Valentine's Surprise

Got a pleasant surprise from my husband today. He had to leave early for work so he called to wake me up around 7:30 and asked if I had gone out of the room yet. I hadn't but I was curious so I got up and here's what waited for me in our dining area...

A single stem red rose and a bottle of Chloé :) Anyway, I got a surprise for him too, hehe. Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Getting Into The Holiday Spirit

I love this season, everything gets so festive and dressed up for the holidays. Got our tree up. Same exact one as last year, didn't change a thing...

Had date night with my husband last night. Went to the city to look at the nice store displays and light shows. Here's the facade of Fendi... Ridic! Dripping with lights and crystals.
Then there's the red bow Cartier always puts up every year.
There were so many people! Did everyone decide to go to New York City last night???
Anyway, the Rockefeller Christmas tree was gorgeous and breathtaking as usual. Didn't stay long as we had to grab some dinner and catch a show...
We were there fairly early - seats were sold out. Enjoyed the Rockettes' performance - they're really amazing!

On the way home, almost every radio station played Christmas songs. I love this season :)

Sick Of Chocolate

I've been sick for a few days now because I ate this...

My husband got them last Friday and I had some, even though I know I develop allergies when I eat something sweet. I know, it sucks. Good thing I'm not really fond of sweets, just sometimes when I want a cup of hot chocolate or a slice of leche flan or cheesecake... but I'd rather have savory than sweet. I just don't like being sick.

Major, Major Haul

We have been shopping a lot lately because we're sending a balikbayan box to my husband's family. So behold, our most recent shoe haul...

Yeah, I know, they're gonna be swimming in sneakers...

Then the almost perishables...
We filled two boxes already, might need to get a third, I don't know... Anyway, it's fun sending stuff to the Philippines, they probably have a lot of these things there but they said it's more expensive, especially electronics. Gonna post some good buys later :)

Anniversary Flowers

My husband of 6 months surprised me with a bunch of red and white roses today. Aren't they lovely?

Close up shot of one of the blooms. It made me really happy when I saw them after I got home from work today. So thankful that I've got the sweetest husband who hasn't yet forgotten our special days :)

It's A Miracle!

My brother got into a car accident last night, he totaled his car but miraculously walked away without a scratch. It's nothing short of a miracle! He woke up having neck and back pains though so he's on his way to the hospital to get that checked out.

The police officers on the scene told him that if he were driving 5 miles faster he would've not been so lucky. Also if the impact was stronger it could've reached the oil tank and may have caused a fire. I dunno, but I'm thankful none of that happened. The car is junk now but what's important is that my brother is alive and safe. Thank God!

Unintentional Weight Loss

My gums are still healing from my previous oral surgery (see last post) and I still have 2 stitches in my mouth so I can't really eat anything solid yet. I feel like a baby - my diet is restricted to liquid and soft food for now, everything cold or room temperature. So I've been living on Cerelac, juice, milkshakes, yogurt and broth. Ugh. I'm so sick of it! I can't wait to eat real food again!

My lunch...

As a consequence of this diet restriction I'm on, I've been losing mad weight. Unlike some people, I actually need to gain weight, I'm so skinny as it is already. So, yeah, this is not good. I remember this also happened when I first got the dreaded braces, I had a hard time eating for about 2 weeks.
On the other hand, I now have an answer to anyone who asks me how to lose weight quick - get some teeth pulled! Hehe, just kidding.

Bye Bye Wisdom Teeth

I just had 4 wisdom teeth taken out. Should've had them pulled years ago but I didn't know any better. I only considered having them taken out when I was having a lot of pain. Turns out 2 of my wisdom teeth were impacted. I swear, all my future children will have them prophylactically removed by the time they're 20.

Sorry for the gross picture, but hey, you see worse things on the internet. The oral surgeon was actually amused that I had a cute baby 3rd molar. That tooth didn't really bother me but I wanted it out anyway in case I had a problem with it in the future.

My face is still numb from the anesthesia but I'm a happy camper. No pain whatsoever :) Good thing I didn't end up like this kid...

Camping Weekend

Warning: This is a picture-heavy post.

Went camping last weekend with a bunch of my friends. It was nice to get away from the busyness of work and the city for a while.

It rained really hard when we got there, it was a real bummer pitching tents... But it was bright and sunny the next day and it stayed that way until the end of the trip. Here's a group shot of all of us...

Preparing for breakfast - we had nasi goreng, champorado, scrambled eggs, cereal, fruit, turkey bacon, veggie patties, chicken adobo, hot chocolate... and the list goes on :)

My favorite time - nap time :)

Went out later the next day for a hike on a really cool trail. Of course, Mr. Photographer had to bring his gear...
My friend's daughter - Justine. She stuck with me through 90% of the hike and told me all about her trip to Disneyland, going in detail about all the rides she went to.
Some wildflowers that were on the trail.
And finally, after about a 40-minute hike, we reached our destination...
I didn't get in because the water was so cold. It did look really inviting though... (That's my brother with the weird pose, btw.)
The baby of the group went in but only for about 5 minutes. Then she had to bundle back into warm clothes. Here she is with Ate Jean...
Cool (dead?) tree on the way back.
And you know how I am with my flowers...
I was eating a grass stalk so she curiously asked me if she could try it too. Kids really do try to imitate everything you do. The walking stick idea she got from watching her dad.
More wildflowers...


And wild 'shrooms.
Back to the campsite and picture taking. Thank goodness for tripods and self-timers :)
Getting ready for our midnight barbeque and s'mores...
Ella and Jemn goofing around. I don't know why Jemuel was smelling the Growers...
Yummy bistek and leftover adobo in the other pot...
I swear the bistek sauce on top of white rice could've made a complete meal but I also got extra-large helpings of Jufran-infused spaghetti.
Smokin' cold...
Corn, burgers and hotdogs on the grill... We slept around 2 a.m. just talking, eating, playing Taboo, charades, telling each other scary stories. It was a lot of fun.
The next day we are still eating the same thing - we had to finish the perishables in the cooler coz nobody wanted to bring food back home. Justine again with Kuya Mark who is visiting from California...
Nobody brought sauerkraut and I forgot to put ketchup. Otherwise, this would've been an awesome hotdog...
Leftover corn...
Playing ninja. We also played patintero and volleyball, some canoed and went boating in the lake...
Here's Justine and Kuya Rydee swimming...
She really loves the water...

All in all, a great weekend with friends and family, we're going camping again in 2 weeks - I can't wait!

Before I Forget...

Congratulations are in order for my brother Neil who just graduation from high school. We're very proud of you!

Me and my 3 brothers. 
Proud graduate.
I am officially the shortest one in my family, my youngest brother just had a growth spurt and is now taller than me by 2 inches. I am wearing 3-inch heels in this picture :(