me hug him and riddle his face with kisses anymore. I will be left with overstuffed photo boxes and memory cards to remember.

     As time speeds away, I just teach and remind myself to focus on the here and now - and all that is here and now even the most ordinary, mundane little things. Each one is connected by timeline to the other to make up the gifts I enjoy today. 

     In two weeks Yellow will be graduating from grade school and the face that will look back at me on this car mirror will be that of a high school student come June.

      The number 4 patch on this polo will be changed to number 5.

'

      It is that time of the year again to pack the used text books and school stuff and clean out the kids' room in preparation for the summer ahead. Gotta get boxes! Need to check on swim suits, our supply of sunblock and while I am at it decide on which classes the kids will be taking.

Blue's room is a zoo.

      We plan to spend a substantial amount of time with my parents too. I mean who can resist being away from this pool? Not to mention my mom's cooking?

     Seemingly simple, regular milestones and events still bittersweet.....How do we parents actually cope?

 We work...

 (Yes, work come to think of it is actually not only a means but also a distraction)

Aiming for at least two turnovers...Woot!

     

      We complain about the traffic among other things....(Thanks to the Corona Impeachment Trial aired on the radio, traffic has become more bearable.)

     We drink a lot of coffee....(need to focus)

Drown ourselves in take-out breakfasts.....

(since we are always in a rush)

.......and in my case drown myself more in Thai movies on Youtube.... 

P' Shone!!!

   ....and deep in our hearts wish that it will never end.......=-)