My 31st Birthday

If Richard had his way, we would have celebrated my birthday with a nice lunch or dinner (or both!) in restaurant of my choice and a day at the mall shopping for my gift. Two weeks before my birthday, he would ask me almost everyday: "Sweetie, what do you want to do on your birthday?" "Saan tayo kakain?" "Nakapili ka na ba ng gift mo?"
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I tried to make plans, but I eventually gave up. Nakaka-stress! So one night, when dear hubby came back from work, I told him: "Sweetie, I want to have a simple celebration for my birthday this year. No big production, just low key. Let's stay at home na lang and I'll cook."
"What? Are you sure? Baka mapagod ka sa pagluluto."
"Don't worry. Yung madali lang lulutuin ko. Tsaka sina Angel will be here next week. Saka na lang tayo mag-celebrate pag dating nila para triple celebration kami nila Mick and Chig."
"Okay. Pero pano yung gift mo?"
"I can wait for a few more days. Sayang din ang VAT refund."
"Eh pano yun, wala manlang akong regalo sa birthday mo?"
"O sige, punta lang ako ng spa. Yun ang birthday gift nyo sa kin ni Yan."
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And yet, when I woke up last Saturday, Richard and Aly gave me these:
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aBirthday cards (see how Aly decorated her card with stickers? Cute!)...
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a...another one made by Alyannah (this time she used stamps)...
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a...and flowers.
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You might be wondering about the food that I cooked for my birthday. I prepared:
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Roast beef tenderloin with mustard and herb marinade.
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a The meat was soo tender! It was the best beef that Richard and I had in Bangkok so far. Super worth the price talaga! I was supposed to make gravy pero tinamad na ko. Lea and Perrins na lang. Hehe!
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aFor long life: spaghetti al amatriciana.
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aAnd ofcourse, my white chocolate birthday cake.
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aAly chose the design for mommy's cake.
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aShe even made a map for daddy so he'll know where to pick up the cake.
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aHappy birthday to me! :)
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aOakwood also sent me flowers.
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It was a great birthday! I am thankful for all my blessings: my husband who takes good care of me; my daughter who is smart, well-behaved and mabait; my family, friends, my health...I can't ask for anything more! :)

Getting Ready for School

Aly's vacation will be over soon. She will be Grade One on Monday.
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Two Thursdays ago, Aly and I went to NSIS to buy her new school uniform. She will no longer wear a dress like in preschool; she will be wearing a white shirt, a skirt and a blazer instead. When we tried them out at home, I had a mommy moment (read: I was teary-eyed) when I saw my little big girl in her new school uniform. Anyway, enough drama. Let me show you the pictures.
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P.E uniform is still the same pala, but I still got her a new and bigger set.
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aIf I had my way, I would have gotten her a bigger one because she will certainly grow bigger towards the end of the year, but Aly didn't want to "look like a boy". Gosh, hindi lang sya lumalaki, fashion-conscious na rin ang anak ko. Hehe!
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aOur first grader. Sigh...I'm having another mommy moment here...
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aDoesn't she look cute?
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aSo adorable. Whenever she'd put on her blazer, she'd tell me: "ok, mommy, I can go to the office now." Funny girl!
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aWithout the blazer. The skirt is supposed to be knee-length. I just finished altering her skirts the other night. I didn't cut them because I'm sure I will be altering them again in a couple of months so I just folded them.
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aWith her new school bag.
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aStriking a pose for mommy. Clearly, she's happy with her new uniforms.
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aWith a cardigan.
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aFeeling daw nya she's going to travel with her new school bag. Heehee!
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aWith a vest.
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aAly loves her new bag :)
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aMy girl specifically requested for this photo so she can put it on her facebook daw. Heehee!
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I'm almost done with her school preps. I just need to press her skirts today and she's ready for Monday. Yesterday, I finished labeling all her uniforms and stationery. We also practiced waking up early this week. Heehee! I guess mommy and Aly are both ready for school! I'll post pics of her first day. Promise :)

Sago + Taho

More Filipino food coming up! This time, I tried making sago and taho at home.
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Sago't gulaman made from scratch.
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How to prepare: Just put together sago, gulaman, arnibal and cold water in a glass; stir and enjoy. For the sago, I bought a pack of tapioca pearls from the supermarket and cooked them in boiling water until transparent. Then I made arnibal by boiling muscovado in water. Alsa gulaman was prepared according to package directions.
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Homemade taho.
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I saw this on the internet. I can't remember the blog (sorry I forgot to bookmark the page!), but it was written by a Filipina living in the States. For the taho, I used soft tofu (package was labeled Sakura tofu). Just put the soft tofu in a bowl (or a glass for the authentic taho feel), add sago and arnibal. Serve warm.
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Ofcourse, you can't beat the real deal from the magtataho, but if you're living abroad, this should be enough to satisfy your craving :)

Pork Barbecue

I made three attempts during our last trip to satisfy my barbecue craving. First one was at Eli's Barbecue. I was hoping that their barbecue will be great, but it was so-so. My second attempt was during lunch with Pat at Kanin Club. I was disappointed. The rest of the meal at Kanin Club was good, only the pork barbecue was forgettable which is so unusual because I remember everything at Kanin Club to be excellent. Maybe I caught them at an off day? The third and last one was at Gerry's Grill near Mall of Asia. It was the worst.
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I went back to Bangkok still with good old Filipino style barbecue on my mind. Note to self: get Aling Nene's, Ineng's or the one at Caltex SLEX next time for guaranteed barbecue satisfaction. Our next trip to Manila will be in December and that's a million months away. I don't think I can put off my craving for that long! I'll go crazy! So what did I do? I attempted to make pork barbecue at home.
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Yeeaahh, baybee!
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aMy original plan was to cook it on the grill pan, but I realized that it wasn't working. I wasn't going to get the "inihaw" look that I was aiming for this way.
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aSo I broiled it in the oven instead.
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aI swear, this electric oven has been my pinak-sulit kitchen investment to date. I can bake with it, roast...and now cook pork barbecue! I use it at least twice a week. Super sulit talaga! I heart my oven!
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aSuccess! :)
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aI paired it pasta.
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aPork barbecue + Fusilli with ham and cream = great dinner :)

Lemon Yoghurt Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting

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I should be on a diet, but my baking urge was too hard to resist! I made this last week and despite the lack of certain ingredients (I haven't baked in a long time so I didn't know I was running low on vanilla and flour), it was still a success! Richard and Aly loved it. He ate it for breakfast almost everyday and Aly who doesn't usually get too excited about my baking, had it for dessert almost everyday too!
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I think they were kinda sad when we were down to the last slice so I promised them that I will make another one soon. Maybe next week when my siblings and cousins come over to visit :)

Uh Oh...

There was a time last week when I had a terrible backache and my dear husband ordered me to stay in bed. Aly volunteered to be my (sort of) nurse so while I was in bed resting, she was busy working on her art stuff.
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I had no idea exactly what she was doing but I knew there was paper and pencil involved.
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Then she showed me. Aly said she made flashcards so she can teach her future baby brother/sister some new words.
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MOM'S DISCLAIMER: I absolutely had nothing to do with this. I had no involvement whatsoever in the creation process. I didn't know what Aly was doing until she showed me. The whole thing was her idea. Her's. Aly's. Not mine.
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"dad" -- good!
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a"Dog" -- acceptable...
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a"mom" -- excellent!
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a"Place market" -- hmmm...
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a"Shopping" -- okay...
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Hang on a minute...Say what?!?
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a"Shopping" -- oh dear...
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My sweet and adorable six-year-old thinks that shopping should be her future baby brother/sister's first word. Uh, oh...Richard, sweetie, we have a problem.