Notice of Proper Haircut

     See the picture below, I received it yesterday when Osh arrived from school. I wasn't expecting it though, and i was quite surprised na even in Preschool pala they are also strict when it comes to haircut. Wala naman akong reklamo regarding the matter, in fact before sending Osh to school yesterday i already thought that with his hair starting to grow more especially on the forehead side no doubt the teacher will notice it, nasusundot na kasi ng buhok nya yung mga mata niya hehe. So ayun, at na noticed nga ni teacher.

     Just this early morning I almost forgot to bring him to the barbershop, good thing I checked on his red notebook and saw the notice again and oops, silly me i almost forgot hehe. So i did brought him to a nearby barbershop where we usually go for kulit's haircut. After a few cuts here and there Osh had a nice and clean haircut. 

      Guess what kulit says after..."Mama ang pogi ko na noh?!". ^_^

Pastime ni Mang Caloy ang mag Videoke

     Sa panahon ngayon bihira na ang kumakanta ng mga makalumang awitin, yung mga awiting pinasikat pa nila Frank Sinatra o ni Matt Monroe. Madalas sa mga videoke o kahit sa bahay mga bagong kanta na ang gusto natin awitin. Kamuntikan pa sanang manatili sa listahan ng mga awitin sa videoke at abutan ng bagong henerasyon ng kabataan ngayon ang awiting "My Way" ni Frank Sinatra kundi lang naging issue yung mga awayan at patayan na naging resulta ng pagkanta ng "My Way" sa mga videooke at inuman, kakaiba talaga ano?!

Nakalkal ko sa baul hehe. Lumang luma na at malabo pa
kaya pagpasensyahan nyu na. Si Mang Caloy at ang tatlo
 sa kanyang napakaraming mga apo.  Kasalukuya po yang
nagvi-videoke session nung mga panahon na yan. ^_^

     Siguro tinatanong ninyo ngayon kung bakit ko naisip ang mga bagay na yan? wala lang. Naalala ko kasi ngayon ang aming si Mang Caloy. Nung nabubuhay pa kasi siya isa sa mga paborito at madalas n'yang gawin pampalipas oras ay ang mag videoke sa aming munting tahanan. Madalas kapag wala syang ibang gagawin, pagkanta ang pinagbabalingan nya ng oras. Sa pagkaka-alala ko nga di lang madalas eh, halos araw-araw yata walang palya kumakanta si papa. Isa sa walang humpay nyang inaawit ay ang My Way ni Frank Sinatra. Sa kakapakinig ko nga sa kanya nakabisado ang lyrics ng My Way eh, hehe. Isa rin pala sa mga naalala kong tinatangkilik ni papa eh yung mga awitin ni Nat King Cole, Nathalie Cole, at marami pang diko na maalala ang mga pangalan ng mga singers na yon, kapanahunan pa kasi ni papa yun.

     Hindi naman kagandahan ang boses ni Mang Caloy, kadalasan pa nga ay nagbibinata ang boses nya lalo na kapag mataas na ang tono ng awiting inaawit nya. Pero sa totoo lang magaling kumanta si papa para sakin, at marami syang alam na kanta, yun nga lang puro kapanahunan pa niya. Sa sobrang hilig nya kumanta madalas yata syang bumili ng mikropono at mga minus one na tape, di pa kasi uso nuon ang mga dvd at vcd. Pero naabutan pa rin naman ni papa yon. Madami nga syang koleksyon ng mga pirated vcd's ng mga videoke song's na madalas nyang awitin kada session nya sa bahay, na halos magasgas na sa kaka paulit-ulit na salang sa player nyang makaluma na rin hehe. (Yung image sa kanan ay nakuha ko lang po sa google, so di man ako nakapag paalam sa may-ari eh pahiram na rin po hehe. May nakasulat pong copyrigt watermark sa image, vincesearch ang nakasulat. pahiram po ha. ^_^)

     Sa palagay ko kay Mang Caloy ko nakuha o namana ang hilig sa pagkanta (pero di ako magaling kumanta ah!). Mahilig din kasi akong makinig at sumabay sa mga awitin, mapaluma o bago man ito. Dati pa nga naaalala ko kapag nagvivideoke session si papa, kahit maingay sya eh wala na rin kaming magawa at kalaunan di na rin namin napapansin na sinasabayan na pala namin ang pag-awit nya. Eto pa pala ang isang trivia; ang aming si Mang Caloy kapag dimu na madinig ang boses sa pagkanta at biglang nanahimik, isa lang ang ibig sabihin n'yan...nakatulog napo s'ya at kasalukuyan nang naghihilik sa kanyang higaan, hehe.

     Nakaka miss din ang malakas na tunog ng videoke player ni papa, ang walang humpay nyang pag birit habang binabasa ang mga lyrics sa tv screen. Ang mga katagang "I did it my....way" na madalas nyang awitin. Hay, nakakamiss lahat yan. Naisip ko tuloy ngayon...may videoke kaya sa langit? baka kasi namimiss na ni Mang Caloy ang pagkanta. O baka naman kasalukuyan syang nakikipag videoke session kay lord ngayon sa taas hehe.

     Miss ka na namin Pang! Miss na namin ang boses at ang videoke session mo. 

WARNING! Something's not right here!

     Should I proceed or not?!  Just this very hour, this page keeps on appearing my screen every time i visit this blog that i follow. A security warning of some kind that says Malware Detected! I tried viewing the blog twice or thrice maybe but still it keeps on appearing. It says that the blog i'm trying to view contains content from another sight which is known to distribute Malware and that my computer might catch a virus if i proceed on viewing the blog. It also says that Google has found maliscious software which might be installed onto my computer if i proceed. Kinda frustrating right?! It's one of my favorite blog to read and i can't view it, haisst! 

     Now i'm worried, not just because of the virus warning but also because now i cannot view that blog. What to do now?! I'm not sure if this is true, but it came from Google so it is a valid warning i guess. I wanted to inform the concern blog but i have no idea what her email ad is, ooh really, what to do what to do?!  I hope this gets fixed immediately.

     

French Toast ala Mang Caloy

     Basically for merienda Pang loves bread and butter, and coffee of course. When he was still here hindi yata nawawalan ng bread and butter sa bahay. It's either he buys assorted flavored bread on a nearby bakery(makabayan was his favorite), or make fruit jam sandwiches if we have sliced bread at home, and sometimes even make french toast that i love so much. It's an easy to make bread recipe which i think everyone knows. It was from him that i learned how to make french toast when i was a kid, and now i'm delightfully making it for my li'l man. Thanks Pang! I really miss you and your french toast. ^_^

     I made a short recipe below on how to make french Toast ala Mang Caloy.

Ingredients:

6 Slices of Bread

2 Eggs

Butter

Milk

Salt and Pepper

Here's how you do it:

Beat the eggs and milk together. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Soak each slice of bread into the egg mixture.

Melt butter on a pan in low heat.

Put the slice of soaked bread into the pan and fry until it turns brown on both sides.

Plate and ready to serve,

     You can serve it as is, or you could top it with preserved jams like strawberry or pineapple jam as it will add more yumminess to the bread. Enjoy it while it's hot. ^_^ 

Miss You Mang Caloy

     It's been more than 5 years now since Pang(that is how we call our father) left, and even after all these years every time I think of him and the things that reminded me of him really makes me teary eyes. I miss Pang and all the things that he does when he was still here. With this I've experienced the truth about what everybody says, that you'll miss a person the most when he's gone. Haay, If only time travel exist, I would surely go back so I could spend more time with our Pang. But still I'm thankful knowing that Pang is on a better place now, healthy and happily enjoying life in heaven.  

     Well It's August already and a few days from now will be his birthday, and since i'm missing everything about Pang, I thought why not make August in my blog Mang Caloy's month. I could still post about other things, but August posts will be more about our Pang. I guess in this way I could look back and remember things that Pang used to love and do when he was still with us. So expect more of my stories and features about our beloved Mang Caloy. 

      

Fruits and Veggies ni Osh

     At na-challenged nga po ang creativity ko this morning kung meron man. At Osh's school, the preschool department celebrated Nutrition Month with an activity. It was supposed to be on the 29 of July but was moved today because of the bad weather last week. The kids were designated to do Clay Molding with of course a little help from their parents. With the theme "Eat Right with Color" we were tasked to mold healthy foods out of the different colored clay, and was given an hour to finish. Osh and I made miniature fruits and veggies out of the clay we brought. Super liit lang kasi small bars of clay lang ang dala namin. We've made carrots, pumpkin, sitaw, talong and the upo which ended up looking like chili pepper. Osh made one of the carrots and the pumpkin as well, si mama lang ang naglagay nung lines para magmukhang kalabasa. We've also made apples, orange, grapes, bananas, and mangoes. The mangoe was Osh's idea, he mold the first one and I did the other one so just to fill the tray. There's also this three eggs that we've made which osh and I liked making the most, super dali kasi gawin, hehe. 

     Osh and i finally came up with a nice miniature tray of fruits and veggies, and the eggs of course. hmmm, parang sarap kainin!  ^_^

A FATHER'S RULES FOR FINDING FULFILLMENT

     My sister and I were having a chat this afternoon, we were both feeling a bit low moral about something, not so serious though. While we were talking, she came across an article re-posted by her friend on Facebook. She started reading a few lines from it that co relates to the topic we were having, and just from those few lines somehow made us realize something at the very moment.

     Out of curiosity and interest to what more it says I searched it online and found out that it was an article entitled A father's message from beyond the grave posted i think two days ago at yahoo. I was touched by the story and decided to share it. Hope you'll find it relevant too as i have, and maybe follow these rules so that we too could live a happy and fulfilling lives while we still can. 

     And so this is the list of rules from a loving father and how he lived his life.

FLICKR: Manila Zoo

Japanese Siomai

     My hubby and I basically loves to eat siomai. Before we would buy it at Henlin, a pioneer for their good tasting siomai and siopao. But siomai was even more popularized by the fast growing food cart business that is almost seen everywhere in the metro, so we eventually switched. Food cart according to wiki is a mobile kitchen that is set up on the street to facilitate the sale and marketing of street food to people from the local pedestrian traffic. Food Cart is often found in large cities throughout the world and can be found selling food of just about any variety. Well in our case here in the Philippines i think siomai is the most popular of all the variety being sold. 

     Well enough of the trivia now and let me go back to my story. Whenever we go to the mall we would usually stop by the food court where the siomai cart is. Our all time favorite is the japanese siomai by Master Siomai, they really do serve good tasting steamy siomao with a very affordale price of P28.00 per serving(4 pcs). Well they also have the classic pork and beef siomai but we prefer the japanese siomai as it is topped with a piece of crab meat and wrapped in Nori, a shredded and rack-dried variety of edible seaweeds commonly used as a wrap for sushi. I'm not so new with the nori, my sisters who lives in Japan would usually bring home several pack of nori for pasalubong and we'd usually eat it with steamy rice, that is why i am familiar with the taste of it. I really love the nori as it adds more flavor and as they say "yumminess" to the regular siomai especially when dipped in their sauce which is not the typical soy sauce as it is a bit sweet. You also have an option to put calamansi and garlic chili sauce to add a little spice in it, but in my case i'd rather not. I'm not so into spicy foods. They also have iced cold gulaman to quench your thirst and neutralize the aftertaste. 

     Today it was not only me and my hubby who patronizes siomai, even my five year old son now craves for it. When i introduced it to him i never expected for him to like it because of the nori, plus the fact that he never really liked to eat meat so much. But surprisingly after the first time he tasted it he did liked it and now often asks me to go to this place to eat japanese siomai. I remember one time when we were at the mrt station in Quezon Avenue, he spotted a siomai cart and eagerly asked me to stop by and eat. At home he likes to eat the japanese siomai with steamy rice. The photo on the right shows li'l osh enjoying a serving of japanese siomai and a glass of gulaman.

     Japanese Siomai, definitely siomai reinvented. ^_^

FLICKR: Pusa

The funny recital

       Just this afternoon Osh and his classmates had an activity in connection with their lesson "I am special" from their Christian Living subject. Osh recited a short poem that he learned from his nursery teacher, while the other kids did some dancing and singing. Our kulit did well and the recital was okay except for the part that accidentally turned out funny and gave everybody a good laugh. ^_^

Notified

     I received a Parent Notification Slip today attached in one of Osh' notebook. I was a little worried after seeing it, reading the heading "Parent Notification" gave me a negative thought already, but as i read the rest of it i was relieved to learn that there was actually nothing to worry about. Though Osh's behavior about being playful and him roaming around the class is one thing I was reminded about, but another thing gave me a reason to be happy. He was being a bit makulit inside the class but he was also commended for being on time in class, for doing assigned tasks on his own, and the best part is him having high scores in all his subjects. That makes me a proud momma i guess. Hope he continue to do well in school which i believe he will.

     Kahit pala makulit at reklamador and less patient when we study which usually and eventually makes me so gigil eh may kunswelo nman pala. We just need to improve the thing about him being playful and all which i think i can handle. We're proud of you, Papa and Mama loves you Osh!

A littlest good deed: Project Aral 2011 by National Bookstore

     Who says your 25 pesos can't go a long way towards a good education? Well, just this afternoon my li'l kid and i, with our 25 pesos started a simple little good deed of donating for the less fortunate kids out there. 

     We went to National Bookstore this afternoon to buy some school materials for my son. As we approach the counter to pay what we have picked up, the cashier asked us if we'd like to buy a kit containing a notebook, a pencil, and a sharpener for 25 pesos. After learning the idea of the kit and what's it for I immediately said yes, of course i would. By just buying this Project Aral Kit for 25 pesos, you get to donate two notebooks, a pencil, and a sharpener to a kid who can't afford to buy one. On the outer cover of the kit you have the option to write your name, just for the purpose of knowing whoever donates it. For somebody who want's to have a decent education and can't afford the basic things needed for it is a huge frustration and a sad thing. For us whose been blessed enough to have and enjoy it, I guess on our part we have to share even a bit of what we have. 

     National Bookstore Foundation made it possible for all of us to help even in the littlest way possible, so let's be part of this wonderful campaign towards a good education for everybody. Your 25 pesos can be of great help to a future president...who knows?! ;D

Manila Zoological and Botanical Garden

     I could hardly remember the very first visit i had to Manila Zoo when i was a little kid, i don't even recall what's it like before. Just this afternoon my hubby and I gave our little man a simple treat which also gave me the chance to see the place we used to go to when i was a kid. And for my 5 year old kid and niece who has never been there perhaps this visit was one of the most exciting day for them. We arrived there after lunch. Humidity was extremely high but it was never a problem for the kids. They were more excited to even mind the weather and the scorching heat of the sun. 

     
     As we enter the zoo, on the right side we were welcomed by this adorable mammal. She is Mali, an Asian/Indian elephant . They say Mali is the most popular resident of the zoo. When the two kids saw it they immediately went near it to have a much closer look. It was our first time to see an elephant up close, and I'd say Mali was a beautiful site indeed. But aside from being amazed by her beauty, i also felt sad for her. The fact that she's not on her supposed habitat where she belong somehow is an issue, being alone there is one more thing.

     The next thing we saw were the birds. This time unlike the elephant who was alone on her den,  we saw a number of birds of different species. From parrots, hornbill, eagle, crow, and the owl to name a few. Aside from those birds inside bird cages, some are nesting and flying freely on the trees inside the zoo.

     We pass by this large pond situated in the middle of the zoo, there you'll find little boats that you can rent for 60 pesos. We were not that interested in boat rides, we just took pictures and  moved on to look for other animals to see.

     As we went on walking, we came to see this interesting cat like animal, the Palawan Bear Cat. A sleepy head sluggish hairy thing that seemed to be enjoying some z's on a branch in broad daylight. Well like any other nocturnal animal, they are most active at night. Together with the bear cat was the Phil. Palm Civet.

   

     There were more animals inside, like monkeys, horses and zebras, the Philippine Dear also, ostrich, the hippo that never came up from being submerged under water which made me frustrated. But what even made me more frustrated was the fact that we were not able to see the lions and tigers. I was somehow disappointed because I was hoping for my son to see tigers up close. We did pass by the tigers den but it was empty, and later on found out that they were inside the cages on the restricted area of the zoo, i just have no idea why. Goats we've also seen which Joshua enjoyed feeding with grass and leaves that he picked along the way.

     Finally we came to our last stop, the reptile section. We saw there few species of snakes of different sizes, even the bigger and scary ones. The Philippine Crocodile, Iguana's, and of course the super cute little turtles lined up resting at one side of the pond. 

       From what I read, Manila Zoo serves as one of the educational centers in our country where the viewing public can observe, discover and learn interesting facts about the beauty of fauna and flora. But is it really the beauty of the fauna and flora that the viewing public sees and discovers? or is it the terrible situation, the worst condition of the animals and the place itself? I admit we enjoyed seeing those animals, i did, we all did. But at the same time i also felt guilty. I realized that as i enjoyed seeing those animals, the truth is these animals were not feeling the same way, they look miserable and stressed out on the other hand.


     It's not like i had in mind or wish to put closure to the zoo, in fact i hope my children and grandchildren in the future would still be able to see and enjoy the place and what's in it. I just strongly believe that if  the authorities, the government, and whoever is in charge will do something about it soon, then things would be better for the animals and for the place too. So that in the future the viewing public like me would truly enjoy the beauty of Manila Zoo's Fauna and Flora...guilt free. 

Demi Curve

     I'm a jeans person. Ever since i became conscious about what i should and what i wanted to wear it's always been jeans that i prefer over skirts and shorts and everything. It's just i'm a lot like comfortable wearing it, and it's easier to match up. You can wear it with whatever shirt/blouse and shoes you have, and even with any accessories will do. That i guess is the versatility of this denim trousers which i love so much.

     I usually have a slight problem when i look for jeans to buy. It's hard to find a pair that will fit me since i don't own the size i once have, in short i have bigger waistline now haha! It's either i'll find a pair that fits the waist but it doesn't on the thighs and seat, or the other way around. The thing is if i go for branded jeans, well i'm referring to the famous brands i may find a pair that fits me but still i opted myself not to buy because of one reason, it's the price this time, damn It's way too expensive! You see i'm not that very blessed financially, but even if i would be i still don't want to spend so much on a pair of jeans. Well in that case I usually end up going home empty handed. But just this afternoon, thanks to my hubby who insisted on buying me a pair of jeans  brought me to a Levi's Factory Outlet Store and bought me one. 

    This factory outlet of Levi's is located in Alphaland Southgate Mall beside Magallanes MRT station, corner of Pasong Tamo and EDSA. There you'll find limited stocks of authentic pair of Levis jeans for almost half the price of it's original mall price. They have an array of fit and styles and even the latest  but the problem is the sizes, what they have are broken sizes and as i have said they only have limited stocks. 

  

     Luckily I found and got myself a pair, a Demi Curve Skinny jeans which i found out later on in their website and facebook page that it was actually the perfect fit for me. Levi's actually came up with Levi's Curve Id, a line of custom fit jeans for women with their new fit system based on shape not size as they say. Curve Id helps women find their perfect fit. It did for me, Demi Curve was my Curve Id and i got it already. It wasn't that bad to think that i got it for almost half the price, great deal right. It's definitely a stylish comfort wear and like without having the guilt of spending too much. 

  

     To find out all about the latest from Levi's, just check on their site at http://www.levi.com.ph or visit their official facebook page at  http://www.facebook.com/levisloopPH and you might as well want to discover your Levi's Curve Id.   

Hop, hoppin' little thing

     Just this afternoon, we found this beautiful little green creature hoppin' along outside our home. It was hoppin' right, but it never stopped me from doing what i had to do...