christmas samu't sari

it's three days to go before christmas...

and we still have a lot to do aside from wrapping presents and preparing for noche buena. argh! you see, jude and i made it a practice that every year, particularly during the holiday season, to visit the people who gladly accepted the role of ninong or ninang during our wedding. they are just eight (four pairs) so we think it's feasible that even for a short time we touch base with them personally. it's not for the gifts, okay... we actually prepared a small gift for each of them and we don't expect to have something in return. 

we just firmly believed that the ninong/ninang-inaanak relationship shouldn't stop at the wedding reception. it should be nurtured the same way we nurture friendships because they also play an important role in our life if we just acknowledge it. my project next year is to know our sponsors' birthdays and try my best to send them a gretting card at least.

and talking about friendships... sigh, i miss my friends particularly my close friends who i seldom see these days like rina (hope you're reading this mare), leah, and soulmate (as i call my friend, joy). i tried to schedule a date with each of them but having a little tot around the house makes me so tamad na... oops! hehe. and do you think the fact that we already live in laguna helps? yan ang hirap 'pag promdi. hahaha.

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care to know what's on our table for noche buena?

since jude's parents are staying in hong kong until february, we decided to host this year's noche buena in their house and just go to my folks' place morning of christmas. christmas staples would still be around such as ham, fruit salad, and queso de bola. we will also have spaghetti for noodles and roasted chicken by andok's as the latter is everybody's favorite, including the little boy. i would like to experiment a little and cook something new but it might end up a disaster again so i will just stick with the old recipes like creamy pork with mushroom or tanigue steak until i have mastered it.

gee... the thought of noche buena makes me hungry... off to next topic... =)

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ever wondered what happened to our christmas tree three weeks after i built it?

i could't upload the picture now (i'll try later) but it's a total wreck and have you seen a christmas tree where all of the ornaments were placed only on the upper part while the lower was plain and bald... OURS!

this idea was jude's as he was annoyed by my constant nagging to iñigo that he stop picking the ornaments.

can a toddler and a christmas tree go together inside the house?

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as you know we already live in cabuyao, laguna. but it doesn't stop us in going to metro manila almost every weekend (that's how we love caltex, shell, and petron... hehe) especially this season where almost all of our activities is ncr-bound. slex and south superhighway is becoming a second home to us as we often find ourselves caught in heavy traffic in these major thoroughfares. and should i say that traffic these days is a horror story for every commuter and motorist. JOSKO DAY!

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this is the 3rd christmas for jude and i as a married couple and the 2nd time we will be celebrating the season with iñigo. i look forward to iñigo unwrapping his own gifts and making a big "wow" seeing the things he received for himself. for next year i expect that he'll have a slight idea of who santa claus is and the year after that he will hang his own sock (as what i used to do when i was a kid) and wish that santa will fill it with candies and the toy he wished. if three christmases ago jude and i spent our time and money unwantonly because it's THAT time of the year then a lot of things changed now.

christmas becomes really more meaningful now that we are a parent we discern the things that really matter to us as we know that there's one soul who is about to learn the true meaning of christmas aside from presents and santa claus. amid the fun and the material things that christmas brings it's always the love and the family ties that will always complete the day.

 

overindulging

christmas is the season to enjoy and be merry and there are times, if not all the time, that jude and i can’t help but go overboard. here’s how:

 

eat and pig out. yes, that’s usually the case whenever we go partying these days.  we’ve been to two parties last week and what i can say… jude and i went home literally bundat! hahaha. p&g cabuyao had makati skyline as its caterer for its christmas party last friday and the famous lasagna and tuna steak were served. if i must share, i raided the buffet table three times! what can i do? our seats were just a few steps away from it. style! =P

 

while saturday was the church wedding day of jude’s cousin and iñigo’s ninong, bryan bustamante. the wedding was beautifully simple and solemn. reception followed in the chinatown in banawe st. and again, jude and i had a grand time eating. foods were abundant and delicious and it didn’t help that only five out of ten guests were seating in our table, including us. so if my computation was right, that means we should eat for two… and that’s what we did. hahaha.

 

shopping frenzy. and i really can’t help it as some you knows how shopaholic i can be if the budget really permits. it's christmas anyway and jude and and i were on a shopping galore since first week of december. for himself, jude bought three polo shirts and a pair of crocs sandals last thursday while i bought iñigo three polo shirts from rustans and a pair of leather shoes from sm. for toys, we only bought two items as iñigo isn’t really fond of it except for balls. one of the toys was even funded by jude’s company as iñigo received a toy kingdom gift check the last time p&g had a christmas party for the kids. the question now is if we are going to buy this little tikes ride-on toy car that iñigo really wanted but would cost us a hefty amount. i will leave it to his daddy to decide but it seems that he’s positive about it.

 

as for me, i had a new pair of pants and a bag plus a lot of accessories which i really can’t resist not to buy because the kikay on me has again reactivated. i have yet to buy myself a decent blouse and nice shoes for christmas day. let's see what i can find with the tight budget my financer gave me. haha.

 

 

 

world christmas bazaar in world trade center

if you aren't done with your christmas shopping yet, i suggest you visit world trade center as they have again this annual world christmas bazaar, which is organized by abs-cbn foundation. the bazaar started last 6th of december and will run until 16th.

i've been there last saturday (been a regular visitor since 2005) and i tell you, it's one great place to search for the perfect gift for your loved one as it has almost everything--bags, toys, clothes, gadgets, stationeries, giveaways, novelty items, household items, and christmas decors. i forgot about going to divisoria and greenhills because the prices of most of the goods here are relatively cheap. for two hours that i scoured the alleys of the hall, i'm almost finish with my list. and i was really happy that i didn't go over my budget! to think that i also bought some stuff for myself, for iñigo, and for the house. okay, i again bought some christmas decors... =) imagine a nativity set (made of paper mache) for php 250 only, and the angels for php 50 a piece. although it's quite small but still you can't find a fifty-peso item of such kind in the mall, right? and just as i've wished, we now have a hanging santa claus in the house. i got it for php 200 only. iñigo was so delighted when he saw it for the first time... it comes with a christmas ball, that's why. he's just after "bo". and hey, he set up his basketball ring as if it's an ordinary ball he can play with. so naive! =D

i hope i was able to share enough info. btw, if you're thinking of going there with kids in tow, i should say "don't!". the place can really be crowded in the afternoons and the aircon can't keep up with the heat so the place is not really kids-friendly. the reason why it only took me two hours (that was fast for me i tell you) is because i really wanted to get out of the hall immediately or else, i'd faint without jude on my side and that would be too pathetic. hehe. i was really thankful that i offered the idea to jude that he just drop me off at the gate and they wait for me in their house in malate. we just came from star city, where p&g had a christmas party for the employees' kids, and the original plan was all of us (jude, me, iñigo and yaya) will go inside. i was really glad that i just shopped alone and i don't have to mind the two boys. see... mommy's instinct really works well. =)

 

 

 

the wind is cold... the tree is up... it’s christmas once again! =)

 

hay, and i thought i would be a wet blanket this year’s yuletide season as it was already late november and i wasn’t hit yet by the christmas bug. i was thinking it may be because we were living right now in a place where streets are not as well-lit as makati and manila where we used to live. and no christmas lanterns where hanging in the lamp posts, the downside of being a promdi. hehe. or probably because our christmas tree was not yet up…

 

but that was last week.

 

look what i did last weekend...

 

 

i put it up last saturday--first day of december--and as i have guessed, it made me feel like a kid again! i’m now giddy with excitement over the countless parties and exchange of gifts, and more importantly, the bonding moments we will share with our loved ones, friends included.

 

i just wish iñigo would spare the christmas balls and the other embellishments of the tree. look how busy he is in this picture…

 

 

can you imagine how does the tree looks like right now? horrors! hahaha.

 

jude and i also started with the christmas shopping last weekend and even if it's magastos, i still find gift-hunting a fun task. guess who will have that big kitchen set this christmas from iñigo?

 

(iñigo eagerly posed when he saw me holding a cam.=))

 

 

 

i wonder how we are gonna ship that…. =D

35 days to go before christmas...

my goodness! i was checking my organizer this afternoon when i realized that it's only 6 weeks to go before christmas. you see, the christmas bug hasn't hit us yet probably because of the tons of concerns jude and i have. i am not even sure if there will be money left for christmas shopping as the expenses for the businesses (it's not only one!), house construction, and trips are piling up. but i already made sure that jude has my christmas wishlist as early as now so he can squeeze it in the budget. hahaha. the scarcity theory i learned in my economics degree is sinking in once again: demand increases while supply remains to be fixed--how true! we can only count on the company bonuses for the christmas expenses that keeps on growing and growing each year.

so much for my intro, i just want to know the things that we look forward to do this season. honestly, just thinking of them already makes me tired and... penniless. hahaha.

here's my list...

1. attend countless christmas parties. almost all units even how small it is has its own christmas party. there's the company and department's party, organizations and associations party, family and barkada party--we have all these parties in our list! of course we wouldn't go in these parties empty-handed. there would be foods and gifts to bring. speaking of gifts...

2. shop in crowded malls and bazaars, and make a list beforehand. did it ever occur to you that there's always two or three persons left in your list after all the shoppings you did because you can't find the best gifts for them? that's always the case for us. and since i'm a pro when it comes to cramming i would shop for a few more gifts before the noche buena begins. hahaha.

3. brave the horrendous traffic! actually, as early as now the traffic in metro manila and even in the other parts of laguna is already a horror story. and it doesn't help that south luzon expressway is under renovation. i now stuffed our pick-up with all the essentials in case we're caught in traffic again like what happened to us in edsa last saturday.

4. go to the bank have the bills broken in 20's and 50's and buy some ang paos (did i mention it right?). okay... we're kurips! kuripot, that is. as i've told you our supply is already fixed so we have to be more creative in terms of giving. aside from the inaanaks and pamangkins, we also want to give to other kids especially those of our cousins and friends. i remember my childhood days when i will be asked to fall in line together with my siblings and cousins as my uncle ben would hand us red ang paos. the older kids received four or five pcs. of twenty-peso bills while us--small kids-will be content with two or three pcs. of it.

5. decorate the house with our christmas ornaments. i haven't started so it's in my to-do list next week. thank goodness that i already bought a lot of christmas decors last year so i don't have to buy any this year or else my budget for gifts would shrink more. all i need to do is to resurrect it from the boxes, which btw is still in our former house in vito cruz.

6. buy iñigo a santa outfit! i told myself last year that this year's christmas is the best time for iñigo to start wearing a santa claus outfit since he can already stand and walk. gee... i can't wait to see my little boy donning a red santa suit. =D

he only had a cutie antler for last year...

isn't he a cutie in that picture?

i'm sure he will be the cutest little santa this christmas so you better watch out... =D