Moments and Memories

Got this from a friend's blog...

If you are reading this, if your eyes are passing over this right now, even if we don't speak often, please post a comment with a memory of you and me. It can be anything you want, either good or bad. I promise not to come after you with a sharpened pencil either way.

When you're finished, post this little paragraph on your blog and be surprised (or mortified) about what people remember about you.

Comment away! :)

November 2006

November updates...

Nov1 - All Saints' Day... a non-working holiday. Hubby and I went to Las Pinas to visit his Dad's grave. It was sort of a mini reunion na rin kasi most of his relatives were there. We didn't bring our little girl along since it's hard to commute with a toddler in tow. We decided not to bring the car dahil alam din naman naming mahirap ang parking. Besides, marami ring tao sa cemetery. We headed home around 3pm to avoid traffic.

Nov 3 - It was an important day for SPL. Today, it was officially announced that Oracle has acquired our company. More on this on another post.

Nov 7 - Today marks the 1st death anniversary of our beloved Tita Cristina. I can't believe it's already been a year since she passed away. I miss her dearly. But I know, she is now happy and at peace in heaven.

Nov 13 - Met up with Abi and had lunch with her at TGIF, Glorietta. It's been a while since we last saw each other. She's inviting me to her wedding on the 26th :)

Nov 18 - Nagpa-blood chemistry ako a few days back. Now that I have the results, I went to my doctor to have the results interpreted. Medyo nag-worry ako kasi mataas yung cholesterol ko. When she saw the results, she told me that I've nothing really to worry about. She explained that the high cholesterol value reflected my total body cholesterol. Sabi pa nya, if I look at the breakdown, my cholesterol values are still within normal limits. But still, it doesn't mean that I don't have to watch my diet (hehehe...). Ang hirap pa naman mag-diet, especially with the Holidays fast approaching! Pinapabalik pa naman nya ako for check-up after the holidays. Patay na! Hahaha!!!

After the visit to the doctor, we had lunch at Gateway Mall then bought my wedding gift to Abi. Naku, nakakatawa si Caitlin! Sigaw ng sigaw sa sobrang excitement nya! Nakakahiya tuloy sa mga tao. Baka akalain nila, di namin pinapasyal si little girl. Anyways, after buying the wedding gift, nag-ikot-ikot muna kami. Ayun, nakabili ako ng 2 pairs of sandals. Si Caitlin din, nabilhan ko ng sandals. Ang saya! :)

Nov 25 - Caitlin's 1st visit to the dentist. Since the family wanted to go malling at the Mall of Asia, don na rin kami nagpa-dentist. I was getting worried na kasi of the stains on Caitlin's teeth. Actually, mas worried ako na baka nasisira na yung teeth nya. Mahirap na kung masira ang teeth nya kasi it's the only set she'll have for 5-6 years, at least, before her permanent teeth comes out. Kawawa naman kung mabungal sya agad.

Anyway, we went to DentAsia at the 2nd level of the South Mall of MOA. Akala ko, ok lang si little girl kasi she was playing and walking around while waiting for our turn. When it was finally our turn, I took little girl and have her sit on my lap while I sit on the dentist's chair. Ayun! Umiyak na! Akala mo, inaapi. She cried for "Ma Tit" (Mama Sit). So punta naman si Lola and kinarga sya. Si Mama Sit naman ang umupo sa chair. Aba, sa akin naman nagpakarga! Naku, di kami matatapos nito!

Para lang matapos na, hinawakan ko na yung head ni Caitlin para masilip ng dentist yung teeth nya (kahit na umiiyak pa rin sya). Sa wakas, nakita rin! Sabi ng dentist, may stains lahat ng teeth ni little girl. Akala ko nung una, yung 2 front teeth lang nya. Sabi pa ng dentist, baka daw may antibiotics akong nainom while I was preggy with Caitlin that caused the stains. Ang kaso, wala naman akong maalala. All I remember was taking Amoxicillin pero that was it. Sabi naman ng dentist, kung Amoxicillin lang, ok lang daw yon. It shouldn't cause the stains. Wala naman daw sira ang teeth ni little girl. Stains lang talaga. Hintayin na lang daw namin tumubo yung permanent teeth. Yun nga lang, there is still a possibility that the permanent teeth will also have stains. Hay!

The dentist told me that if the stains really bother me, she can have Caitlin's teeth laminated. Papastahan daw nya (no drilling involved) para ma-cover yung stains then ilalaminate. The thing is, if little girl is not cooperative, she'll have to be sedated. Nyay! Ayaw ko naman yon. I can still live with the stains. As long as walang sira ang teeth ni little girl, ok lang sa akin. When she's older, we'll probably consider it. But for now, hindi na muna. We'll just visit the dentist often to make sure na healthy pa rin ang teeth nya.

By the way, the dentist didn't charge us at all! :)

After the visit to the dentist, we took Caitlin to Toy Kingdom. Parang nasa heaven na naman ang anak ko! Ikot ng ikot... di malaman kung anong toy ang unang dadamputin. With matching shouts of excitement pa yon ha! Nakakatuwa syang panoorin.



After MOA, punta naman kami sa bazaar at the World Trade Center. Ang daming magandang items. I was able to buy a bag for myself and 3 sets of clothes for Caitlin. Marami ring nabili ang mom ko. Pero mostly pambahay and food. Sayang lang di namin naikot lahat kasi we have to be at Eastwood by 6pm. Kasali kasi si Joseph sa Battle of the Bands (inter-school - ADMU, UP, and DLSU).

We left WTC a little after 4pm to make it to Eastwood City by 6pm. Di naman masyadong ma-traffic so we got there on time.

The event was organized by 3 student business organizations (1 from each school; can't remember lang the names of the orgs). There were 6 bands that performed during the competion: 1 from UP, 1 from DLSU and 4 from ADMU. Each band had to play 2 songs - a christmas song and an original composition.

My brother's band didn't win. Pero ok lang. We were so proud of him! Kahit si Caitlin, clap ng clap habang nagpe-perform ang Tito Joseph nya. Nakakatawa nga sya kasi pag ibang bands ang tumutugtog, sinasabi nya, "ingay! ingay!" (with her hands covering her ears) o kaya "uwi na!". Hahaha! Di naman sya biased no?! Hehehe... Pero di talaga namin akalain na ang galing-galing nyang tumugtog ng drums! To think, wala kaming drums sa bahay. Basta, ang galing galing! Proud Ate talaga ako! Woohoo!

[picture/video]

Nov 26 - Marlon and I attended Abi and Tito's wedding. It was at Sanctuario de San Jose in Greenhills and the reception at Trader's Hotel, Manila. It was a beautiful wedding. Though honestly, I had mixed emotions. Don't get me wrong. I am very much happy for Abi and Tito. It's just that I was used to seeing Abi with her ex (no offense to Abi, Tito and Cynch). Though they parted years ago, I guess, di lang ako sanay.

To Abi and Tito, Congratulations and Best Wishes!

October 2006

Now for October...

Oct 6 - My cousin's Erwin and Tintin's wedding. The ceremony was held at St. James in Ayala, Alabang. Reception followed at The Palms. It was the first wedding in Erwin's family.


Caitlin, pretty in her yellow dress


St. James


Caitlin, with cousin Kyle before the ceremony


with Caitlin


My cousin, Erwin, with his parents


Tintin, the bride


Me, doing the 1st Reading and Responsorial Psalm


At the reception


Mama Sit and Papa Maning with their apo

Oct 7 - We have been expecting a balikbayan box from the US (from Dad's siblings) for months. It finally arrived. Si little girl, nakisali sa paghalungkat ng box! Enjoy na enjoy sya! At take note, alam nya kung para sa kanya yung item na dinampot nya. Hehehe :P



Oct 10 - My cousin, Chiqui, gave birth to a bouncing baby girl, Cristina Isabelle. So cute!



Oct 11 - Our 3rd wedding anniversary. We took a day off from work, just had lunch at Mall of Asia then watched a movie at Gateway Mall. It was just a simple celebration, just the two of us (di kasama si bulinggit). Masaya na kami na magkasama kami the whole day.

Oct 12 - I was still on leave from work so I took the opportunity to scout for pre-schools in our area. I know, it's too early to send Caitlin to school (at 1 1/2 yo). I just wanted to have an idea how much it would cost us to send her to one.

First school we went to was Britesparks International School along Katipunan Avenue in White Plains. The school didn't make a good impression on me.

Firstly because we had an appointment with the school's directress and she wasn't there. She completely forgot about our appointment. One of the teachers had to call her. The teacher then told us that the directress was on her way. While we were waiting, no one in her staff even had the courtesy of entertaining us. After 45 minutes of waiting, we left without telling any of the staff.

Secondly, I found the kids very "magulo" and misbehaved. There was a boy who kept bullying the other kids (he takes off every one's shoes and socks). Di man lang pagsabihan nung nagbabantay sa kanila. Then, I also overheard a parent telling another parent that she was forced to enrol her child in another class (mandarin class) just so she can be at peace knowing that her child isn't bullied while waiting for her to pick her up.

The second school we went to was FMP Loyola. When I saw their site at the internet, their school reminded me of the pre-school I went to. So, I said to myself, I have to check it out.

We went there without an appointment and the directress gladly entertained us. She even gave us a tour of the school. The kids were very behaved and well-mannered. All were smiling. I guess, the school (as a whole - including the directress, teachers, staff, and children) made a good impression on me.

We are not yet decided if we will send our little girl to FMP Loyola. But it will definitely be one of our choices.

As for the cost (tuition and fees), we now have a pretty good idea :)

Oct 15 - Boat-box anecdote.

Pinaglalaruan ni Caitlin yung box nung Disney Princess Ride-on toy nya. The box was big enough for her to get in. So while playing, sabi ko, "ano yan? car, plane, boat, spaceship?". I was trying to let her use her imagination. Kaso, di ako pinansin ng anak ko. Tuloy-tuloy sya sa paglalaro. So finally, sabi ko, "sige, sakay ka na sa car mo (referring to the box)". Sinagot ako ni little girl, "di, bot (boat)!". Nyahahaha!!! Sino ba naman kasi may sabi na car yon?! :P

Oct 16 - Caitlin's "unofficial" first haircut... "unofficial" kasi mom ko lang ang nag-gupit sa kanya at na-trim lang yung buhok nya.



Oct 22 - Pasyal lang sa MOA with the whole family. First time nila, second namin ni Marlon. Dinala namin si Caitlin sa Toy Kingdom. Naku! Feeling nya yata nasa heaven sya! Di malaman kung ano ang unang toy na dadamputin. Nahilo ako sa kakasunod sa kanya dahil ikot sya ng ikot. Di mapakali!

Yan ang updates ko for October. November updates, coming up!

September 2006

Yes, I'm back! Back from months of "not blogging". So now, here I am to give an update of the months that were.

Let me start with September (next post na lang yung October). Hehehe! Here goes...


Sep 3 - Ninong Noel bought Caitlin a Disney Princess Ride-on Car She loved it from the instant that she saw it at the Toy Section in Rustan's.



Sep 5 - Mom's birthday. We just celebrated it at home... just family. We had cake, spaghetti and chicken.



Sep 8 - Caitlin can diffentiate between a watch and a clock :)

Sep 9 - Tagaytay trip. It was Caitlin's first trip outside of Metro Manila. Actually, it's already her second trip (the first was to Los Banos, Laguna) but we consider this her first kasi ito talaga yung "pasyal" trip. The trip to Los Banos a few months back was to visit an aunt.


I'm ready!


with Daddy, Mommy and Mommy Obeth


with Tito Bong and Tita Beth


"Tito Joseph, ang laki nung gumamela!"


Ninong Noel and Tita Waw


with Papa Maning and Mama Sit


Enjoy ako!


At Dencio's, with Mommy and Daddy


"Ang laki talaga ng gumamela!"


"One more pic please"


with Mommy and Daddy uli


At Caleruega

Sep 14 - SPL's 17th Anniversary. We had the celebration at the 15th floor of our office building. The newbies gave a presentation showcasing their talents in singing, dancing, etc. SPeciaL Awards were also given. The service awardees (including myself) were given awards/tokens.



Sep 20-23 - Caitlin was confined at the hospital (again). This is the second time this year. The first time was due to amoebiasis. This time, she was diagnosed with dyspepsia.

On the night of the 19th, she vomitted around 6 times. She kept on letting out everything, even water. Worried that she might dehydrate, we took her to her pedia first thing the following morning. The pedia also wanted to monitor her so she had Caitlin admitted.

We stayed at the hospital for around 4 days. The doctors couldn't find anything wrong with her. Finally, she was diagnosed with dyspepsia.





Sep 28 - Typhoon Milenyo (aka Tropical Storm Xangsane) struck Metro Manila. Classes were suspended at all levels. Even offices/businesses closed for the day. Below are some pictures* of the storm's aftermath.


*pictures are not of the author's

I just thank God that our house was not damaged and that no one from our families, relatives and friends were severely affected by the storm.

That's it for the month of September. October happenings coming up...

Sari-Sari

ang bilis ng panahon! 5 years na ako dito sa SPL... service awardee na ako. hehehe... may awarding sa september 14 during SPL's Anniversary celebration.




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Birthday ni Mommy yesterday. We celebrated it at home... just family. We had cake, spaghetti and chicken.

Akala ni Caitlin, sya ang may birthday. She started clapping and dancing when we were singing "Happy Birthday". She even blew the candle on the cake with my Mom :)

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Hay naku! P50 to $1 na lang ang exchange rate. Bumaba na naman sweldo namin. Waaaahhhh!!!
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My cousin (2nd degree), Arvin Tolentino, was inducted as acting Vice Mayor of Pasay City.
Read related article here.

a friend showed me this video and i really found it funny! i just hope Caitlin doesn't do this...


"Why waste a temper tantrum when no one can see you?"

may bagong words na naman si KEI-TIN (Cailtin)...

- da-di = daddy
- ma-mi = mommy
- a ba bu = i love you
- tak u = thank you
- ka = car
- u bre la = umbrella
- pleyn = plane
- eyk = cake
- papa = papa
- ta ti = spaghetti

[to be updated]

I was so excited this morning when I read the email from Meeya about WifeSpeaks being featured in www.bloggingbaby.com. I became more excited when I learned that the entry also mentioned my site and included Caitlin's picture.

Click here to read the entry :)

Congratulations to us, mga Misis!

Caitlin's first steps

Yup, you read it right. Caitlin had her first steps last August 17 at exactly 6PM.



We were all shocked and surprised when she did it. I had to run for my digicam and let her do it again... just so I can capture it on video :)

PS - just ignore me talking in the background (in the video) :P

KULIKOT -- yan ang tawag namin ngayon kay little girl... dahil sobrang kulit at sobrang likot na nya! di mapirmi sa isang lugar. dati, bigyan mo lang ng toy, ok na. pwede na syang manahimik sa isang tabi at maglaro. pero ngayon, di na ubra yon. mahilig na syang maglakad-lakad at magpipindot ng appliances. hay!

For some reason, I woke up this morning singing my highschool's alma mater song.

O alma mater, kind and dear
We sing your praises far and near
At home, at school and at the sea
The thought of you is near to me

O SHS, in joy we sing
Our hearts we love, to you we bring

Stand, stand for the SHS!
For truth in love!
Stand, stand for the SHS!
For truth in love!

I tried remembering what I dreamt last night and it has nothing to do with my high school. Hehehe... wala lang

Sa mga naghihintay ng update... I AM NOT!

I had my check up last Saturday. The ultrasound showed that everything is normal and that I'm not preggy. Medyo weird lang kasi may spotting ako since Wednesday pero di makita kung bakit. I was just given some pills to take to stop the bleeding. If it doesn't stop by Wednesday this week, I'll have to go back to my ob-gyne and she'll have to do a D&C on me.

But it looks like I won't be having the D&C Medyo nawawala na kasi yung spotting ko. In fact, as of yesterday, wala na talaga. Sana lang magtuloy-tuloy na.

Am I or am I not? Let's just wait and see... ;)

"KEI-TIN"

Actually, delayed na nga itong post ko na 'to. Kasi, a few weeks ago na 'tong milestone na ikukwento ko. Lagi ko lang nakakalimutang i-blog.

Anyway, alam na ni Caitlin ang name nya. Whenever she's asked the question "What's your name?", she readily answers "Kei-tin". Ang galing! (proud mommy na naman ako! hahaha!!!). With matching turo sa sarili nya :)

Hay! Nakakatuwa talaga! :D

Caitlin's 1st Bday Party Album

Finally got Caitlin's 1st birthday party album from Chei (Moments of Life Photo Story ). Maganda yung album... parang storybook :)

Anyway, just wanted to share the album (layouts). You can view it here.

Your Birthdate: May 7

You are an island. You don't need anyone else to make you happy. And though you see yourself as a loner, people are drawn to you. Deep and sensitive, you tend to impress others with your insights. You also tend to be psychic - so listen to that inner voice! Your strength: Your self sufficiency Your weakness: You despise authority Your power color: Maroon Your power symbol: Hammer Your power month: July

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

May joke ang asawa ko...

Hubby: Bakit "S" ang nasa costume ni Superman?
Me: Bakit?
Hubby: Wala kasing medium! Kaya nga fit sa kanya eh.
Me: Nakakainis!

Ang corny... pero natawa ako! Hahahaha!!!