Se7en

...Another meme from Abbie

Seven things that scare you:
1. death of a loved-one(including my dogs)
2. rejection of any kind
3. scary movies and scary stories
4. needles
5. oral examinations
6. roller coasters :D
7. child-bearing

Seven things you like the most:
1. trips abroad
2. dates with my hubby
3. beach vacays, out of town trips, night outs with friends
4. spa!!!
5. family bonding and get-togethers
6. internet surfing and blogging
7. cooking and baking

Seven important things in your room:
1. PC
2. microwave oven, breakfast maker, airpot, ref
3. aircon
4. books and magazines collection
5. clothes, shoes, bags, accessories
6. our bed *wink, wink*
7. secret items... nyahahaha!!!

Seven random facts about you:

( I took these out of my 100 things )

1. I'm a major crybaby (part of the reason why i'm called YAX - iyakin). I cry easily at weddings (even weddings of people i don't know) and sappy movies.

2. I believe i was a man my previous life.

3. I ate my shit when i was still a baby (maybe that's why i am good at cooking - have u ever heard of that saying?

4. I used to suck my thumb while sniffing a stinky pillow (not for me, of course!) :D Gave me a different high. Haha!

5. I hate being late (from anything). I'd rather be ABSENT. :D

6. I love organizing gimmicks, parties and outings, and i can be a bit OC about them. =D

7. I don't smoke, have never tried drugs, and never liked beer - but boy, do i love to parteiiiii!!! =)

visit my 100 things for more! ;)

Seven things you plan to do before you die:
1. have a happy family in a happy home
2. travel around the world
3. learn a foreign language (Spanish or French???)
4. renew our vows (get married with the same man again!!!) =)
5. learn how to drive....???
6. make amends with people i hate or hurt and those who hate or hurt me
7. hear mass and confess my sins (for the last time)

Seven things you can do:
1. i'm a tongue-roller!
2. do fish-lips
3. read a 750-page book in one day
4. organize events, activities, parties, etc.
5. sing!
6. cook and bake
7. multitask!

Seven things you can't do:
1. drive!
2. play a musical instrument
3. complete work attendance in a month
4. be plastic - coz my whole body will show it
5. tell a big lie
6. NOT eat fatty foods
7. NOT BLOG for a week

Seven things that make you irresistable to the opposite sex:
1. eyes and smile
2. sense of humor
3. my briliant mind
4. i am a passionate being...
5. romantic, and sweet nature
6. open-minded *wink, wink*
7. i like to think i'm cool (and i can be one of the guys...) =)

Seven things you say the most:
1. "Thank you for calling FSI..."
2. "San tayo?"
3. "Nyahahahaha!"
4. "I'm hungry!!!"
5. "Whatever!"
6. "Ewwwww..."
7. "Awwwww!"

Seven celeb crushes (whether local or foreign):
1. Johnny Depp
2. Ethan Hawke
3. Ewan McGregor
4. Ethan Zohn
5. c Aga sa cellphone ko... ;)
6. Bret Hart
7. and... Angel Locsin =D

Seven people you want to see to take this quiz:
1. my hubby
2. Aion
3. Mauie
4. Alex
5. Tin
6. Naomi
7. Deb

Green Day

With the prize money (and then some) in hand, and my husband in tow, we headed to Greenhills for a day of serious S.H.O.P.P.I.N.G.!!! =)

The Sunday drive to the ultimate shopping place was leisurely (read: no traffic! =D). Shortly after arriving, Jon drooled over the strawberry cinnamon rolls at Cinnabon so we bought two mini rolls (original for me!) and brought them over to Gloria Jeans (our fave!) to have coffee. On our way to GJ, we passed by the air-conditioned chapel and went in to say our prayers before anything else.

After GJ, it was time to look for bargains!!! The throngs of people who were also looking for great finds at the tiangge didn't stop us from having a great time!

our loot:

1. green Roxy shirt for me - 200 (180 n lng! yay!)
2. green and violet vintage shirts for jon - 280 a piece (got them for 500 - 250 each)
3. eating paraphernalia storage box for our room - 250 (Jon's favorite find)
4. black purse, gold clutch, metallic handbag from HDY for moi, (abt 1000)
5. chichas galore for our tummies! =) (3 for 100)
6. green Adidas rubber shoes for jon - 500 (got it for 480)

Before heading home, we had an early dinner at Luk Yuen and had noodle feast and chicken feet plus some refreshing tea. AHHH!

Great bargains plus great food with my great husband... heheh!!!! Whattaday! =)

Instant Money and another EB

sis... sali ka sa game ko! =)

so goes the line of fellow blogger NAOMI in my tagboard two weeks ago...

naturally, i got curious... so i hopped immediately to her blog and found this riddle waiting for me...

A girl who was just learning to drive went down a one-way street in the wrong direction, but didn't break the law. How come?

i read it a number of times, and immediately emailed her the first logical answer i could think of. I got so excited! After all, the prize was 20 canadian dollars (which was equiv to almost a thousand bucks!) I was eagerly awaiting her reply to see if i won and was frequently checking her blog for updates of the winners. The next day, i found out that i won! Yipee! Instant money! :D

In claiming our prizes, Nao organized a sort of an EB/birthday bash (she's celebrating her birthday today... happy bday sis! =) ) thru the help of her amigazz Ning and May. The date was set lat Friday, July 22 and we all met up at Pioneer Grill in Pasig.

i'm not really new in this EB thing... this was actually the 2nd (or is it 3rd already??? *wink*) time i got to meet friends over the internet and i think i'm actualy getting better at this. u see, i'm really this shy person and it takes some time before warming up to new people... but that night was different... i was accompanied by my husband and 3 of my friends (Mauie and Aion both won too... =D... plus Marlon), so i was not as nervous as the previous EB's... and it proved to be a fun, fun night!

hapee wid my prize! =)

da boys en da gurls

winners!

see more pics here...

To Nao, thank u for sponsoring this EB.., we had a great time meeting new people and we hope to meet u soon too! ;) God bless!

...and to May, Ning, Ronallan, Marhgil, Migraine man, Kring, Yanyan, and to all the others whose names escape me at the moment... it was a pleasure meeting u all and i'm looking forward to seeing all of u again some time this year... ;)

***

after the EB, the five of us went to BlueWave for some midnight snacks at Hotshots (juicy burgers, yum!) and dessert at Icebergs... It has been some time since we've been out with Marlon and Mauie so we sort of seized the moment... ;)

Better Luck Next Year...

The DFAPA Volleyball tourney had just ended and i'm sad to report that unlike the previous years, we placed last among the teams. :(

Oh, i could put the blame on many things... i could point my finger at my teammates (notice i didn't include myself? ...hehehe) for not giving their 101 percent during the games; i could blame some of my other teammates who are either on scholarship abroad, or busy with their families, or enrolled in other language courses (conflict in schedule) - and because of these we only had 1 or two reserves every game (it was so damn tiring!!!); and many other trivial excuses - we had no coach, lack of practices and the like...

this was us last year... team "ube"

this is us now.... team "PONKEN" =)

...the bottom line? the team was not good enough this year and we are nothing but... big, fat, LOSERS.

oh well.., at least we had fun... (yeah, right! :))

the team at play...

light moments before a game... o, peechur muna!!!

Some of the FSI people who watched the games, contributed energy drinks and meryendas, made pom-poms and banners, composed exceptional cheers (and chants?), took our pics and gave their never-ending support to the team... many thanks guys!!! kung may best cheerers, i'm sure you're the champs!!! :D

***

special thanks goes out to my ever supportive husband, who never missed a single game and cheered all of us on - (he claims to be stressed and jittery whenever there is a game - but still, he showed up every time) thanks hun! i love you!!! =)

Weekenders

Last last weekend was a complete blah... Friday night out with friends didn't materialize, I wasn't able to go with Jon and my MIL Saturday for the scheduled out-of town (day trip to Mindoro) , Sunday was spent lazing around the house, and before we knew it... it was time to go to work once again.

I was determined not to make a repeat of the previous weekend so Jon and I made plans early in the week. I knew it wasn't gonna be as boring... coz after all, the magic is coming Saturday!!! wheee!!!

turning Korean

Aion, Yna, Jon and I went out on our usual Friday night gimmick (Marlon and Mauie are MIA once again - perhaps tiring of our company already? :( ). Anyway, we were in the mood for something out of the ordinary that night, and we all agreed on dining at a Korean resto which BF was infested with, and we just had to choose where exactly... We picked this big place which had a decent number of diners inside. (Itaewon)

Fortunately for us, our waiter was very accommodating and he helped us in choosing our orders. He even showed us how to grill the 2 large beef slabs and the porkloin platter right in our table. Aliw! =) We'll definitely schedule a shabu-shabu dinner soon...

Food was delish. Appetizers were aplenty. I liked the Korean spicy soup that was served at the start of the meal. We even had free pineapple dessert and rice tea. All in all, it was a great Korean dining experience.

korean pics here.

Ice Monster dessert followed and for the first time, we get to hang out at yna's place that night (very cozy!) , meeting her siblings and playing with her cute baby nephew, until it was time to call it a night.

Magic and freebies

I was super, super excited to get my hands on the 6th installment of the Harry Potter series. We would have bought it the minute the store opened Saturday but we had to buy grocery stocks at the market that morning so my date with my hubby was not until that afternoon.

There was a HP exhibit at glorietta that day and we were able to take a look at Yna's sister's entry (a scene taken from the 4th - goblet of fire). Too bad i wasn't able to take a pic, coz i was so pumped up to grab my own copy. =)

After buying my book, we went around the mall and found the perfect metallic gold slip-ons that i am currently addicted to (the golds-i mean). Priced at less than a thousand, i happily bought it. =)

And was i glad when the salesclerk handed me a P250 voucher at Italianni's which was good until the 31st of August. Niiice!

We browsed the shops again until it was already dinner time. Our poor tired feet found good rest at Tony Roma's where we feasted on ribs (Jon had the original recipe while I had my fave - carolina honeys - they're to-die-for! ;) ), chicken and shrimps which were complemented by corn on the cob (we asked these to be shredded already) and tasty coleslaw.

Dinner was undoubtedly satisfying. I just love dining here with my husband because the ambience was great (great view, good lighting),the service was impeccable, and of course, the good food. We even had another treat tht night - we were given free appetizer coupons plus another free main course the next time we dine here! Ain't that great?! =)

Our date would not be complete without watching a movie... and we got tickets to the 2nd to the last screening of Fantastic Four. While waiting for the screening time, we went to Taters and claimed the free iced tea (from the movie bundle tickets) and bought fries for the movie. Okaay..I know what you're thinking. We have such huge appetites, noh?! hahahaha!

The movie was entertaining enough to keep us awake during the two hours. And we headed home right after.

The minute we got settled in our room, I comfortably laid down in my bed and... nope... i didn't sleep just yet... how could i, when i was dying to read The Half-Blood Prince already... =D

2 hours later, i finished reading the first 5 chapter of the book... i was still wide awake but upon seeing the time, it was time to stop... (i also had to pull Jon away from the computer screen)...

The magic is here

I was glued to my book the entire day Sunday (well, 'cept when it was time to eat and to relieve myself...). By 8pm, i was through reading... =)

How did i like it? (Let me borrow this from abbie) --- One word. WHOAAAH!!!

Okay, okaaayyy... not enough? let's just say that my fave still is the Goblet of Fire. In THBP, another character got killed off again and i was crying profusely when i got to that part... but i am kinda hoping that the character killed in the OTP and THBP will live again on the last book... haaay... i'll have to wait for another two-three years for this one...

and it's gonna be a LOOOOOONG WAIT!!!

"IT" again...

...we got tagged by Dionne...

Things you enjoy, even when no one around you wants to go out and play?

My list:
1. BLOGGING
2. plopped on my bed, reading a book or a magazine
3. listening to my mp3 collection and singing at the top of my lungs
4. playing and bonding with my doggies
5. viewing old and recent photos... reminiscing!

Jon's list:
1. playing PC games (when Yax is not blogging) or PS2 games
2. internet surfing
3. watching television in the bedroom
4. playing the guitar
5. downloading and watching "stuff" too... hehehe

What lowers your stress/blood pressure/anxiety level?

My list:
1. shopping!
2. a relaxing massage (either at the spa or from my hubby)
3. watching DVD with Jon, complete with popcorn and chips
4. playing badminton with friends (not in competition though, kakastress yun eh! :D )
5. going out and having fun with friends =)

Jon's list:
1. a massage by my hun
2. a nice dinner and movie date with my hun
3. DVD marathon nights
4. badminton
5. playing the guitar and hearing my wife sing

We're now tagging: AION, MACY, MAY, LEN and YANYAN.

Prioritizing Health and Wellness

Remember my fibroadenomes?? (backtrack here)

It has already been six months since i calendared my next appointment to my ob-gyne... and i took the half-day off from work Monday morning and together with Jon, we proceeded to Philamcare (our office healthcard) and requested for a letter of authorization to go to my preferred doctor. I also consulted with the resident physician coz for a week now, i've been complaining about a sore lymph which hasn't subsided for two years now... He suspected lymphaniditis and scheduled me for an x-ray and cbc exam the following day.

We went to my ob at another hospital afterwards and was getting quite nervous while we waited. When at last, it was my turn, i showed her the ultrasound results once again, and she let me lie down and performed the breast exam. Out of the blue, i asked her if i could have a pap smear. Thinking that it would have to be scheduled first, i was surprised to hear that she could do it right there and then..! It was the first time EVER for me, and i was really really scared coz i heard that it was painful. My doctor sensed that i was tensed but she ordered me to relax or else it would really be painful. It was uncomfortable at first, but then, she must have seen thousands of it already (hahaha!), so i let myself relax. I did feel pain a lot of times, but it was tolerable, and in a few minutes, it was over. I would have to come back next week for the result. As for the fibroadenomes, she said that the sizes were still quite small, but she'd have to refer me to a surgeon...

My heart was racing but i pushed all negative thoughts out of me and went to the surgeon's office. The surgeon was still very young, 30-ish or so, and quite attractive, i must say... =) (At this point, Jon offered to come in with me... but i declined... nyahahah!). He took one look at the ultrasound result, and asked me if he could take a look...er... examine the breasts. He even asked me if i wanted him to call in his secretary, but i said it's alright *wink*... The exam was over in a few and after his lengthy explanation, he said that he doesn't recommend surgery as of the moment, given my age and medical history, but i'd have to monitor them regularly. Still, the sigh of relief i made was so loud it must have been heard outside the room. =)

Yesterday morning, i forced myself to go to Philamcare once again for the xray and cbc exam. The x-ray was no problem, but the cbc exam... Well, I hate... okay... i'm terribly afraid of needles and my head was on the other direction when they took my blood sample. I felt all energy drain out from me after that... but my husband says i'm just exaggerating....... Anyway, results will be out in two days...

We went to Alabang to take care of some other business and while i was out in the car waiting, i realized that it was a lovely day. The rainshower surprisingly put me into a good mood.

And indeed, it was a beautiful day.

After a quick lunch and some grocery shopping, I rewarded myself (for finally going to the doctor) with a new jeans from People r People with a gold metallic belt. I was looking for a gold bag but didn't find any to my liking. Some other day, perhaps.

And his reward? a trip to the spa! =) yay!

We went home and just placed our purchases in our room, and we were off to Bioessence. We availed the couple's package which included a facial (mint for me, regular facial for him), footspa, and a combination of shiatsu/swedish massage! Aaaaahhh! =)

First, we were asked to strip down to our undies, and we were led to the sauna where we baked for 15 minutes. =) We were given drinks to cool off and then the foot spa came next. Our facials and massages followed after that felt sooo damn good!!! I even had a few minutes shut-eye after everything. We stayed at the spa for four full hours! And we were really refreshed and rejuvenated. Ahhh! Can't wait to go back... heheh!

Now, my only wish is for all the medical results to turn out fine...

Saturday-Fun-Day

warning: pics overload! =)

We were at Edsa Shang yesterday afternoon to treat our ninong and his wife who were celebrating their anniversary at the hotel. Buffet lunch at the garden cafe' was dee-lish, with the relaxed ambience contributing to the delightful meal. =) (We even saw Imee Marcos a few tables beside us and some other local celebs, plus there was a wedding function, so i enjoyed looking at the different gowns parading at the lobby.) Conversation was interesting too, as we talked about the couple's business (which inspired both Jon n I) and some other property that we, together with my mother-in-law, would have to look at, over the weekend. You see, Jon and I are very much into the idea of starting a new business soon and we are still in the process of researching and looking into it... Anyway, after the meal, each of us was given a big koala bear stuff toy, which came with the drink of the month that we all ordered.

A few minutes rest after we got back home and then, we were off to Greenbelt 3 for the scheduled movie and dinner date with the gang.

After we got our reserved tickets at the Sureseats booth, we walked all the way to G4 and had dinner at Banana Leaf Curry House. It was the first time for all of us to dine here (although i've heard lots of good feedbacks) and we got excited over the exotic names that we read in the menu...

Many of them didn't quite like the food they ordered - and that included my husband, who specifically wanted laksa, a Singaporean dish which we loved when we went there for our honeymoon - turned out it was much too spicy for them to take... hmp, chicken! =) heheh! Anyway, i loved liked most of the food there, plus ambience and the service was superb! But i think, it'll be some time before we go back there again...

We were still early for the screening so we passed time at Chimara where we bought popcorn to munch inside the cinema. Of course, we also claimed our free iced teas with the coupons we had from the cinema tickets.

...War of the Worlds sucked big time! Most of us got really disappointed with how the movie ended... i mean, WTF was that??? Unbelievable. Simply unbelievable...

It was almost midnight but no one wanted to end the night just yet... And so to take our minds off that dreadful movie, we went to Timezone at G4. Arcade time! =) We love playing here coz there were only a few people and they have bigger space than that of Greenbelt. As usual, we got to try almost every game and i had fun trying out the percussion for the first time.

After consuming every cent in our Timezone cards, we focused our tripping to the movie billboards all around the area. Ansaya! :D

All that fun and play worked up our appetites, and we found our way to a 24-hour resto (Chowking), still at Makati. We parked our cars at the gasoline station, crossed the street, striked a pose in the middle aisle, and went eating. At 4am, we were home, in our beds, happily snoring. =)

can't get enough of our pics? click here.

Doggie Lover

Had some doggie-bonding time today at my old place...

A nice big smile from my fave pet, SONIC.

My 3 askal doggies!

I sometimes feel i've neglected them already... and today was the time i (more than) made up for it... =)

Getting together with old friends...

Got a message from my friend Nique yesterday afternoon informing me that Alvin, another friend whose current work is based in Cebu, is here in Manila for a few days. Called Alvin up and he said he wanted (more like demanded... :p) to have a get-together with the tropa. All of us could only indulge him (you spoiled brat, you! - and on a weekday at that! ) :p

Plans were settled, and at 9pm (the scheduled time), miss excitement (yep, that's meeh) was all over the place, tidying up the venue and bugging Jon to set up the DVD downstairs coz we planned on watching our wedding video... We last saw each other New Year's Day (when we had our annual get-together) and i was really thrilled to see them all again and talk about the goings-on in our lives.

I've never learned... in all the years that we've been friends, all our planned gimiks never started on time...

I was upstairs, waiting for them, and everytime i would hear our dog bark, or even when i hear a trike or a car pass by, i would frantically go down the stairs and open the front door to welcome whoever come first... just to be disappointed a number of times. Oh well...

Nina and Tsa were the first ones to arrive... at about 10pm. Typical.

..but my impatience with them disappeared the minute i got to see them. By 11 pm, we were almost complete. Nique was still stranded sumwhere doing God knows what... it was just as i predicted - another all-nighter!

Alvin brought Yellow Cab pizza and beer just as promised. I popped a bag of popcorn, and after a few minutes of chit-chats, we were all set to watch the wedding video. =)

A few minutes before the video ended, Nique arrived somewhat drunk... =D Kwentuhan and kulitan, plus a few pics, of course... and then she offered to buy us all a cup of coffee. Yipee!!! Never mind that it was midnight and it's a weekday... we were all going out to enjoy a cup of nice, warm, and FREE coffee!!! =D

Unfortunately for us, the nearby Starbucks was closed already, same goes for Figaro and Mocha Blends. Since neither of us wanted to give up just yet, we tried ATC, but with no such luck either. The coffeehouses we went to were all closed for the night. So, guess where we went to to have our coffee fix??? At Mcdonalds! Hahah! For a couple of hours more, we enjoyed talking, and joking around over a cup of coffee (or chocolate, for some) and hot fudge sundae. great combo, yes? Nyahahah! See that pic of me with the singkit eyes and hot fudge over my pearly whites? That's the crazy meeh all fired-up at past 2am with my crazy gang. Yep. I missed my friends and it felt oh so good to be with them again... even though there are still issues unresolved and unexpressed feelings on my part. But hey, that's another story... ;)