happy December!

It is the first day of December... and we are down to twenty-four days before Christmas. While I may not have a Christmas party to attend to at work, (another first in thirteen years) I am pretty sure that there would be quite a few with friends.

Oh, I love this season! And this year is a special one because we will have a taste of how Christmas is like in the land down under, which they say is the continent of contrast. Yes, it is gonna be a our first Christmas in summer!

Merry Christmas!

From our family to yours, we wish you a very merry Christmas!!!

Happy Holidays!

For several years now, I have always been telling family and friends that Christmas is my favorite time of the year. It does not only give me a merry feeling, it also allows me to bond with people who really matter. The two-week Christmas break I have been enjoying from the company gives me the liberty to stay at home with Mama, and meet up with friends whom I have not been seeing frequently throughout the year.

This season is quite extra special though. My ASCENT family has thrown a tribute/despedida party disguised as a Christmas party. I was so overwhelmed with all the appreciation that my boss and my colleagues have shown me, and I'm sure to blog separately about that soon. My highschool classmates are able to organize not just one, but two days of get-together (26th and 30th; to all concerned, please do join us), to accommodate those who will be coming home from abroad. After 15 years, we are gathering again to spend our Christmas partIES! My husband's circle of SUPERFRIENDS (as i call them) is also having their Christmas party (on the 26th as well), and better halves are invited. My grade school classmates are also planning our long overdue reunion. It's been almost 20 years since we graduated, and we haven't yet had any reunion (or so I think!). Now is the best time! It's tentatively set on the 24th of January, and I'm really wishing it will push through.

'Tis the season to be jolly! These gatherings will surely be full of reminiscing, catching up, and fun!

I thank God for my families, relatives and friends who never forget. Let us celebrate relationships that have been built, nurtured and grown over the years.

Have a very Merry Christmas everyone! God bless you!

it's gonna be Christmas soon!

Today is the 15th of October. We’re halfway through the month and Christmastime is just around the corner. Christmas season is something I so look forward to every single year. I just love the merry feeling it gives me when I think of it.

But this time is different. As I countdown through the days before Christmas, I somehow feel a bit of sadness knowing that forty-nine days after the merry day, I shall be leaving behind my family and friends for a new life that awaits miles and miles away from home. And just writing about it brings me to tears already. It is our choice though… something that husband and I have planned for nearly two years ago.

After indulging myself with the sad thought, the excitement begins to surface. Yes, we will finally live our lives in a place we have always dreamt of, and it is going to be exciting! It may not always be easy, but it will be fun! It may be full of uncertainties, but we will surely learn new things. And as we go through everything that may be new to us, it would be comforting to know that we have each other and by God’s grace we would be A-OK!

Now I am happy again! Am I crazy? Nah! Just thrilled!

Merry Christmas!

Make a Smilebox Postcard

ASCENT Christmas Party

We had our company Christmas party last Wednesday night in Congo Grille at El Pueblo in Ortigas, Pasig City.  This time of the year has been my much-awaited company event. Unfortunately, I was not able to bring a digicam nor did I remember to take pictures using my mobile phone. I was just busy posing for others' cameras. And now, I don't even have a single picture to look at to remind me of how the party went. :(

Anyway, it's gonna be a few more days before I will be back at work and can grab pictures my colleagues have taken. I'll post a couple of them here and create new albums on our multiply account and my friendster too. :)  So, please come back soon.

Christmas Eve Menu

Mama and I have finalized our menu for the Christmas Eve. As earlier planned, we shall have fettuccine carbonara, macaroni salad, and instead of chicken lollipops, we shall have drumsticks. And because it is quite cold here due to our close proximity to Tagaytay City, we shall also have pancit molo, and pork siomai to match it. And for dessert on Christmas Day, we shall have fruit salad.  However, we decided to forego the traditional ham and queso de bola, since we are not really big fans of those.

We are set to prepare the salads tomorrow, and I'm just hoping we won't finish eating them before the Christmas Eve. *lol*  As for the other food, we'll cook them on the night of the 24th.

I'm so excited already!  :)

Vacation Day 2: a couch potato looking forward to the Christmas Eve

We're home in my mom's place and I have a 24/7 access to the Internet. But why don't I feel so excited about using it? I just check my mails every now and then, log on to my blogger account to see if any blogs I'm following has anything new, if none, I scroll to the older posts. It's the reader-not-a-writer in me, I guess.

Anyway, this is my second day of vacation, and I haven't done anything productive nor interesting. I've been sleeping the whole day, eating as soon as I wake up. I'm having a slight headache, and I'm thinking "have I overslept already?" *lol*

But of course, looking forward to the Christmas Eve, Mama and I have been planning for the menu.  We're only five in the house, and we're not really expecting any guests, not until the Christmas day that is, so we are just thinking of preparing something we will all love: fettucini carbonara, macaroni salad, chicken lollipops.  That's what we have in mind right now.  But I'm still thinking of something else that I would love to feast on during the Christmas Day.  Suggestions, anyone?  :)

Christmas time again...

This day marks the start of my 18-day vacation from work. Christmas is just around the corner!

Free Christmas Countdown

Merry Christmas everyone! :)

my life as a wife... for now.

I have been "angel-less" for four weeks and 2 days now. No, not that guardian angel sort of thing, but an angel as I call household helpers.

And despite the fact that nobody else takes care of our household chores but us, Husband and I feel that we are more relaxed coming home, enjoying our meals and helping each other out with chores that need to be done.

And here is a list of the things I certainly enjoy doing at home even if it means having less rest time:

• Preparing our meals. I need to get up 30 minutes earlier to prepare our first meal of the day. And even at times I still feel very sleepy and the thought of myself snugging in bed seems to pull me back to sleep, I get up and do some cooking. And at night, when I come home after work, I still prepare food for dinner. Sometimes I cook, other times I just re-heat left-overs. It is rewarding to see that Husband enjoys the meal so much so that he ends up doing the dishes. ;)


• Taking care of our clothes. Having been brought up by my Mama to wear clean and well-pressed clothes no matter how old the clothes may be, I kind of imbibed that obsession in me. Without a helper to do the ironing, I can meticulously press our clothes, making sure that we both look neat wearing them.


• Cleaning the house. I used to avoid cleaning the house because I am very much allergic to dust. Even if I use mask to cover my nose, or I use vacuum cleaner to dust off the entire house, I would still have my allergic attacks. Fortunately, I have discovered using the mop to clean the floor and everything else that can be mopped. :) The house is clean, and I don't have to worry about rashes or swollen eyes because of allergies. It feels good to come home when everything around is clean and orderly.


• Movie marathon. And who says I need to spend all my time doing the chores? Well, it's not really a movie marathon, we just watch one movie every night on poqui. And it's a great feeling after a day of work and some household chores to cuddle up in bed sharing laughter over some comedy films. :)

And last night, due to my insistent demand, we installed the red and green Christmas lights on our door. Christmas spirit is in the house, at last! :)

Christmas lights

22 days to go before Christmas!

The child in me couldn't help but get fascinated with all the lights displayed in various colors, shapes and sizes. It is Christmastime indeed!

Nothing has been officially announced yet, but I am now excitedly looking forward to the 16-day Christmas vacation! That will be 16 days of get-together opportunities with good friends, both old and new, time to bond with the family and catch up on latest happenings, and time to take care of some unfinished tasks before the new year comes.

Wherever and with whomever you are spending this Christmas season, may it bring you all the fun and blessings that your heart truly desires.

Merry Christmas everyone! :)