Si Binata at si Dalaga

Ngayon lang ako magyayabang, eto po ang aking mga anak, Biboy, 9 and Tabebs, 4. They're into school na, and doing well in their studies. In fact, this Friday, I will be pinning their ribbons again, for doing great!

This was taken during the culmination of their Buwan ng Wika, Biboy was part of a chorale recitation while Tabebs was part of the kids' choir.


May binata at dalaga na ako in a few years, hayyyyy. Kaya ngayon pa lang, todo bonding na kami, kasi ang bilis ng panahon.

I take great pride in my kids, and I want to share them with you. Kayo, what's your greatest pride?

D'oh!

Ask me what my major major mistake is? Not major, but I did a mistake last Thursday night. It is not something life-threatening, but i felt stupid to have done such a thing.

I was really dead tired last Thursday night, but wanted to wash the curtains, so I went to prepare the washing machine and turned on the faucet. I went inside the house to get the curtains but since the washing machine is not yet filled, I decided to rest awhile on the sofa, until the worst thing happened.

The running water slipped my mind. I transferred to the bedroom, and the nap I was supposed to take turned into one heavy sleep. I woke up at 4am and the faucet is still on, with running water! Gasp! I immediately went out to turn the faucet off, but the water is already wasted, more than 8 hours of the faucet on, with running water.

Sometimes we experience such errors, may be a minor mistake but I feel sad for having wasted so much water. Hayyyyy, so much for aging, I guess?

What I learned: Never ever do something laborious when you are already tired. Take a rest, sometimes, it gets to be more effective when you are alert!

Would you mind sharing what minor mistakes you did? ... Oh! and what you did to correct it? Pang- Miss Universe ba?

Major Major Stunning!

My age already exceeds the numbers on the calendar, but it did not stop me or any of us Jenny's officemates, to be bride's maids on her wedding day.

Jenny turned 32 and on her wedding day, and all her close officemates were made bride's maids, to even as old as 49. It was a very nice and colorful affair, where we were able to don very beautiful gowns, and wear our hair as if we were youngsters.

Here's what I looked like during the wedding. And take note, first time ko maging bride's maid, hehehe. Once, I became maid of honor at my sister's wedding.

And to borrow Venus Raj's words, major major stunning, am I not? Tell me, teeeheee...

Proper Breathing Means Healthy Living

Last week, my daughter was diagnosed with broncho--pneumonia, prescribed with an antibiotics and medicines for the cough and the colds. This week, it is the son who was diagnosed with the same, broncho-pneumonia. In my kids' school, there are a lot of children having flu and the worst thing is, dengue cases are rampant here in our side of the world.

Nowadays, you really have to take care of your health. Or else you will have to suffer spending money over medicines that will relieve you from your situation.

Know that the best thing is always prevention, and not cure. So in order to prevent having to get sick, deep breathing is relatively important. Studies have shown that learning how to properly breathe is important because proper breathing can help and is effective in making you live healthy.


Here are steps to proper deep breathing:

1. Take a deep breath, hear yourself inhale.
2. Hold your breath for a short time.
3. Exhale. This time, hear yourself exhale as well.
4. Exhale again, with a loud sigh.

You should repeat this six times or more. Do not be afraid of excessive breathing (hyperventilation) because it is unlikely to occur. But in case your fingers has a tingling sensation, that's a sign to stop.

Proper breathing can deliver oxygen to your lungs, and even in your brain. Enough oxygen in the body can prevent headache and even migraine. So if you have recurring migraine, it helps when you learn to breathe properly. A daily lung exercise such as this can be helpful. Also, avoid second hand smoke, and if you are still into smoking, better quit now or lose your healthy lungs.

Step Up 3D Made Me Cry

You know you're dancing when tears of pain and happiness blend in with your sweat." ~Anonymous

I don't know how to dance, I believe I have two left feet. Not even a very simple step could go unnoticed by the hubby once I make a move. It's so awkward of me to dance, and when I do, it's always not a good sight to see, so I don't dance anymore, not when I can help it.

But I married a dancer. Hubby was member of the infamous NDMU Kariktan Dance Troupe when he was in his college days. I remember him getting to the office late because he had some trainings to do, and he's been teaching kids in one place to do cultural dance.

Last Friday afternoon, we dated. I assumed he was surprised when, asked to see what movie, I chose Step Up 3D from Salt, Furry Vengeance and Hating Kapatid (which is obviously never my type). So off we went inside with our 3D glasses, cinema almost full, and armed with my drink.


The movie had me glued to my seat. It was the type of movie I have long been wanting to see, so much action, de-stressing, and fun. During the whole movie time, you can hear almost everyone reacting and admiring the steps they do, clapping to each finale step, cheering for the cast. The 3D experience is just so worth it!

Moose went to NYU to study electrical engineering with Camille, his long time bestfriend. But after he was there for an orientation, he caught himself having a showdown with a Samurai group, and hunted down by the police for some street disturbance.

It was when he met Luke, a film maker, whose life was to house dancers on his parent's house which is almost foreclosed. They were the Pirates, they intend to join the World Jam, the final battle for dance, fighting the House of Samurai.


While they trained, Luke became in love with Natalie, sister of Julienne, from the House of Samurai. When he knew of this, he felt he was betrayed, added to that the foreclosure problems. Until they were left with nothing, their vault gone to pits. Moose, in all his effort to save the team, and to make his education work, had to miss the love of his life, but eventually made up after he was able to tell Camille he was dancing.

Behind my 3D glasses, I was crying, the story was nonetheless very moving. It was ironic that I was crying when the whole crowd around me was itching to dance.

I highly recommend this movie, the love story is great, the lesson to learn is to have passion for what you love to do, and make the best out of it. Do not hide what makes you happy, for in the end, it might be your saving grace.

Go watch Step Up 3D now, a very heartwarming movie. But beware, you might get that itch to dance, even inside the cinema.

Oh, and yes, I married a dancer. I may not be a good dancer to complement his perfect moves, but I believe I make good steps dancing with him in this music we call LIFE.

Another Good Reason To Come to Gensan!

General Santos City is basically known not for its lovely place, not for its lovely tourist spots, but because it is the home of tuna and Manny Pacquiao.

I say this because I hear the reasons they go to General Santos is they wanted to visit Manny and feast on tuna. Some people mistake Gensan as part of Sarangani. Some would love to pass by Gensan only because there is no other way they could get to Sarangani and visit Gumasa, but through here.

Not bad reasons for visiting, but I would love to hear good reasons why they visit Gensan, and probably a better mall could entice them to do so.
Robinson's Place Gensan is a young establishment here in General Santos City. The place is quite an attraction already as it is located along the national highway where buses and most vehicles pass. The mall's welcoming signage facing you would be Gensan's famous tagline: Magandang Gensan.


This is sure a nice welcome considering the fact that Robinson's Place Gensan had us glued at the lovely insides of the mall. Wide place, cold and relaxing atmosphere, with comfortable comfort rooms, this has been our weekend venue each time we want a relaxing day. So far the most modern of the malls here in our city, I could say this additional mall is one of the best places to visit because for one, and I will mention it again, because of its relaxing atmosphere.

Delicious Food! I love the alfresco strip that Robinson's Place Gensan houses. The alfresco strip is home to a lot of mouthwatering food that can only be found in my favorite place, Piyesta, Sunset Bistro, Mandarin Tea Garden, Bigby's and Grab a Crab. Delicious coffee awaits you at Coffee Club 101 and even on other restos catered inside the mall. And what a surprise, Gensan has had its taste of an active nightlife because of the alfresco strip. Way full but enjoyable crowd lingers and gathers for the food and drinks, chat, reunion and camaraderie.


During Fridays, I and family always bond by getting us some cold drinks after the kids have arrived from school. It's the Robinson's Place foodcourt we invade, because it houses the kids' favorite foodsnacks, Waffle Time, Fruitas and Kuya Chito's Takuyaki. Armed with affordable but healthy snacks, we give them time to enjoy people watching or play games in Quantum and sometimes, go to a movie.

The best thing Robinson's Place Gensan gifted us with is by bringing to us our 3D theaters.
The kids and kids at heart enjoyed watching Shrek Forever After and Toy Story because of this thrilling 3D experience. What a way to enjoy relaxing comforts of a good moviehouse. Spacious legroom, big seats, cold comfortable place! Surely we will keep coming back for more!

I have an online job and at times when things are needed to be done two at a time, I bring the kids to Robinson's Place and I let them play, while I work. Yes, I work. Online I say, because Robinson's Place Gensan is a WIFI Hotspot! Absolutely free wifi!

I'll say it again, Absolutely Free WIFI and the cold relaxing atmosphere inside Robinson's Place! This is the only absolutely mall-wide free wifi mall here in the city. So armed with my laptop, you know where to find me on Fridays and weekends!

Bloggers' meetings are almost always scheduled in Robinson's Place Gensan, why? Because only Robinson's can cater us all! We are a lot, and we always love to be together. Hence, the foodcourt is almost always invaded by blogger and visitors alike.

Did I already convince you to visit Gensan? If not, of course, there's still more to Gensan than malls, but if you ask me where you can wind up after a tiring day? I'd say Robinson's Place Gensan, Mas Maganda Dito!

Vicks Vaporub, a soothing remedy for coughs

Yesterday, I got a text from the hubby saying Tabebs had fever. The teacher was able to immediately give her Paracetamol, but I was restless soon after I heard of the news.

Dengue has been really rampant in this part of the country, we have statistics reaching 600 and more, and unfortunately, our baranggay, more specifically our purok's elementary school here, has had declarations of three students rushed to the hospital for dengue cases. Lagao, being the biggest of all barangays, has declared the most number of patients.

I was trusting God to take care of my baby, she was restless in her sleep the night prior to that but I was not alarmed much until the text reached me. I went home immediately, and even today, I took a leave to monitor her temperature. The fever subsided, thanks to Tempra Forte (Paracetamol). But I am still concerned about the cough and the runny nose. Flu is rampant, and we better take care of ourselves.

Here's one emergency thing I did to ease the coughing. Believe it or not, this works and fast!If your child has coughing fits, before he/she goes to bed, dab Vicks Vaporub on her chest and at the back. This will soothe the child and relax the muscles on the airways. But there's one thing I have just learned today, dabbing Vicks on the feet before bedtime and covering the feet with socks does the job better. Many doctors have recommended this to many patients experiencing coughing fits. This will reduce a child's nighttime cough.

Simple but effective. Let us find the means to fighting diseases through the simplest means. Bawal magkasakit. Mahal magkasakit.

And yes, I remember my Nanay Connie used to do this for me.