harry potter and the deathly hollows

at last, i find time to read the last series of harry potter books i bought in changi last july, why it took me that long before i start reading? memory loss - forgot where i exactly put this book - tsk tsk tsk...

so i finished "harry potter and the deathly hollows" last night, and all i have to say is, the book truly lives up to its title. before reading the book, i avoided going on line, promised not to read blogs about it, thus sticking to my vow avoiding the likelihood to read any spoilers.

after dinner, i plunged straight on, so i could finish the saga and find out if harry would get to the other horcruxes. there were times when i sat up on my bed, eyes widened with shock, fingers gripping the book tightly; other times, i had to grab end of my pillow to dab the corners of my eyes.

i couldn't decide whether i wanted to read it slowly, or read it quickly so i could get to the ending ( i do not understand why anyone would want to read the ending first). on one hand, i had the final piece of the harry potter mystery, and on the other hand, i knew that once i finished the book, there would nothing after it any more.

it was still fresh in my mind the first time i came across with harry potter - it was one boring afternoon here at work, one of my peer let me borrowed her copy of "harry potter and the sorcerer's stone" that's when i met the durleys of number four privet drive.

the next seven years were spent waiting for the ending of the story.

now, my sister's reading the book and i'm still stunned. long after i finished book 7, i was still staring blankly and thinking about the sudden turnarounds, the explained mysteries, and well, the deaths. harry potter isn't the best-written series in the world, and there are a lot of plot holse and all too-convenient escape hatches, but it was a series that i sort of grew up with and anticipated for seven years-litlle pieces of the story were fed to readers every two or three years, and we devoured each piece hungrily. am still a fan and the sorting hat said i belong to ravenclaw.

it's all over now, and i can't help but feel a little sad that there's nothing more to look forward to. hope there's more...

intrams

today is baby bear school intrams, i bought her blue shirt as uniform on their sportsfest, after 3 days of exams, at last, baby bear can have a day off on academics - she's too excited this morning as she told me she's one of the players for outdoor games like sack race, tug of war and soccer, sana lang wag umulan. it's been raining since monday.

ang laki na ni baby bear - she's becoming more of his father, kutis, mannerism, boses, miniature ni papa bear. she amazes us everyday, dami na niyang kayang gawin at 5, she can wear her own clothes, tie her shoe, comb her hair, read and write up to 4-5 syllables, count up to 100, recite poem on stage without fear,sing and dance, construct sentences in english, brush her teeth, wash her face, recite school prayers and a lot more. very independent, pero super lambing. we're proud of you anak!

exam week

our weekend was spent in making reviewer for baby bear - this week is their exam week - long departmental test. na pressure ko ata masyado si baby bear sa pag rereview, di kami halos lumabas nong weekend - feeling ko kukuha ng board exam he he he.

sana lahat ng exams niya pasado nung last quarter 2 out of 5 exams niya ang perfect, ngayon we raised the bar sana 3 exams na yung perfect niya (high expectations ba? - tsk tsk, hirap maging bata ngayon, bukod sa maaga ipinapasok sa school, advance pa yung lesson, imagine 5 years old pa lang siya, yung math niya up to 100 na yung sequence number, from least to greatest and vice versa, comparing numbers < > and =, skipping numbers by 5's and by 10's).

di bale this weekend me get away special kami - HK Disney??? yipeee....

kokey mania

kokey an alien from planet yekok was the only tagalog sitcom baby bear loves watching. last sat kokey was here in sm sta rosa, i promised baby bear that we'll watch him then, i wasn't expecting that the crowd will be big, all i thought it was just a kid's show, it proved me wrong, i under estimated kokey's charisma with the household - he has lot's of fans who patiently waited him including us even though he came 1 hour late.

it was fun, baby bear had a photo with kokey, hanging in our wall, 8x10 size, she requested it to be print and framed right after the show. looking at the picture, am trying to figure out if the dagul was "kokey" sa bigat at init ng costume, normal kids can't stand that. sabi din ni baby bear, when she was sitting at kokey's lap, amoy sigarilyo daw. so i was quite sure he could be 'dagul". kayo anong guess ninyo? :D

my boss says" am proud of you"

i'd like to blog about my boss - he's so cool and we treat each other as one family though sometimes me moods din siya at importante sa kanya ang integrity. isa lang ang medyo ayaw ko sa kanya, and hopefully it won't happen to me - pag nakaron siya ng bad impression sa staff niya, it will be forever that way - you will never recover. it happened to one of my colleagues, until now, she can't erase that impression, although she's trying very hard, her effort just gone unnoticed.

last friday oct 5, i had this project presentation to the big boss (boss ng boss ko), it was supposedly a 2:1 meeting, but he intentionally declined for him not to overshadow me. good thing, presentation went well, and after that i received email from my boss saying that " am proud of you" naks, indirectly he's telling me that i'm good and he's impressed. sana lang, i can hold on to this as long as i'm here.

siyempre pa i've forwarded the email to my hubby - he replied back "baby bear and I are also proud of you" wow, sarap ng feeling - nasa cloud nine ako. that was i ended the workweek. today is also end of workweek as tomorrow is holiday, am looking forward for a loong and happy weekend.

you're on the spot

this was the title of the personalized hand made card from my sister, it was supposedly her b-day gift for me, she put it in my kikay box which i seldom used so i wasn't able to see the bday card on time, but anyhow the message touched my heart, it was so sincere when she wrote that though i wasn't perfect to others, i'm still perfect for her and i'm the best "ATE" in the world. naiyak naman ako dun.

naalala ko tuloy nung mga bata pa kami, we weren't that close as siblings, we have so much differences, but when i got married and left home, we missed each other, more so when i got pregnant she promised to take care of my baby, and so she did. since then, we developed this strong friendship within us - i love my sister so dearly.

di ko pa pala na i blog surprise nila sa akin, when we got home from work nung b-day ko. dati rati malayo pa kami sa bahay, nag-aabang na yung pamangkin ko sa labas para magbukas ng gate - pero that time, nagtaka kami kasi pati ilaw nakasara, as if para kaming naputulan ng kuryente - i'm so excited pa naman to come home kasi we have bought chocolate mouse cake from red ribbon, tapos mukhang walang tao sa bahay? when we door bell, ayun na, bumukas ang ilaw mukhang me party sa bahay, me decoration, me music pa and to top it all, me ginawa silang tarpulin na me dedication nilang lahat, my 2 nephews, my sister, my helper, and of course my baby bear, pati si papa bear na surpresa din, kaya pala humingi daw ng pera si baby bear that morning yun pala pambili nila ng decoration - it was the most unforgettable bday parties i had, on their own simple way, na express nila sa akin how i was loved. thanks sis, alam ko idea mo lahat ito. utang muna lahat ng photos di ko pa na download sa pc ko. basta alam ko, ako ang reyna ng gabing yun he he he.

my birth anniversary

right way of greeting daw is "happy birth anniversary" since once lang tayo pinanganak but we are celebrating it as an anniversary yearly just like wedding, etc.. ito ang thoughts for the day i learned from a friend - she's quite right. i'm proud that i reached this stage in my life healthy and vibrant with my family and friends intact to love me unconditionally. i thanked God for all the years that i have, giving me all the blessings and guidance that made my life so beautiful all these years.

i'm entitled to avail of b-day leave today, but i opt not to because i was already OOP last week due to sore eyes; instead i had an early celebration last oct 1 - since i'm telecomuting every monday, i took time to cook some of my specialties (naks! feeling chef as if andami ko namang niluto he he he).

while we are buying some stuff at the grocery, baby bear insisted on buying a bday card for me, of course i was the one who paid for it - but i was so touched with her gesture, kanina while i'm preparing for work, she woke up very early and handed me the card with her handwritten message on it - ano pa eh di napaiyak naman ako, kaya pala ayaw niya akong papasukin sa study room niya last night she pretended she was doing her homework, iyun pala sinusulatan niya yung card - would you believe, no one has taught her what to write. among the gifts i received today - this is the most priceless!(utang muna yung picture ng card, pi-picturan ko pa mamaya). Thanks baby bear, you make me feel really special today, and i'm thankful too that God has given you to us.

eto nga pala yung mga niluto ko, i inherited my skills from my mom, but only discovered it when i got married and started cooking for my hubby.

spaghetti meatballs for the kids


vermicelli noodles for our neighboors




chicken inasal ala ysabella

our weekend getaway

i'm back again to the office - after a week of isolation, normal na uli ang buhay ko yehey...

tomorrow is my birthday - i'm thankful that i reach this age (38) with so much blessings and still counting.

last weekend we had a blast ; saturday we went to a b-day/reunion party of my old friend Red in Cavite City, it was nice seing him again after 6 years of staying in the US at last they find time to visit PH and celebrate his kid's 4th b-day here, after so much kumustahan and kwentuhan while we feasted with lechon de leche, noodles and other pinoy foods, he handed me over his pasalubong - a XOXO wallet. thanks. (thoughtful talaga tong friend ko na ito) sa lahat ng biz travel niya while he was still my officemate, lagi yung may pasalubong for me and Grace. (thanks Red and i'm looking forward to see you again soon - sana ako naman ang nasa US he he he)

from Red's party, we headed to my father's house to greet him happy birthday - 65 yo na ang tatay and he is still healthy, i'm wishing him more b-days to come. I'm praying that he will stay healthy and happy. we don't have any gifts for him so we just give him money for him to buy what he wants - actually alam kong hindi naman yun bibili, ibibigay niya lang yun sa mga apo niya, i'm sure of that. medyo gabi na, so di na kami nag celebrate, sabi ng sis ko they had a simple dinner, di na kami nahintay kasi nahirapan kaming umalis agad sa party ni red. they will have extended celebration the following day (Sunday)

sunday naman, Papa Bear visited his father at the UST hospital - he was there since last week, actually it was a recurring confinement - doctors are having a hard time detecting his real ailment - prostate ata i suspect.

Papa Bear just dropped us at MOA - since kids are not allowed to stay at the hospital so we just window shop and play at MOA. we had a good time at MOA, i saw kipling bag - really wanted to buy it as a gift for myself pero pinigil ko ang impulse ko, mas maraming priority dapat paggamitan ng pera kesa sa bag so next time na lang, instead we end up buying a pair of havaianas for me and baby bear. we ate lunch at max blue wave and dinner at MOA foodcourt. our initial plan is to attend mass at Holy Cross Parish of Jesus and Mary across MOA, kaso lang sobrang lakas ng ulan dahil sa bagyong Hannah, di kami makalabas na mag-ina, walking distance lang sana - so di na kami natuloy. sayang don kami lagi sumisimba pag may special occasion. next time na lang.

here's the bag in my "wishlist"


we end up buying this for baby bear - mine is havaianas high