Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Grocery List

Don't you just hate it when you're all set to bake cupcakes but realize that you don't have eggs in your ref?  Or when you're craving for a sandwich but you're out of bread?  Me no likey.  That's why I have this in the kitchen:
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A grocery list and a pencil (upper right hand side of the photo) so we can easily jot down stuff that we need before they run out.  Notice how I placed my grocery coupons right next to it?
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I put my grocery list on my ref.
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It's made from recycled paper too!  I use Aly's old worksheets and her old notebooks for my grocery list.  
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I never go to the supermarket without a list because I end up buying stuff that I don't really need and miss the stuff that I really need.  It keeps my budget on track and my life much easier.  Now I can happily cook or bake whatever I want, whenever I want :)


Friday, August 27, 2010

Mini Speakers

When I'm cooking, I like to listen to music because it gets me in the mood.  But when the range hood is on, I can barely hear the music from the living room.  I would have wanted to get an iPod dock for the kitchen, but the one that I had my eye on was kinda expensive.  It would require a major purchase so I had second thoughts.  Buti na lang my sister got me this:
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Mini speakers in purple.
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Terno!  Because underneath that red sleeve, my iPod is really purple.
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It ain't Bose or Harman Kardon, but it gets the job done!  I use it not only when I'm cooking in the kitchen, but  also when I'm ironing clothes.  Heehee!
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Thanks, Ange for the speakers!  Love them! :)


Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Something To Look Forward To

In about three years, we will be the proud owners of a condo unit at Global City :)
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Richard signing the papers.
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Our very first home -- a  nest that is truly ours.
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We visited the model unit during our last vacay.  Oh, how I wish our unit will look like this!
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Aly likes it here!
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I love the bathroom!
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The place is not that big (one bedroom only), but it's going to be OUR place -- not rented or leased!  And this space will be filled with happiness and love.  I can't wait!

Monday, August 23, 2010

Lumix

Having a DSLR is great but let's face it: do you really want to carry that heavy thing around in case a Kodak moment hits you?  While it can fit inside most of my bags, it's still heavy and bulky...definitely not my idea of an everyday camera.  Richard gave me a camera phone, but with 2 megapixels?  You can't really expect much.  Plus, it sucked in low light conditions.  
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Since our last camera purchase was two years ago, I think it's time to get another one.  I want something that I can put in my bag, doesn't weigh a ton, not necessarily super high tech (I can use my DSLR if I want to be more artsy), but can take blog/brag worthy photos.  I originally wanted another Canon, but the model that I want is waay out of my budget.  My cousin Koy convinced me to look into other brands.  So thanks to Koy, I found the One.
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Say hello to my new friend: the Panasonic Lumix F3.
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This 5,000baht beauty is a steal for 12 megapixels.  It came with a free 2gb memory card, a card reader and a protective sheet for the screen.  The best thing about this is it costs half of the Canon cameras that I was looking at -- the cheaper ones at least.  Plus, thanks to my 1Card, I got a 5% discount aside from the freebies. I'm happy, Richard's happy and so is Aly (she likes it better now than our old Sony).
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Let's see what this baby can do, shall we?
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First photo ever taken by my new baby, thanks to the sales guy.
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Taken by Aly at MBK, right outside Powerbuy.
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Thanks for my new camera babe!  I love it!
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The camera has different settings i.e sunset, portrait, action shots, etc.  This is on food setting.
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Candlelight setting.
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Normal picture mode.  And yes, we like to take self portraits now.
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Aly, smile for mommy!
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Glad that she knows how to operate this...so she can take mommy's picture too!  Heehee!
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Banana nutella bread.
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Smile, Koy!  I love this pic.  Koy is so cute!
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Ice cream cake.
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She loves the new camera too :)
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We love you, tita Angel!
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Aly interviewing tito Jof.
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Speaking of interview, my Lumix can take videos too!  Yipee!
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My 32nd Birthday

My birthdays are always special because of Richard and Aly.  This year, though, was extra special because Angel, Jof and Kokoy were here to celebrate it with me.
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First gift of the day: roses from Aly.
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She told her dad to buy these for me.
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Party decor. 
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Richard told me to relax and take things easy on my birthday so he suggested that we should just eat out.  But I chose to cook instead.  Do I like to torture myself?  Not really,  I guess it's just not the same when everything's home made :)
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Lechon.
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Mang Tomas and Hoisin sauce.
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With the exception of the store-bought lechon, I prepared the easiest dishes that I can think of: roast chicken with 40 cloves of garlic, potatoes with cheese, spicy bacon pasta...
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...and lasagna.  Most of these dishes were prepared/marinated the night before so I only had to bake/roast them the next morning.
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The ate cake: a gift from Angel, Jof and Kokoy.  I was super kilig when they brought this home.  Though the cake has long been finished, I will treasure this forever :)
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Another "present" from Aly: my birthday tower, made from stuff that she found in her room.
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She moved it to the dessert table for decoration.  Btw,  I also made brownies using Jamie Oliver's recipe -- sinfully delicious!
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The other goodies that we had were: chocolates, almond chocolate cookies and my favorite strawberry caplico :)
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Ofcourse, no birthday will be complete without the hubby's present!
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According to my Designer Handbag Wishlist, (yes, much to my husband's horror, such a list does exist.  He doesn't want to see it, though.  Haha!) this year is Gucci :)
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Since I've been a good girl, I got another gift -- a new digicam!  Yay!  Even manong in the background is happy.  Heehee!
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Opening my present at home.
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Gucci ladies web hobo.
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My three birthday cakes:
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The ate cake...
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Swensen's Ultimate Choc ice cream cake -- layers of vanilla and sticky chocolate ice cream!
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And the orange marmalade glazed butter cake from Chatrium, which was waiting on the dining table for us when we arrived from our gift shopping.
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It was a great birthday!
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Thank you, Richard, Aly, Angel, Jof and Kokoy for making it a great one!  I love you!