yes, it's ME!

Prenatal Yoga :)

2012-01-18T11:46:00.001+08:00

Hello from The POD! Davao's only store where you can go barefoot while shopping :) Alex Hao's store also doubles as a Lamaze / Prenatal Yoga studio. Two years ago, hubby and I attended Alex's Lamaze class in Brokenshire Hospital. Now she has her own lovely, relaxing place :) Just finished my first session of yoga here and we're just sipping yummy tea + trading horror stories about labor, hehe!

♥ 27 weeks today ♥

2011-12-08T14:55:00.003+08:00

In some pregnancy books, 27-28 weeks is the start of the seventh month. And the 7th month is the start of the third trimester. WOW! This second pregnancy of ours is sure is going fast :) Our EDD is early March 2012, 3 more months to go!

http://babyblues2010.blogspot.com/2009/11/pregnancy-breakdown.html

stretch marks galore! :p

2011-11-22T00:28:00.000+08:00

It's not our second baby's fault actually. When I was pregnant with Iya, I got stretch marks in my belly around the 35th week. The picture at left was from my 31st week where I boasted I didn't have any stretch marks. As you can see my belly is smooth and oh-so clear :) A friend commented she thought she didn't have stretch marks in her first pregnancy too, that is until she gave birth and finally saw the marks on her flat baby-less belly. One month after her comment, I saw my first stretch marks, gahh!! Thank god the marks were small and stayed like that til I gave birth to Iya :) The marks eventually faded without any post-partum interventions (i.e. cream or lotions) on my part. Sad to say, the stretch marks came back with a vengeance now, in my second pregnancy.. *sigh*

What's more, unlike in my first pregnancy, I wasn't active in stretch marks prevention this time around. Before, I started my anti-stretch mark regimen after the first trimester. I rubbed on natural lotion on my belly every single night. My sister-in-law even suggested to use olive oil which she used and my mom swears my SIL has no stretch marks in her belly at all! I found that encouraging but I never got around to using olive oil as it is too icky for me :p Anyway, this time around, I haven't put any anti-stretch mark cream or lotion in my belly since the second pregnancy began. Hopefully, I can find the best stretch mark cream before I go into my third trimester (I'm on the 6th month now) and apply it on my belly like crazy til I give birth! Maybe I'll even give olive oil a try :p Hopefully it will discourage any new marks to appear (on belly, arms, breasts and thighs) and will help remove the old. Will probably write an update on this stretch marks affair after I give birth. Maybe even post before/after photos if my belly doesn't look too horrifying! Hehe!

baby in the bun! :)

2011-11-20T17:22:00.004+08:00

As promised in the last post, here's my "official" blog announcement regarding our second pregnancy :) Sad to say, unlike our first pregnancy, there's hardly no documentation this time around :( With Iya, I made a baby blog and a Facebook album chronicling the 10months of carrying her to term. I just hope our second kid won't mind. It's been very hectic being pregnant while taking care of a very active toddler (I'm a hands-on mom, no nanny). And forget housework, I only get things done when hubby's off from work or when Iya is asleep -_-

Anyway, I announced my current pregnancy via Google Plus (G+) when I was about 5 1/2 months. If you want to follow my pregnancy updates, go here: http://gplus.to/melissasolito :) If there's one thing good with this pregnancy is the fact that I have G+ to stimulate my brain and have crazy fun! To those who say G+ is dead, you clearly don't know how to make your Stream interesting! If you're tired of the useless updates, gossip, spam and endless game notifications from Facebook, go check Google Plus! But don't blame me if you get addicted :p And yes, G+ IS addicting!

beaches to casinos to stinky tofus to mall tripping

2011-11-19T11:27:00.005+08:00

The title just about sums up the 4 years of family vacations we had. Though, technically, the first family vacay (beaches) was our honeymoon and the second one (casinos) was our babymoon. I was 4 months pregnant with our first baby then :) The third one (stinky tofus) was truly our first "family of 3" vacay and our most recent one (mall tripping), just this October, was kinda like "family of 3 + 1 in the bun" vacay. Yep, folks, we're pregnant again! o_O But I will reserve the second pregnancy story for another post, heehee!

BEACHES

Back in 2008, the place we honeymooned was still kinda a secret vacay spot. I never blogged about it (did not even share photos in FB!) coz I wanted it to remain a secret place ;-) However, other people who went there blogged about it as the place is truly awesome! Now, Coron / Busuanga / Calauit Islands in Palawan is not so secret anymore. Coron town in Busuanga Island has lots of new hotels and I hope, a better road from the airport to the town proper. Anyway, here's one of my favorite honeymoon photos (unedited from my phone camera) that captured the splendor of one of Palawan's last frontiers:

CASINOS

On our first wedding anniversary, we went to Macau and Hong Kong. It was my first time in Macau and second time in HK, but the first time I went there, Disneyland was still not yet operating. For Labsie, it was his first time in both places. Now, as much as I hate to admit this, I'm a fan of casino games, whether offline or online. So you can just imagine my excitement in visiting Macau's ultra-awesome casinos! :) My fave casino past-time, of course, are the slot machines. There's just something addicting in trying to win from a machine >.< Now, if it weren't for my cheapskate tendencies, I would be in so much debt right now due to my casino-loving nature. Hehe!

But.. I'm so much smarter than that because I use casino bonuses! In The Venetian Macao (pictured below), I got free $20 worth of casino voucher from a roving hotel employee. For online casinos, I trawl the web for blogs and sites that offer no deposit bonus codes and casino bonus coupons. That way I can try different online casinos without spending money. After all, what if I don't like the online casino? My deposit would be wasted then! At least with codes and coupons, I get to try the online casino for free- and if I like it, I will probably use my own money to play some more without any hard feelings ;-) Back to The Venetian, isn't the casino hotel gorgeous?? And that's only one of the many stunning casino hotels in Macau! By the way, that's my youngest brother with 4-months-pregnant me in the photo below :)

That's it for now! Stay tuned for part 2, involving stinky tofus and mall tripping! ^__^

Iya's 1st Korean BBQ!

2011-10-12T20:33:00.002+08:00

I guess the title says it all ;-) Today is our first night in Astoria Plaza (Pasig) after 3 days in my bro's condo. Its our first time to be in this part of Metro Manila (we usually stay in Makati CBD) and thus we're unfamiliar on where to eat, what to do, etc, etc in this area. Luckily for us, there was a Korean BBQ eatery in front the Astoria, a MiniStop (that serves Pinoy hot meals) on the side, and a Red Ribbon nearby. We won't go hungry for sure ;-)

For tonight, as you might have surmised, we had dinner in the Korean BBQ eatery. Labsie and I last ate in this type of resto way back in 2007. We had so much fun grilling stuff + making our own lettuce rolls then. And tonight was no different :-) Our Iya, who is normally very active, sat through the entire meal! A miracle we say! My guess is she found the food very colorful (brown grilled pork, green lettuce, orange sweet potato, red sauces, yellow steamed egg) and can't wait to put it in her mouth, hehe! :-) All in all, we had an awesome and very satisfying family dinner. Til the next Korean BBQ cookout!Ü

Vacay 2011 is on! :)

2011-10-09T15:33:00.002+08:00

Its 330pm on my phone- that means in 30 minutes we're off to Manila! Yesiree, it's that time of the year again- our annual vacation! Woohoo! ^__^ If you're a follower of this blog, you already know why we go on vacay during October. If you're new here, these are the reasons: October is when we celebrate our wedding anniversary, our couple anniversary, and Labsie's birthday. Three special occasions deserves 10 days of vacay! :-)

remembering 9/11 -- 10 years later

2011-09-11T11:06:00.000+08:00

It's mid-morning of September 11 in my part of the world now. In less than 12hrs, it will be the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 US attacks. 10yrs ago, as the first plane hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York, I was studying for a Zoology exam scheduled the next day. I was a 20yr old BS Biology student in UPMin then. When the second plane hit, I knew something was up and stopped studying. I texted my Zoology teacher in jest if she could cancel the exam (hi Dr U / Z!) as something momentous (albeit horrific) is happening. Of course she replied, no, the exam couldn't be cancelled. Boohoo! But that didn't deter me from watching history unfold on live TV for the next several hours. Needless to say, I didn't get to sleep that night-- NY time is 12hrs behind our time, we watched the 9/11 attacks on our late-night news.

The next day, I was groggy when I took my Zoology exam. I can't even remember if I passed or failed that exam. But the memory of watching the 9/11 US attacks live on TV was forever burned in my memory. The memory of seeing the planes crash into the towers, the memory of people jumping out of the towers, of the people running away from the collapsing towers, the memory of the burning Pentagon building, the memory of the frantic voices from the heroic United 93 flight-- all these are burned in my memory. I know no one personally who was hurt in the 9/11 US attacks (my aunt in law resides in Woodside, NY though) but I was changed, and I knew the attacks will forever change our world, not just the United States of America. Here's my favorite insight on how 9/11 changed our lives by Martin Levenson:

Horrible and tragic events, with so many lives lost needlessly, on 9-11 and since. But for me, the greatest tragedy is that a once proud nation, fiercely protective of its peoples' rights and liberties, has seen fit to suspend and abrogate those rights in so many ways, and that its people, now living in a culture of fear both real and imagined, have accepted this so meekly. "Sweet land of liberty", indeed. The events pictured in this collection have cost the US so much, not only in lives and money, but in heart and soul, and I grieve for that more than anything else.

For more pictures of the 9/11 US attacks, check out The Atlantic's 3-part photo series (click the links):
--THE WEEK BEFORE (photos from all around the world, a week prior 9/11)
--THE DAY OF THE ATTACKS
--THE DECADE SINCE (relevant photos after 9/11/2001 til 9/2011)

DIY edible fingerpaint :)

2011-07-24T12:06:00.001+08:00

Aside from music, Iya also loves the visual aspect of arts. I already bought her washable markers for coloring stuff and making art but it didn't seem enough for her. I thought maybe Iya needed to 'get down and dirty' to truly enjoy the art experience. And so this fine Sunday morn, I made her edible fingerpaint ^__^ If dipping her fingers into bright colors won't make her shout with glee, I'll go back to my medical career and forget being a mom. LOL!Ü

Anyway, here's how you make edible fingerpaint:

1. Mix 1cup flour with COLD water (variable amount, just add little by little). Mix until there's no more lumps.

2. Slowly add HOT water to the flour mixture until desired consistency is achieved. If you want it more runny, add more water and vice versa.

3. Separate the mixture into different containers and add food coloring to each. I used my mom's Wilton stash and the colors are absolutely brilliant! :)

4. Now you're ready to fingerpaint with your toddler! Remember that it will be messy so just relax and let the good times roll, hehe!Ü

Birthday Challenge Day 10

2011-07-11T10:47:00.002+08:00

DAY 10: MY BEST FRIEND!

Make that best friendS! ^__^ That's them below -- Labsie, my one and only boyfriend and now hubby, Chin (left) and Jinky (right). We're in my wedding reception here, nearly 3 years ago! My, how time flies.. Now, Labsie and I have 16-month old Iya, Chin and Man-Man have 6-month old Ysha, and Jinky and Madz have an upcoming baby boy this September ^__^

Birthday Challenge Day 8 & 9

2011-07-09T13:42:00.002+08:00

DAY 8: SOMETHING I LOVE ABOUT MYSELF :)

Generally, I love me! Hehe! I'm not someone who pities herself or wishes I'm somebody else ~ more rich, more beautiful, more smart, more whatever. I am contented and happy the way I am ^__^ That's why, if you ask me what's one thing I love about myself, I can't give you a single answer.. Coz I love ALL OF ME! Imperfections and shortcomings included :)

DAY 9: SOMETHING I HATE ABOUT MYSELF :(

I love all of me but that doesn't mean there's nothing I hate about myself. Does that sound contradictory? I suppose it does but then we all have a love/hate relationship with ourselves at one time or another, hehe! And the one thing I hate about myself is that I'm a (relaxed type) procrastinator. I have lots of to-do things that are finished half-way. Now that I'll be turning 30, I'll really really try to abolish this horrendous habit of mine :(

Birthday Challenge Day 6 & 7

2011-07-07T09:53:00.006+08:00

DAY 6: A SONG THAT MAKES ME CRY

I can't think of any song that makes me cry these days. However, when I was in my teens (hormones!!), I often shed a tear or two when I hear romantic ballads. Hehe! Love songs about waiting for love, being in love, breaking up, etc, etc always leaves me in tears. I most especially like 95.5 WRock's Sunday program when they play classic and popular love songs.. Sigh, I miss those simple days when all I did was listen to music while reading a book :)

DAY 7: MY CRUSH

Only one crush?? Can it be crushes?? Hehe! But then this post will never be finished as I have TONS of crushes! ;-) Anyhoo, my fave right now is BRANDON ROUTH, he of Superman Returns fame ^__^ But I love him more in the TV show Chuck (as Agent Daniel Shaw in season 3) and movie Dylan Dog -- both of which he has scenes where he was topless and wet!! Waahh!! I was literally drooling with Labsie giving me the evil eye, LOL! Below is a Brandon Routh wallpaper (click to enlarge) for you to ogle, hehe! ;-) If you want more pictures of this super handsome guy, you can go to his unofficial Facebook page HERE and official FB page HERE. Oh right, you can follow him on Twitter too. For Brandon's topless photos, click HERE. Don't blame me if you'll get addicted to him! Hahaha!

is it July already??

2011-07-05T16:45:00.000+08:00

DANG! That means its been a month since I mobile photo blogged! Blame my nearly 4-year old SE k800i, it's so unstable (and frequently lost coz Iya kept hiding it, LOL) that I can't post my photo blog posts without it suddenly turning off T__T Really have to buy a new phone, haayy!

Anyhoo, July is my birth month and this year I'm turning the big 3-0! WOW! For the longest time, my age has been 18 years old as I feel the 20s are nothing but an intermission between 18 and 30 ~ the ages that I consider important to my life :) If you frequent my wedding blog, I started the 30-day Birthday Challenge there to celebrate my 30th birthday. Below are the links of the previous Birthday Challenge posts. Thanks again to Wilkin for coming up with a 30-Day Challenge. Days 6-25 will be hosted here. Enjoy! ^__^

>> it's JULY!

>> Birthday Challenge Day 1

>> Birthday Challenge Day 2

>> Birthday Challenge Day 3

>> Birthday Challenge Day 4
>> Birthday Challenge Day 5

lil red riding hood in Buda!

2011-06-05T16:38:00.003+08:00

Yep, that's Iya in the red jacket :-) We're currently in Seagull Mountain Resort in Buda with my family. I've passed by this place since the early 2000s but it's only now I explored the resort. Highlights: new restaurant that serves affordable and tender steaks, freshwater pools (waterfalls run off), pretty chapel with a view, the cold climate!! :-) Right now my parents and bro are in the pool area while Labsie and me (with Iya of course!) are resting in one of the resort's wooden swings. We're enjoying the cold cold wind slapping our noses red. Hehe! Anyway, we were walking towards the pavilion at the edge of the resort and got tired- the result of thin mountain air + our aging bodies- thus we rested for a bit here in the swing (and I live mobile blogged) ^__^

all pink in Panabo! ;-)

2011-05-28T21:49:00.005+08:00

We are currently here at my in-laws in Panabo City as Labsie had a rare weekend off. Normally his rest days are Mon/Tues but we don't go to Panabo coz most of his family are working and thus couldn't bond with Iya. Which is, of course, the reason why we go visit them.Ü Our lil girl had a full day today. She rode a tricycle (first time!) which she enjoyed very much and went malling in Gaisano. Yes, they have malls here, hehe! And the best thing? It's less than a 10min trike ride from Labsie's family home! Super convenient! :-)

Anyway, the photo above was taken this afternoon when we went out to buy ice cream. Iya was wearing her usual pink getup- fuschia yoga tank top and pink fairy pants :-) To my utter delight, Labsie bought Iya a baby pink Magnolia popsicle which perfectly matched her pink outfit! Of course I had to snap their picture and mobile blog about it, hehe ;-)

P.S. If you noticed, the pic above is vertically oriented with a frame to boot! Would you believe that it's only now I knew that my 3.5yr old phone can do this when I'm mobile blogging?? Go check my moblog posts since 2007, all the post pics are horizontal. Not a single vertical one! I'm such a n00b really :-P

Iya's HappyBaby organic snacks are here! :)

2011-05-25T11:51:00.002+08:00

Got free 2kg US to Philippines shipping from HopShopGo.com again, and as usual I used it to buy Iya's stuff :-) If I had this free shipping before she came into our lives, I would have bought tons of Victoria Secret products to sexify myself, heehee! But having a kid really does change your priorities. And my top most priority right now is Iya's health- as much as possible I only want her to eat organic stuff. Not an easy feat if your toddler is a picky eater, organic food choices are limited (haayy Davao!), and people surrounding Iya are giving her not-organic stuff.

When I had the free shipping last time, I bought lots of toddler clothes and shoes for Iya from Old Navy and GAP. The online prices were at least 50% cheaper than store prices. HUGE savings I tell you! :-) I also bought baby safety items, baby health products and feeding stuff from Amazon.com- saved a lot again!Ü

This time around, I bought 3 boxes of HappyBaby organic finger food products to last Iya a year :-) I got 1box of organic yogurt melts in berry flavor, 1box of organic munchies in kale/cheddar flavor, and 1box of organic apple melts. These are all snacks so Iya can't eat / be given junkfoods in between meals.Ü I also bought her a stainless steel cooking set coz she always plays with our heavy metal pots- very dangerous if it will fall on her feet :-( Iya's cooking set includes 5-in diameter frying pan and 2 pots, 1 lid, 1 soup ladle and 1 frying ladle + wooden fried egg, chicken leg, brocollis and carrot. Ready, set, cook! :-)

Anyway, I rarely see HappyBaby products here in Davao, even in Healthy Options-- they have the organic Earth's Best product line though, which I also buy. EB snacks are cheaper than HappyBaby's but has much more salt or sugar (bad! just like junkfood) so I limit Iya's intake of it too. Organic food doesn't automatically mean healthy food through and through, YOU HAVE TO READ THE NUTRITION LABEL so you'll fully know what is *really* inside the food.Ü

P.S. Super, super thanks to Ma Pattie for paying the customs tax! :-)

When your CebuPac flight is delayed..

2011-05-21T14:59:00.002+08:00

..do an International food contest! :p I'll tell you the contest mechanics later as I'll share first how I came to 'invent' this contest.Ü When we came to Manila last Monday, our Cebu Pacific flight was delayed 30minutes. It was annoying but bearable. Today, for our 12nn flight back to Davao, we arrived early in NAIA3 to check-in. To our horror, there was NO specific lines for different destinations. The result? Super long and slow moving lines! Add a super kulit toddler (yes, our very own Iya) to the mix and you have the recipe for a toddler tantrum / meltdown :-( The only thing that kept Labsie and me sane was the thought that we'll be in Davao soon (2pm!)..

But, as you must have known from the blog post title, us arriving in Davao by 2pm was not to be :-( When we *finally* received our boarding passes, we were told our 12nn Davao flight was pushed back to 4pm! That's four FREAKIN hours of entertaining Iya! Hayy.. But the Lord is good- its 230pm (May21) now and Iya is finally asleep after traipsing through gates 130-134 and back, over and over and over again. Labsie is now able to relax and I'm now able to mobile blog :-)

As for the International food contest, it goes like this- buy food from different cuisines and let your toddler eat from the selection. The food s/he eats or chooses wins! ;-) The picture above was our batch1- Vietnamese spring roll, French basil quiche, Japanese assorted maki and American Slurpee (not pictured). WINNER: Slurpee! LOL! Since Iya didn't eat any solid food, we were forced to have batch2- Italian tuna pesto penne (pasta), Aussie meat pie, Filipino Jollibee Chickenjoy (CebuPac's 'compensation' for the delay). WINNER: pasta and Chickenjoy!! Iya really enjoyed the olives from the pasta and of course, the famous crispylicious chicken of Jollibee. Happy Iya = happy Mommy and Daddy! :-)

off to Makati! =)

2011-05-16T13:37:00.002+08:00

130pm, 05/16/11

Currently waiting for our 230pm flight to NAIA3 here in Gate Lounge 8. As usual, Iya is busy walking everywhere with her Daddy on her heels, hehe! :-) Our Makati trip is unplanned but since an opportunity presented so that Iya and Euna can play with each other this summer, we grabbed it. These 2 kids adore each other and it really warms our hearts when they're together :-)

Needless to say, our CebuPac tickets were (relatively) expensive as we got used to paying PISO fares the past several years :-P Two hours more and we'll be with my bro's family na- can't hardly wait to take pics of Iya and Euna playing together! Summer = Family Fun!Ü

live blogging William & Kate's wedding!

2011-04-29T18:43:00.002+08:00

Pardon the pic though, it's the best I can get from my 3yr old SE k800i + it's taken from the TV, thus the lines. Hehe!Ü Prince William and Kate are starting to say their vows here, their hands upon each other's hands :-) BTW I super love Kate's wedding gown! Simple, elegant, timeless and still oh-so sexy! I can so relate with her lace top coz my gown was like that too, only short-sleeved :-) I'll go back watching TLC now, the Abbey is amazing! Don't want to miss more amazing church shots coz I'm blogging from my phone o_O To the royal newlyweds, love each other as much as you did (or more) before the wedding! Hehe!Ü

meet our new cook ;-)

2011-04-26T15:31:00.003+08:00

Quite young eh? In fact, she just turned 13months old a few days ago. Yes, months! Coz the young cook in the pic above is our lil Iya! :-) Our baby girl first expressed interest in housework when she was 11months old. Iya would accompany my mom in doing laundry + washing the dishes, having some water fun while doing 'work' :-) As the days progressed, Iya took to watching us prepare and cook food. She would smell the ginisà, taste the stew, and watch the fish fry.

Finally, last night, I let Iya prepare dinner- not on the stove but on our sofa ok? Hehe! She shredded some wheat bread, put it in the pot, added meat and stirred the entire 'mess' :-) In the pic above, she is transfering meat (right) to the pot- the bulalo meat was actually our dinner last night, hehe!Ü Well done chef Iya! Next time we will bake yummy cookies :-)

Holy Week in Panabo

2011-04-21T18:25:00.005+08:00

While others are spending the Holy Week in Boracay, Puerto Galera and other fun spots, we are spending the week with hubby's family in their quiet hometown of Panabo in Davao del Norte :-) I'm thankful that this Holy Week, Labsie managed to arrange his work sked such that he has 5 straight work-free days. This means more bonding time for Iya and his family :-) Anyway this will be my last online update for the week. As per my Holy Week tradition, there'll be no computer + no phone (where I can blog or check FB, hehe) from Maundy Thursday eve til Easter Sunday morn for me.Ü Have a blessed Holy Week everyone!

P.S. The pic of Iya above was taken just now (yes, I'm live mobile blogging again) in hubby's bachelor room, hehe! And the plush toy she's holding? That's Tito Ninong Gogo's pasalubong from Subic. THANK U Tito! Now Iya has a dolphin in her growing collection of animal stuffed toys :-)

Its Palm Sunday!

2011-04-17T10:01:00.004+08:00

And that can only mean a whole week of no-meat meals to look forward to- mehh! But then this kind of sacrifice comes only once a year, during Holy Week, so I'm sucking it up. I will survive! Hehe! And so, on this fine overcast Sunday morn, Iya and I found ourselves accompanying Daddylo and Mommyla in one of Davao's largest wet markets (the Toril market pictured above) to buy loads of fish for Holy Week. I hope we'll get seafoods too (yes, we're still here- I'm live blogging via SEk800i) but then eating shrimps and crabs isn't much of a sacrifice eh? Hehe! ;-) Have a meaningful Holy Week everyone! Eat (less), Pray (lots), Love (lots n lots)!

peek-a-boo! :)

2011-04-15T07:15:00.002+08:00

Iya was 9mos old when she started hiding behind curtains and playing peekaboo with us. When she was 7mos, she loved playing this on our shoulders and backs. And now, with Iya at nearly 13mos old, we've progressed to playing hide-n-seek among our furnitures :-) Her joyous baby laughter when she's 'found' is, IMHO, the best sound in the whole wide world! ^_^

iYa LoVeS eLmO!

2011-04-12T16:33:00.003+08:00

Sometimes our baby (toddler!) girl just needs her plush Elmo doll to fall asleep :)

Yes, this post is sent thru my (ancient) SE k800i- I'M MOBILE BLOGGING AGAIN! My last moblog post was 3yrs ago o_O Will be reviving this blog through my phone as our laptop is hijacked by Iya. Labsie and I are only able to use it when she's already asleep, hehe!

need reliable web host!

2011-01-25T02:08:00.005+08:00

I guess it's about time to get a web host for all of my personal blogs. My baby Iya is nearly one year old (she's 10 months now), and I am anticipating some extra free time :) Extra time that I will use to revive my personal blogs which I sorely neglected the past 10 months or so due to taking care of her. In line with that, I am planning to move my blogs to a web host server. That is, if I find an affordable web host service. Currently I am browsing web hosting pad reviews to see which web host best fits my blogs' needs and most importantly, my budget. Hehe!

For the technically challenged, a web hosting service is a type of Internet hosting service that allows individuals and organizations to make their own website accessible via the internet (via Wikipedia). Web hosts provide space on a server they own or lease for use by their clients, i.e. me ^_^ It is very useful especially if your blog or site uses a lot of photos. Blogger (where this blog is currently hosted) only has limited space for free users like me. Anyway, these are just but plans until I find a reliable and affordable host. If you know one, lemme know! :)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!! :)

2010-12-22T14:50:00.005+08:00

It's our baby girl's FIRST Christmas and everything is just awesome! Sure, we have a hectic and full-packed schedule starting tomorrow (involves traveling back and forth 3 cities, with a baby on tow!) but the Lord is truly good for He blessed us with the best families, relatives and friends a person could ask for; who, I know, will help us til the holidays are over :) From our family of three to yours, have a wonderful Christmas season!

Google PR3!

2010-11-17T14:22:00.000+08:00

Best. Early. Christmas. Gift. Ever!!! :) Yep yep, this personal blog of mine is now PR3! w00t w00t! And no one is more surprised and of course, happier, than lil old me! You see, I'm really not into SEO / search engine optimization and blog promotion (I rarely exchange links due to laziness, hehe) so I'm really surprised where all the PR juice came from. I just blog what I like and that's it. Thank god the algorithm of Google's Page Rank likes my style of blogging and awarded me PR3! YEY!! Guess it's really all about content :) I just hope my PR3 will continue til next year despite my lack of updates lately (busy with baby!!). How about you? What's your new Page Rank?

11 years of US! :)

2010-10-18T15:30:00.002+08:00

Taipei Zoo :: Oct 2010

And 2 years of marriage, and six months of parenthood! Hip, hip, hooray! :) To celebrate, we had a family vacation in Makati and Taipei for a total of 1week. It was just me, Labsie and Iya at 6months+. Traveling with a baby is hard but we made it work. Much of the success has to do with Iya's temperament ~ the girl just loves to sightsee! As long as she's full and not sleepy, she's alright with whatever me and Labsie are doing. Atta girl! :) Here's to more years to us Labsie and to more family vacations with Iya!

organic baby food

2010-09-12T09:21:00.000+08:00

Mashed fresh fruits VERSUS processed baby food -- this has been a dilemma of ours. Hubby and I have decided before giving birth to give our baby only fresh fruits and vegetables but unfortunately there are no organic fruits for sale here in Davao =( There are organic veggies (especially for salads, thank you Eden!) but you don't give that to first-time solid food eaters :p Anyway, my only other choice is to give organic baby food. At least I know my baby isn't eating pesticides and other chemicals. I just pray to God that there's no contamination while the baby food was being processed -_-

If you know any organic fruit sellers here in Davao or nearby areas, please leave a comment. Thanks! In the meantime, baby Iya will be eating Earth's Best organic baby food and Rafferty's Garden stuff ^_^ What's great with Rafferty's as compared to other organic baby food? Their packaging! The food isn't in glass jars but in safe plastic pouches! So great for traveling!! =) Some of their products have spouts (just squeeze out food, no double dipping which promotes bacterial growth), some have resealable tops while other pouches are microwaveable. Read more about it here: http://www.raffertysgarden.com

guess who just turned 29??

2010-07-20T16:08:00.004+08:00

Yep, ME! I just turned 29 years old two days ago ~ my last birthday before hitting the big 3-0! And soon, my age will be out of the calendar month, LOL! But who cares? At 27, I became a licensed medical doctor and married my bestfriend. At 28, I gave birth and became a mom to the best baby in the world.. And while motherhood was a bumpy ride (still is!), life can't get any better than this! ^_^ Well, may be it can if I win millions from the lottery and we wouldn't have to worry about our finances anymore, hehe!

baby clothes for sale! ^_^

2010-06-15T20:36:00.007+08:00

Here’s a sample of the baby stuff I’m selling:

BRAND-NEW branded baby footsies / sleeper suits / pajama sets at affordable prices! =)

Just drop me a comment if you wanna buy. To get cheaper prices, buy from my branded footsies album (click the pic above to view the album) and combine with the baby clothes found here: http://cutieissa.multiply.com/photos/album/9

SAVE WHEN YOU BUY MORE!

1. Buy 3 short-sleeved onesies for only P240! Save P30!

2. Buy 2 short-sleeved onesies + long-sleeved onesie for only P260! Save P40!

3. Buy 2 short-sleeved onesies + footsie for P280! Save P50!

4. Buy 1 short-sleeved onesie + 1 long-sleeved onesie + footsie for P300! Save P60! Sample sets:

- GREEN: http://cutieissa.multiply.com/photos/photo/9/22

- PINK: http://cutieissa.multiply.com/photos/photo/9/29

- WHITE: http://cutieissa.multiply.com/photos/photo/9/13

Reservations for 3 days only. HAGGLING IS ALLOWED, yes allowed! What fun is shopping when you can’t haggle right? ;-) But please be considerate when haggling, hehe! Thanks!

Mayweather vs Mosley

2010-05-02T07:19:00.001+08:00

So, who did you bet for in the boxing fight of the decade yesterday?? I'm sure most of you placed bets that Floyd Mayweather Jr. will win even though you don't like his humbug personality, hehe! Me? I was just content to watch two black men fight it out and entertain me :p Though sports betting is rampant and very popular in our country (especially if there's a Manny Pacquiao fight!), I'm just not into it. I hate to lose money and losing money in gambling just sucks even more.

But enough of me, how about you? How much did you win yesterday?? ;-) Though I bet you and most of the Mayweather fans had a scare in the second round when he was nearly knocked down! Boy, Shane Mosley's right hand to the side of his head was so strong that Floyd's knees buckled a minute into the second round, and he had to grab Mosley to avoid going down. Mosley landed another right punch later in the round but unfortunately he failed to bring down Mayweather. Still it was all very exciting! Thank you Shane! ^_^

Floyd Mayweather Jr.

40-0 (25 KOs)

Age: 33

Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada

Notable wins: Juan Manuel Marquez, Ricky Hatton, Oscar De La Hoya, Zab Judah, Diego Corrales, Jose Luis Castillo

Notable losses: NONE! O_o

Shane Mosley

46-5 (39 KOs)

Age: 38

Hometown: Pomona, California

Notable wins: Oscar De La Hoya 2x, Fernando Vargas, Antonio Margarito, Ricardo Mayorga

Notable losses: Winky Wright (twice), Vernon Forrest (twice), Miguel Cotto

advance your IT career!

2010-04-25T15:34:00.003+08:00

My husband has been working for Concentrix (formerly Link2Support) for the past 3 years or so. Currently he’s a senior technical trainer and an instructor in the newly put up Concentrix Institute. Hubby is a Cisco Certified Network Associate so he's more than qualified to teach and review Cisco stuff. My advice to his would-be students is to get ready for his surprise quizzes. Don't say I didn't warn you, hehe! Anyway, the said institute is kinda like a review center for Cisco certifications and IELTS (hello grammar quizzes!). It is fully equipped with high-end computers and the review has tons of laboratory activities using test softwares to give the students a hands-on experience. I volunteered to post information about their CCNA Certification review hence this post. Do spread the news and help someone advance their IT or BPO career! =) The institute's contact information is below the figure. And the figure below? It's all about advancing your IT career via Cisco's certification tests.

CONCENTRIX INSTITUTE - Center for Technical Knowledge and Development would like to announce that they are now accepting enrollees for CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate) Certification Review. Kindly contact them via:

*e-mail: ci_info@concentrix.com

*phone: +6382-235-5099

*office: Damosa IT Park Bldg 2 (back entrance) along JP Laurel Ave, Lanang, Davao City and look for Miss Joy.

waiting for baby Iya.. =)

2010-03-17T22:44:00.001+08:00

In two days, we'll be in our 39 weeks of pregnancy. Add one week to that and we'll hit baby Iya's due date (March 26). Already I'm getting antsy to give birth. I'm plain tired of carrying all the extra weight (13kg in my last weigh-in!) and of course, we wanna see our newborn already =) Waiting for baby Iya to come out is one of the longest wait that Labsie and I ever experienced. We're normally very patient persons but this time, we wanna see our princess already!! Guess most first-time parents are like this, hehe!

Anyway, we're all done with the welcoming-baby-Iya preparations. Our bedroom is optimized for baby co-sleeping, Iya's baby corner is done, I had my hair trimmed + manicure + pedicure, our hospital bags are packed, needed paperwork and money are all set -- we're practically 99.9% ready to welcome baby Iya to the world! Now all I need is for labor to start and find my beloved eye glasses! I have had my maroon frame glasses for the longest time (see it in action below, circa 2007) and two days ago, I lost it. I was just at home that time so I thought that with diligent search, I should be able to find it. Unfortunately, I had no such luck =( Today's my third day without my glasses and it really sucked watching TV coz I can't see clearly without squinting *sigh*

Right now I'm still thinking if I'll buy new eye glasses (which means I have to go the mall and I don't have that energy now) or just keep looking for my old one. I'm sure I won't be needing one when I give birth (it will just slide off my nose with all sweat during labor, hehe) but I will certainly need it when I go out of the house or watch TV or view far-away objects. Decisions, decisions! I certainly don't need this predicament right now, just when I'm focusing to give birth already! :p

in the last stretch of my pregnancy

2010-02-26T15:01:00.008+08:00

Top view of my belly in the third trimester ;-)

It's been more than six months since Labsie and I officially found out we were having a baby. From looking for maternity clothes, pregnancy pants and baby layette, to attending childbirth classes and touring hospitals -- we are now finally on the last stretch. Soon, we will see our firstborn.. ^_^ But even though time did not fly by that fast and I had plenty of time to think about being a mother, I'm still finding myself not quite ready for the motherhood thingy. Truth be told, having a kid is not among my life's goals. All I ever wanted were:

1. become a licensed medical doctor (done last 2008) and help people
2. travel around our country (mostly done), the world (err, 1% done! LOL) and go into outer space (this is NOT a joke!)
3. live normally and happily with my family and loved ones.

As you can see, even having a wedding and marriage were not on my list! But right now I can honestly tell you that I'm loving married life with Labsie so I'm really hoping I'll learn to love motherhood too. I just hope our baby Iya will be a good girl and won't give us headaches, hehe! ^_^ On a side note, exactly today, I'm on the 36th week of my pregnancy. Yep, we're on the 9th month already! In just a few days, I'll be giving birth (normal and easy delivery please!) and married life as Labsie and I know it will soon be over. SO HELP US GOD!

time to get my own hosting and domain name! =)

2010-02-24T08:21:00.001+08:00

In every blogger's life, there comes a time when the free blog hosting of Blogger or Wordpress (or whatever free blog platform the blogger is using) is not enough anymore. The blog might have experienced a surge of popularity that necessitated a bigger bandwidth or the blogger uses a lot of photos that eats up his/her free webspace storage. Also, there comes a time when the web address xxxxxx.blogspot.com isn't just "right" anymore -- and www.xxxxxx.com sounds a whole lot better, and more professional too if I may add! The latter has happened to me several times. Four of my blogs have their own domain names but due to my lack of attention in renewing the domain names, only our wedding blog have a www.xxxxxx.com address now. And it's not even a .com but a .info as it contains wedding planning information =)

As for needing web hosting, I'm -thisclose- to getting one for my Friendster blog as the free measly 50mb storage is nearly used up. Quick Bytes is around 4 years old and its has a LOT of pictures considering it started as a food blog. It amazes me that the free 50mb storage lasted this long. But good (free) times always end and here I am looking for a company that offers budget hosting. And if I'm gonna get web hosting, might as well get a domain name too -- www.quickbytes.com definitely sounds way better than http://cutieissa24.blog.friendster.com :p If you know of a web hosting company and you can vouch for its excellent performance, please drop a comment! Thanks in advance guys!

Top 10 Most Popular Torrent Sites of 2009

2010-02-04T23:11:00.002+08:00

My husband and I are avid torrent sites users. He usually use it to download songs and games (PC and PSP) while I use it to download TV shows, documentaries and movies we missed watching. Sure, downloading these stuff online are barely legal but heck, we have spent obscene amounts of money on buying original games and albums, and watching movies in cinemas -- aren't we entitled to free torrents download every now and then?? :p Anyway, without much further ado, here's the Top 10 Most Popular Torrent Sites of 2009 as chosen by TorrentFreak.com --

#1 THEPIRATEBAY.ORG
- Daily Visitors: 4,467,074
- Pageviews: 26,177,054 (5.86 per visitor)
- Alexa Rank: #104
- Compete Rank: #787

#2 TORRENTZ.COM
- Daily Visitors: 2,656,483
- Pageviews: 12,963,637 (4.88 per visitor)
- Alexa Rank: #180
- Compete Rank: Currently Not Available

#3 ISOHUNT.COM
- Daily Visitors: 2,461,643
- Pageviews: 16,566,857 (6.73 per visitor)
- Alexa Rank: #186
- Compete Rank: #1,226

#4 MININOVA.ORG (our fave!! and it's now closed, boohoo!)
- Daily Visitors: 1,406,653
- Pageviews: 6,597,203 (4.69 per visitor)
- Alexa Rank: #96
- Compete Rank: #1,123

#5 BTJUNKIE.ORG
- Daily Visitors: 1,321,113
- Pageviews: 6,143,175 (4.65 per visitor)
- Alexa Rank: #403
- Compete Rank: #2,286

#6 TORRENTREACTOR.NET

- Daily Visitors: 898,167

- Pageviews: 1,796,334 (2 per visitor)

- Alexa Rank: #391

- Compete Rank: #1,500

#7 TORRENTDOWNLOADS.NET

- Daily Visitors: 888,663

- Pageviews: 1,581,820 (1.78 per visitor)

- Alexa Rank: #1,086

- Compete Rank: #3,477

#8 MONOVA.ORG

- Daily Visitors: 622,539

- Pageviews: 1,512,770 (2.43 per visitor)

- Alexa Rank: #1,736

- Compete Rank: #11,068

#9 EXTRATORRENT.COM

- Daily Visitors: 594,026

- Pageviews: 2,952,309 (4.97 per visitor)

- Alexa Rank: #1,199

- Compete Rank: #5,760

#10 BTMON.COM

- Daily Visitors: 551,256

- Pageviews: 1,025,336 (1.86 per visitor)

- Alexa Rank: #1,754

- Compete Rank: #7,009

For the not-so internet-savvy: torrents are are specialized files utilized in peer-to-peer (P2P) network environments. P2P is a network of personal computers that communicate with one another by running proprietary P2P software. Unlike usual downloads off the internet, torrents do not point to a single source when requesting files. Instead, torrents contain specific information that multiple computers in the network can read to send various parts of the requested file simultaneously and en masse. Torrents keep active track of which parts of the file are needed to complete the request. By downloading bits of the file from dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of sources, large files can download very quickly. And that's why we love torrents so much!! ^_^

searching within file-sharing sites

2010-02-01T10:34:00.002+08:00

I’m a certified bookworm — I read anything and everything I can lay my hands on. When the Internet came into vogue, I plunged head on to reading ebooks and other stuff in PDF form. PDF, of course, is the popular file type from Adobe. My only problem in sourcing PDF ebooks was that it was so hard to search for it in the Internet -- specifically in RapidShare, 4shared.com and other file-hosting / file-sharing sites.

This is how these type of sites work: you want to share a file but it’s too big to send over email so you upload it to them. If it’s successful, you will be given a unique download URL, and when you share this URL to users, they’ll be able to download your file. No user is allowed to search the server for content; all files have to be downloaded by clicking the unique URL. This is where search engines specific for file-sharing sites come in — it allows users to search for files within RapidShare or 4shared.com! No more waiting for somebody to send you a URL, just do a File Search within the specialized search engine and boom! You can now download the uploaded file. Easy huh??

Now I can only hope there will be a specialized search engine where all the files they index are in PDF format. Books, textbooks, documents, manuals, guides, I want it all! ;-) It would also help if this search engine will regularly update the PDF database so I can have more and more PDF ebooks to download -- and read! ♥ ♥ ♥

- DISCLOSURE POLICY -

Friday Frustrations: Computer Issues

2010-01-30T01:28:00.002+08:00

Welcome to Friday Frustrations, a weekly blog carnival dedicated to getting things off your chests whether big or small. If you would like to participate, grab the button and enter your Friday Frustrations link on Conversations with Moms Friday Frustrations Blog Hop. You can write about several frustrations or just one. It’s up to you.

-------- O --------

It's my first time to join this meme and the frustration topic is just perfect! =) You see, my brother changed our PC operating system from Windows XP to Vista to Windows 7 in just a span of 2 months! While I was still learning to navigate Vista, he installed Windows 7. Now, I have to relearn things all over again! I'm more than computer / Internet literate but Windows 7 is really frustrating me. The search feature sucks (too complicated and doesn't find things! grr!), Google Chrome crashes every 30 minutes or so, my other programs that require Windows 7 support need reinstalling which is a hassle, and last, bootup is longer than Vista! I tell you, I was not excited with bug-laden Vista but Windows 7 is rapidly eating up my patience.. Argh!! I just wish we're using Windows XP again. Life was much simpler back then! -_- And that ends my rant for today -- come back again next Friday! Hehe!

pregnancy and sleepiness :p

2010-01-29T23:43:00.000+08:00

For some reason, I’m always in the mood to nap during mid-mornings these days. It’s funny coz when I was young, I would thwart all the adults’ attempts to have me take my daily nap. I prefer to play all day long, rest not needed, lol! However, I noticed lately that I’m growing fond of sleeping during mornings which led me to sleeping late in the evening (or very early in the morning). I’m not sure why my sleeping habits changed — maybe its coz our lovely bed is very comfy and I just want to lie in it forever! Hehe! Or that the second trimester energy boost is gone and I'm now feeling the third trimester lethargy, ughh!

Today, I’m planning to work online whole morning and have my nap in the afternoon ;-) I’ll probably have a good 2-3 hours sleep before I need to cook dinner. I’ll wait for my hubby to arrive then we’ll eat then we’ll watch TV, talk a bit, and basically bond. Then it’s sleeping time again for me! Hehe! Sleeping in our comfy bed (even if its not one of our must-have dream leather beds) makes my day every night ^_^ However, with me being 8 months pregnant and all, having an electric adjustable bed will even be better. Yes, the ones used as hospital beds – it’s now going mainstream and is available to home owners! If only we could afford it.. :p The additional offender groans.

guess who retired?

2010-01-29T21:28:00.000+08:00

My father!! Yep, after 29 years of working for a multinational company, he retired and is now a bum like me. LOL! The surprising thing is, Papa is just 49 years old! Most people thought he's too young to retire but he says he's tired of working and of the corporate scene. Well, you can't really blame him -- he went to work immediately after college graduation and has been with the same company since then. So, what's my retired father doing now? Setting up his business! Of what nature will his business be, I still do not know. He has lots of business ideas, wants to seize every business opportunity that he can, and frankly, I think Papa is way over his head. Hehe! Maybe he needs an Interim Management director or something like that to guide him.

Aside from setting up a business, Papa plans to travel a lot with my mother. For the past 10 years or so, they have vacationed in most Southeast Asian countries. Post-retirement, they plan to go to the US (tourist visas already approved, yay!) and have tasked me to create an itinerary for them. I made them a 5d/4n Taiwan itinerary recently and they love what I’ve done thus this new task. But sad to say I’m flummoxed this time! USA is such a big country and there’s so much to see that I don’t know where to start and what to include in the itinerary. Time to research online and read travel reviews!

guess who's back?? :p

2010-01-18T16:11:00.002+08:00

Heya guys! First and foremost, happy 2010 to all of you! I know it's nearly one month since I blogged here -- it's coz I was busy with our wedding, baby and make-money blogs! If you wanna know what I've been up to since late last year, click the blog post links below:

- BABY BLUES -

Six months pregnant!

Cloth versus disposable diapers

FOR BETTER OR WORSE..

DIY wedding wine labels

Destination wedding: Las Vegas!

Bride's emergency kit

My bestfriend's wedding! ^_^

QUICK BYTES!

What to buy for baby and the new mom

Haiti 7.0 earthquake =(

Saturday 9 meme!

Lamaze classes

yes, I'm a SAHM! =)

2009-12-26T08:33:00.000+08:00

SAHM means “stay at home mom” and though I’m not a “real” mom yet (3 more months!), I have been in mommy mode since my 2 younger male siblings were born. I am the eldest and the only girl, and so it’s just natural that I’m my mom’s right-hand gal =) Anyway, last October 2008, I got married and chose to be a stay at home wife instead of practicing my medical profession. Most of the people I knew (especially my parents) didn’t understand why I would waste my time staying at home instead of earning moolah being a doctor. My female friends asked me don’t I get bored staying at home day in and day out?

Firstly, being in mommy mode most of my life “trained” me not to get bored spending 24/7 at home. Even during my hectic days in medical school I still did some cooking, cleaning, taking care of our dogs, and doing other household stuff. And when I took a 1 year hiatus after graduating from med school (and before I took my Physician Licensure exam), I further honed my housewife skills. My parents were not living with us due to my dad’s work, and I had a 5-room home, 10 dogs and 1 spoiled brother to take care of. Taking care of our finances and housework was easy-peasy for me. While most “modern” women don’t like cleaning and cooking, I adore it! =)

And then I got married. I now have 2 guys to take care of :p Hubby and I initially planned that I’ll spend the first year of our marriage at home and take specialty training after October 2009. But then I got pregnant around July! We had no plans to have kids until after 3-5 years of marriage so we can really save up for our kid, and now this. Our best-laid plans just got awry! Since I was pregnant, I had to say goodbye to specialty training. I could do it but I don’t wanna stress myself and our sweet baby =) That’s why, until now, I’m still a SAHM! Needless to say, homebody me is loving it!

check out our baby blog!

2009-12-02T12:12:00.002+08:00

It's been up for quite awhile but it's only now that I'm starting to promote it as it has lots of content already =) And to start off, here are our first trimester posts! Well, actually, it's below the ultrasound photo (our first look of our sweet baby!). We're on the sixth month of pregnancy and so far, me + hubby + baby are doing great ^_^ Enjoy the posts!

Weeks 1 - 6: The First 6 Weeks

Week 7: August 2 - 9, 2009

Week 8: August 9 - 16, 2009

Week 9: August 16 - 23, 2009

Week 10: August 23 - 30, 2009

Week 11: August 03 - Sept 6, 2009

Week 12: September 6 - 13, 2009

Science Stuff: First Trimester Recap

pregnancy aches and pains..

2009-11-17T05:21:00.001+08:00

I'm nearly five and a half months pregnant, and boy, the weight I gained is taking a toll on my petite body! I gained a total of 6.5 kilos for the first half of my pregnancy and though my body mass index (BMI) is still normal for my height, this is the heaviest I've been my entire life! I've been chubby during my high school life and during summertimes but at most, I only weighed 47-48 kilos. The added weight plus my bulging abdomen have been killing my back, calves and feet! I badly need a full body massage and foot spa but I'm so lazy to get out of our house. As it is, I'm relying on hubby for mini-back massages and foot massages every day. He sooo good at it, especially with the foot!

Hubby's aunt (who lives in New York) even compared his "expertise" to podiatrists manhattan! =) I think Labsie's aunt compared him to Dr. Les Glubo, a leading podiatrist in New York who has been providing expert foot care for over 25 years. I've seen this foot doctor being interviewed in Inside Edition, Fox News and The Early Show, and I was impressed with his credentials and the wide array of foot services his office offered. Wish I was in New York and have my aching preggy feet pampered by him!

Pacquiao smashed Cotto!

2009-11-15T16:10:00.001+08:00

Yep, another historic event in his fairytale boxing story! That brings Pacman’s record to 50 Wins (38 by way of Knockout), 3 Loses, 2 Draws. Not bad eh? As for the boxing titles under his belt, check these out and be amazed:

WBO Welterweight Champion

Reigning IBO, RING Junior Welterweight Champion

WBC Lightweight Champion, 2008-2009

WBC, RING Super Featherweight Champion, 2008

RING Featherweight Champion, 2003 - 2005

IBF Super Bantamweight Champion, 2001 - 2004

WBC Flyweight Champion, 1998 - 1999

Manny Pacquiao is the first boxer to win seven world titles in seven different weight divisions. Also, he is the ONLY boxer to win the lineal championship (”the man who beat the man”) in four different weight classes. I’m really more than amazed with his accomplishments.. Mabuhay ang Pilipino!! =)

need help translating stuff?

2009-11-07T14:09:00.000+08:00

Then try TRANSLIA! I just knew of this service coz I was looking for new ways to earn moolah since we have a baby on the way =) Anyway, this is how their translation services work: you post a job by uploading files then you choose the language you want the files translated to and last, you set the price you're willing to pay for the translation job. Professional translators (like me!) will work on your posted job. Once you are satisfied with the translation, your payment (held in escrow) will be forwarded to the translator. Aside from the usual translation services, Translia offers free translation (for charities and such), brand translation, linguistic editing and name translation. If you're fluent in several languages, I suggest you sign up as a translator. In the economic recession we are in, every little earning counts..

50% done with the pregnancy! =)

2009-11-07T10:23:00.005+08:00

Yep, I’m gestating for 20 weeks today and that means in another 20 weeks, we’ll finally meet our firstborn! How exciting is that?? My only problem is that our Baby Fund is still zero, i.e. no savings yet. This pregnancy of ours caught us by surprise and most of our savings in our first year of marriage went into our second honeymoon (babymoon) last October. The trip was already booked months before so we can’t cancel and save the money for our baby. So now, with 4 months before my due date, we’re gonna save money like crazy! Or like those ants preparing for the rainy day.. ;-)

crustless quiche!!

2009-11-07T06:19:00.000+08:00

I love pies and I love cheese.. More so when I got pregnant! Just ask hubby and my parents.. They'd tell you how loud I squeal when I see pies and cheesy pastries in stores =) Anyhoo, I wanted for a long time to bake my own pie, quiche or buttery pastry -- but what really turned me off is making the crust. I love cooking (and I'm quite good at it!) but baking is simply beyond me. Especially if it involves making doughs o_O Today I stumbled on Food Connect and found a recipe for a CRUSTLESS quiche!! That's it below, no crust baby! And the best thing? It's made up of 4 cheeses! Yummy eh??

At first glance I thought FoodConnect.com was a cooking website full of recipes and stuff. It turned out it's more than that! They do have recipes and food articles but the best thing is their website's ability to search for restaurants in Canada and the US. Users can review these restaurants, other users then can read the reviews and decide for themselves if the restaurant is worth dining in. Each restaurant listing contains the restaurant's address, how to get there (directions), contact details, specialty or cuisine, plus pictures, ratings and reviews from Food Connect users. You can also print and email the restaurant listing page if you like.

The website also has a page for Foodies (the website's users) where one can search for fellow food lovers in their own city. Each Foodie profile lists the suer's city and you can add the user as a friend. Yep, http://www.foodconnect.com/ is like a social network for foodies =) Anyway, the website also has a page for Events where users can enter food events in their cities. In your entered event, you can invite your friends, assign them to tasks and share recipes before the event and upload photos after. Real good stuff eh?? So if you're a foodie like me, check Food Connect! You'll love it!

happy 28th birthday to my hubby!

2009-10-31T22:42:00.000+08:00

October is a big month for me and Labsie. It's the month we celebrate our wedding anniversary (Oct 8), our couplehood anniversary (Oct 15) and the best event of all -- Labsie's birthday on Oct 31! Yep, my hubby is a Halloween baby! And would you believe he was born around 11:45pm? Very near the witching hour of midnight! =) But no worries, he's not scary or monstrous at all. My hubby is the sweetest guy ever!

This year, Labsie decided to have a simple dinner celebration in his family's home with my family as guests. Just two families coming together to eat and celebrate hubby's 28th birthday. We had seafood extravaganza, with crabs, shrimps, prawns, clams and grilled tuna gracing the table. We also had the usual pansit guisado, lumpia ubod and birthday cakes. Yes, cakeS! Coz Labsie had two, courtesy of Tita Ling and my mom =)

To Labsie, may the Lord grant the desires of your heart. Stay as great as you are! Love u always.. XOXO

Maternity & Baby Stuff Wishlist

2009-10-18T18:14:00.000+08:00

Sleeper Keeper Total Body Comfort Pregnancy Pillow

Smart idea, sensational results: Take the concept of a pillow, stretch it to an elongated curve, contour it to provide the right kind of support where it is needed, and make it flexible so the user can shape it as necessary. Voila! This pillow does the work of 5 and is great for back and stomach support during pregnancy.

Horseshoe-shaped head section allows you to obtain comfortable upper body position and height

Extra-long midsection is perfect width for complete back or tummy support

The slightly curved end tucks snugly between knees as it conforms to body's shape, keeping you cool and comfortable

Allows you to shift from side to side as recommended by obstetricians

Cradles your body for recommended side sleeping

Helps keep your hips and spine in a neutral position

Promotes better circulation by lifting and cushioning areas you choose

Relieves strain on stomach, back, shoulders, neck, hips and legs while sleeping

After your delivery, it's a perfect support pillow for you and baby while breast-feeding; Also a great support for infants sitting up

100% polyester fiberfill covered with 100% cotton flannel in a plaid pattern

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Gabriel Feeding Pad Break-Away

The Gabriel Feeding Pad Break-Away is a 3-in-1 product for nursing, burping or bottle-feeding! The Nursing Veil has finger loopholes to hold veil in place while minimizing infant distractions in public feeding situations, and end flaps that lift for mom-to-baby eye contact. The pad flips over to burp baby on soft fabric or to allow baby to rest comfortably on lap or shoulder. The bottle-feeding feature holds a 2-9 oz. bottle of milk and frees one hand while feeding baby upright.

Nursing Veil (the large denim cloth on left side, second pic) Features:

Lift end flaps for mom-to-baby eye contact

Small opening to view baby while nursing

Lightweight fabric for maximum coverage and air circulation

Pocket for nursing pads, toy or teething ring

Minimizes infant distractions while feeding

Finger loopholes keep veil from shifting and sliding

Burping Pad Features:

Soft padded back (white cloth on above right, second pic) for burping or resting

Protective barrier to prevent fluid penetration

Bottle-feeding (birth to 6 months)

Free one hand while feeding baby

Holds a 2-9 oz. bottle (bottle not included)

Pocket for bottle cap

Holds pacifier or teething ring

Contoured neck for comfortable fit

baby-proof your home!

2009-10-07T11:29:00.005+08:00

It will be six months before we’ll have a baby in our house and another 6 months before s/he will be actively wandering but it’s never too early to start baby-proofing our home! As per the usual, I searched online for tips about this and these are the easy to implement baby-proofing techniques that I found over at WebMD:

- Bedding: Put baby on his back to sleep; avoid soft bedding that might suffocate him. Crib slats should be 2-3/8 inches apart or less so head can’t get trapped.

- Floors: USE carpets to prevent slipping. Also check floors constantly for small objects that a baby might swallow like buttons and coins.

- Furniture: Cushion hard edges and sharp corners. If possible, move sharp-edged pieces away from high traffic areas. Anchor down unsteady pieces of furniture, such as bookcases.

- Bathroom: Never leave your child unattended in a bathtub or bath ring. Install no-slip strips on the bottom of the tub. Install lid locks on all toilets and keep the lid closed to prevent drowning and to keep the lid from slamming on your baby’s head or hands.

- Food: Avoid heating baby bottles in microwave ovens. The liquid heats unevenly, leaving pockets of milk potentially hot enough to scald your baby’s mouth.

my weird cravings

2009-09-30T22:41:00.005+08:00

One awesome thing when you're pregnant is that you get to have food cravings that you have to have at that moment. Not buts or ifs from the husband or partner -- he has to get the craved food asap or else all hell will break lose! ;-) I had my share of food cravings during the first two months of my pregnancy, the time when I was still blissfully unaware that I was eating for two. I craved for sour green mango with salty shrimp paste, sour oranges and apples dipped in plain salt, cheesy junkfood and steamed seafood. Sounds pretty usual for pregnancy cravings right? Well, my weird cravings are actualy non-food stuff!

Would you believe that during my first trimester (I'm in the second tri now, woohoo!) I craved to watch car shows? Thank god our cable had Discovery Turbo! My cravings were satisfied. Of course, I also looked online for sexy cars and devilish big bikes, and stumbled upon national cycle's website. My saliva just drooled from viewing their stocks of Cruisers, Harleys, Sport Bikes, and Goldwings. They also have over 30,000 motorcycle parts and accessories to fully customize your bike. Mine will be heavenly pink and a girly big bike :p Hubby says my weird craving for cars and bikes might indicate that we'll be having a baby boy. If that's the case, we should buy a big bike for him now! ;-)

we're 3 months pregnant!

2009-09-20T17:17:00.000+08:00

It's official, Labsie and I are 3 months pregnant! Hubby is very thrilled while I'm quite ambivalent about it. After all, we planned to have a baby after 3-4 years of marriage. And we're still on our first year. Tsk! But hey, God thought we're ready to be parents so here we are: unexpectedly expecting our first bundle of joy! ^_^ On a side note, four posts from August and 2 posts from early September will now be published below. We wanted to wait until we're 3 months pregnant to announce publicly that we're expecting and these 6 posts contained references to our pregnancy that's why I didn't publish it yet. Enjoy reading!

Disclosure Policy

2009-09-10T09:47:00.000+08:00

This policy is valid from 10 September 2009 until further notice.

This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. For questions about this blog, please contact me here: cutieissaATgmail.com.

This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation.

The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content.

The owner(s) of this blog is compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though the owner(s) of this blog receives compensation for our posts or advertisements, we always give our honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the bloggers’ own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question.

This blog does contain content which might present a conflict of interest. This content may not always be identified.

Coffee Cat bonding ^_^

2009-07-28T15:58:00.003+08:00

That’s us, the early birds above! And that’s me in the middle, wearing pink of course. Hehe! Despite getting stranded in various places in the city due to strong rains and winds, we three managed to get to the meeting place (Coffee Cat in Torres St.) first =) Of course, we were all wet! Didn’t matter though, we jumped right in to chatting and updating each other with our lives. Here are more photos when the other doctors arrived last Friday night:

Thank you to Ate Grace for organizing this meetup! And to Aura for the pretty mini-birthday cake you gave me. It was delicious! =) See you soon guys!

our wedding and honeymoon posts

2009-07-17T22:37:00.005+08:00

I’ve been receiving lots of inquiries about Davao weddings and honeymoon in the Philippines so I’d thought a post that links to all my posts about these. What I wrote are by no means comprehensive but I hope it will be able to help you =)

WEDDING UPDATES (in order of published date)
Our Engagement Announcement
Davao Wedding Fair (Candor and Bliss)
Our Save-The-Date Cards
Our Wedding Invitation Prototype
Davao Pre-Cana Seminar (just a quick post)
JUNE Wedding Update
NO JULY and AUGUST Wedding Updates — very busy with my Physician Licensure exam
SEPTEMBER Wedding Update (1 month to go!)
Sneak Peak of our Prenuptial Pictorial
My Trial Wedding Makeup Photos
Food-Tasting Photos in Grand Regal Hotel (1 week to go!)

POST-WEDDING POSTS
2 weeks married!
Elbanbuena-Solito Wedding: The Bride
Elbanbuena-Solito Wedding: The Groom
Elbanbuena-Solito Wedding: The KADA

HONEYMOON POSTS (out of 10 days)
Day 1 and 2: honeymoon chronicles: makati/laguna
Day 3 (part 1): honeymoon chronicles: makati food pornography
Day 3 (part 2): honeymoon chronicles: sea creatures and robots
Day 4: honeymoon chronicles: chapel and kitchen

what do you use the Internet for?

2009-07-10T08:10:00.002+08:00

When I was in late high school, Internet was one of the places I searched for newly released information on science and tech stuff. When I was in college, Internet became more than just an information tool -- I used it to chat with people (from all over the world) and to express my emotions in a blog. When I was in medical school, social networking sites popped up. My country was addicted to Friendster (no Facebook then, hehe) and the Internet became the new hangout. It was used to hookup with new dates, to find long-lost friends, and to socialize with current acquaintances. But through it all, Internet never lost it's reason for being -- to supply information to those who need it that instant.

One of my current obsessions is to find websites and/or search engines that provide reliable answers to frequently asked questions. Yahoo Answers was one of the better sites until the spammers got to it. The recently released Bing by Microsoft is very good but it doesn't search Blogger or Blogspot sites (owned by Google), and we all know how important blogs are these days. For car questions, I use Autos.QandAs.com -- if you need to know DMV Locations and Hours and other automobile-related stuff, this is the place to go. Of course, right now, Wikipedia is the "new library". Even doctors use it for medical information! How about you? Aside from searching information, what do you use the Internet for?

Four Foods On Friday #82

2009-07-10T05:08:00.003+08:00

Join in the fun HERE! =)

1. Lynne’s question: Do you cook items besides meat on the bbq grill, and, do you prefer gas or charcoal grills?
- Aside from meat, we also cook fresh whole fish wrapped in fragrant banana leaves on the grill. Sooo effin good! =) I prefer charcoal grills coz its gives a distinct yummy smell to grilled foods.

2. Name a food that begins with A.
- Arugula! LOL! "Top Chef" contestants always use this but I haven't tried cooking this yet.

3. Name a drink that begins with A.
- Appletini! I think I learned about this in "The Real Housewives of New York", hehe!

4. Share a recipe for something that calls for American Cheese.
- Hmm.. Lasagna! After layering all the ingredients (pasta, red sauce, white sauce), top it all off with grated cheese =)

one classic VW Beetle coming up!

2009-07-10T03:02:00.000+08:00

When I was young, our family had a red classic Volkswagen Beetle. To my pleasant surprise, my hubby's family also had the same car! But, unlike them, we sold our cute lil car while they kept theirs -- rusty car parts and all. Recently I found out that my MIL (mother in law) had their Beetle repaired from top to bottom. And soon, we will see it in its fully restored glory. Can't wait! ^_^ And if you're in Canada looking for a reputable car shop to repair your car, check out auto body shop ontario. This is the largest network of collision repair experts in this part of the world and they will definitely get your vehicle back to pre-accident (or newly-bought) condition. Go check them out!

got our dream home!

2009-07-07T12:42:00.007+08:00

Yeah, a treehouse! LOL! And in a virtual game no less! Hahaha! ^_^ Previously I wrote about being addicted to Restaurant City and now, I’m so into YoVille. It’s like The Sims but much simpler and can only be played online. Labsie (my hubby) and I have been saving to buy the Treehouse with enough leftover money to buy furnishings. And finally, after nearly 2 weeks of religiously “working” in Yoville’s Widget Factory, we finally got enough money to buy the Treehouse! =) I’m currently decorating it and so far I’m done with the living room and the 2 bedrooms. I still have to furnish the kitchen, workshop, reading room and bathroom. Which means we need more money! Hehe!

livin' the high life, sort of ;-)

2009-07-07T09:00:00.001+08:00

In a month, there's a big chance hubby and I will be in Makati. This city is known as our country’s financial capital, and is filled with towering skyscrapers of global companies. My parents' condo is located in central business district and everyday I get to see executives in suits and expensive cars. Every corner I see banks, restaurants, and more business offices. Makati is reeking money and its upper crust citizens definitely have spending power, and that reflects on the items for sale in stores and shopping malls. Can you imagine yourself buying a $24,000 watch? Or maybe an $8,000 bag?? The former is a limited edition Ulysse Nardin watch and the latter is a Louis Vuitton handbag.

I can’t comprehend why people buy these expensive items just for collection purposes. But then, maybe it’s just me. After all, bragging rights are hot among the elite. Hehe! But for people like us, there's www.bestoftime.com for 100% Genuine Certified & Authentic high-end watches like Rolex at the lowest price point. I know it sounds too good to be true but the company is an officially accredited business by Better Business Bureau (BBB) with an exceptional A+ rating, the highest possible rating a business can get. Plus they offer a 3-year warranty on their Rolex watches and free FedEx shipping. Interested? Then check out their site!

bridesmaid me ^_^

2009-06-28T14:45:00.005+08:00

I previously wrote about being my bridesmaid more than a month ago and last June 27, the wedding of Basil and Gladys was finally celebrated. And I once again walked down the aisle.. Hehe! That’s me above. The entourage wore deep red gowns and I did my own hair (pulled it back like a ponytail) and “makeup” using Avon oil-control powder as foundation and red lip liner for my lipstick and eye shadow. I think my face turned out alright despite my meager “makeup” arsenal ;-)

Friday Fill-Ins time!

2009-06-19T14:24:00.002+08:00

You can join in the fun HERE! =)

1. All children alarm their parents, if only because you are forever expecting a silly accident? I'm not sure what to answer, LOL!

2. Show me a good loser and I will show you a virgin prostitute. O-M-G.. my brain is definitely not working! o_O

3. For me, reading an awesome book is like eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs at one time.

4. Too bad that all the people who know how to run the country are busy with their personal lives & businesses and can't be bothered with politics.

5. I have yet to hear a man ask for advice on how to combine his legal family and his mistress' brood. LOL!

6. It is impossible to think of any good meal, no matter how plain or elegant, without cheese or meat in it.

7. And as for the weekend: tonight I'm looking forward to playing The Sims & multiplayer games (like the fast-loading online billiard game on www.8c1.net -- it's totally FREE and tons of fun esp. if you play with your friends!), tomorrow my plans include movie marathon with hubby and Sunday, I want to celebrate Father's Day with style! ;-)

addicted to Edward Cullen?

2009-06-16T16:20:00.000+08:00

Then I bet you’ll love this! Hehe!
Edward Cullen is sooo yummy huh?? Never mind if there are rumors that his rock-hard abs were just airbrushed, LOL! And if you’re NOT A FAN of Edward or vampires and the Twilight saga, then you’ll love this:

HAHAHA! No offense guys!

addicted to CSI-esque shows! =)

2009-06-12T13:45:00.000+08:00

And when I say “CSI-esque” shows, it means shows that solve crimes and mind-boggling cases. That includes the show that started it all: “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and its two other spin-offs, “CSI: NY” and “CSI: Las Vegas”. Aside from these, I’m also into “Bones”, “Numbers”, and “Criminal Minds”. The last one is freakin’ awesome! Just tonight I watched as a serial killer in coma came out of it and was tried for the murders he can't remember. The Criminal Minds team, a group of FBI profilers, jumpstarted his memories and at the end -- despite knowing he'll have a life sentence, the serial killer turned himself in. He did that to prove that even if he killed before, he's a different man now. Really sad.. =(

Anyway, these past few days, my husband and I were talking about investing our wedding money gift. Most of it are in time deposit but I feel it would earn more if we do currency and stocks trading. Unfortunately, we're not really educated on those matters. Thank god there are investing management companies like InvestmentForge around. Their primary aim is to make as much earn money for our clients and ourselves as possible. Now, doesn't that sound good? Hehe!

our foodie weekend!

2009-06-09T10:03:00.002+08:00

We had a very stressful Friday as I wrote HERE. The next two days weren't much different. We were traveling to and fro, rushing here and there. The good thing was Labsie and I were stuffed with food the whole two days of Saturday and Sunday! LOL! June 6 (Sat) was my brother's birthday and my hubby's grandpa's birthday too. Since my bro resides far, far away from us, we just contented ourselves with greeting him on phone and the web. As for Daddy Bert (the grandpa), we went to Panabo (Labsie's hometown) for a lunch feast. My hubby had a graveyard shift the night before so badly need sleep but still off we went! At Panabo, we had super-fresh grilled panga, fried lumpia and the requisite noodles for long life. Then Labsie went to sleep and we went home by 7pm, another 2 hour ride.

Sunday we were just catching our breath in our home when Labsie's dad called around lunch saying we will eat at Cafe Marco buffet in Marco Polo Hotel. Yeah, the only 5-star hotel in Davao! Tired as we were, we couldn't say no to this gastronomic opportunity. Hehe! Off we went to downtown and stuffed our selves with gourmet food. I tell you, I can barely walk after. I was too full!! I was even making gagging sounds, LOL! :p My father in law then announced that there's a dinner feast with his relatives later that night. Of course we were required to attend. We then went home, slept for 3 hours and went to the party. As expected, Labsie and I ate sparingly. We were still full from the buffet! LOL! Yup, it's definitely"what a weekend!" for us ;-)

how much have YOU changed in 2 yrs?

2009-06-06T22:36:00.003+08:00

Snag this one if you like! =) I first answered this in 2007 (so I wrote about 2005) HERE. Now I'm gonna write about 2007. Gawd, that was a lifetime ago! -_-

TWO YEARS AGO AS OF TODAY…

How old were you?
* 26 (turning 27)

Where did you go to school?
* graduated from medical school the year before! =)

Where did you live?
* once every three days i go home in Catalunan Pequeno. The other two days, I live in Brokenshire Hospital for my medical internship

Where did you hang out?
* doctors’ quarters in the hospital, catching some ZzzZs

How was your hair style?
* short hair gelled into place, hehe

Did you wear glasses?
* yes (been wearing once since grade school)

Who was your regular person crush?
* hhmmm.. can't remember!

How many tattoos did you have?
* nada

How many piercings did you have?
* one on each ear

What car did you drive?
* I practiced driving using a Kia car

What was your worst fear?
* not finishing internship, I was sooo tired and dispirited with the medical biz =(

You been arrested?
* never!

Had your heart broken?
* when a patient dies.. =(

Had braces?
* nope (done with it in college!)

Single/Taken/Married/Divorced/Bitter?
* taken for the past 8 years

LETS SEE WHAT/WHERE YOU ARE NOW!!

How old are you?
* 27 (will be 28 on July 18!)

Where do you go to school?
* at home, learning to be a housewife! heehee!

Where do you live?
* 100% in our home, finally! =)

Where do you hang out?
* PC room of our house

Do you wear glasses?
* yup, no change in grade, thank god!

What is your hairstyle?
* shoulder length hair, badly need a haircut

Still talk to any of your old friends?
* yup, through Facebook and text =)

Who is your current interest?
* my hubby! heehee! yes, I got married last Oct 2008

How many tattoos?
* still nothing

How’s driving?
* My dad says I drive fine but I'm really scared driving on the road -_-

What is your biggest fear?
* not being able to earn online as I do now

Has your heart been broken?
* nope..

Single/Taken/Married/Divorced/Bitter:
* happily married! =)

Pink Ribbon Gumballs

2009-06-03T23:24:00.004+08:00

Yep, for Breast Cancer Awareness! ^_^ The official month for it is October, still 5 months away. But why wait til October when you can spread the awareness whole year round through Pink Ribbon Gumballs? Yeah, I'm so into food that I'll support any worthy endeavor (like search for a Breast Cancer cure) if it involves food, LOL! ;-) And the gumball above is available in real life! If you wanna support Breast Cancer Research and earn on the side, you can do well selling these yummy gumballs. Nice huh?

DRAGONLANCE books for sale!

2009-05-31T10:04:00.002+08:00

Books are listed in chronological order (according to story timeline). Contact me at 09177041028 or just leave a message here ^_^ I'm also open to trade, Labsie and I are avid Dragonlance collectors!

preludes vol 6: tanis the shadow years (no front cover) - P10

meetings sextet:

* vol 2: wanderlust (tas, flint, tanis) - P130

* vol 5: steel & stone (tanis, kitiara) - P130

war of the twins (1986 first printing artwork) - P120

the second generation (children of the heroes of the lance) - P150

dragons of summer flame (chaos war, 600+ pages long) - P180

dragons of a new age trilogy (dragons ruled krynn when the gods left):

* vol 1: dawning of a new age (small tear at upper right cover) - P100

* vol 3: eve of the maelstrom - P120

bertrem's guide to the war of souls vol 2 (short stories) - P130

defenders of magic trilogy vol 1 - night of the eye (with plastic cover) - P120

heroes vol 3: weasel's luck (torn covers) - P10

Other CHEAP books for sale here:

http://www.davaosale.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=129166

http://www.davaosale.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=129155

http://www.davaosale.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=129159

http://shop.ebay.ph/merchant/cutieissa24

http://shop.ebay.ph/merchant/miss.jinx81

Lens Day Challenge: Black & White

2009-05-27T12:19:00.001+08:00

My beautiful mother and me on my wedding day.

You can join in the fun HERE!

time for some Saturday fun!

2009-05-23T14:54:00.004+08:00

SATURDAY 9: Hot Fun in the Summertime! ^_^ You can join in the fun HERE!

1. Is summer your favorite season? Why?

- It isn't my fave season coz I hate the heat! -_-

2. Do you exercise more in the summer because you wear less clothing?

- No, I don't exercise more. Maybe even less coz I sweat so much even when not active, ughh!

3. Do you enjoy tanning or are you more concerned about the dangers of basking in the sun?
- I don't enjoy tanning, I'm very conscious of skin cancer.

4. You are on the beach when a waiter appears for your drink order. What do you ask for?
- Melon fruit shake! Mmmm.. =)

5. Do you camp in the summertime?
- No. I usually go to beaches or places with swimming pools.

6. What was your favorite summer vacation as a kid?

- Fave summer vacay when I was a kid was when we went to Baguio City, known as the summer capital of country for its cold temperatures even during the summer. Love it!

7. Do you enjoy sleeping outdoors?
- YES!! ^_^

8. Do you throw a summer barbecue every year?
- We have family barbecue every Sunday when my parents are here =)

9. Have you ever been to a nude beach? If yes, what did you think?

- Never been nude in a beach, just in a sauna. Hehe! It felt liberating ;-)

KRIS ALLEN WINS!!

2009-05-20T19:45:00.004+08:00

Hehe! Okay, okay.. I admit I'm jumping the gun here, the two-hour American Idol finale will be on Wednesday night yet (Thursday morning here in the Philippines), but I really, truly, deeply feel that the cutie boy-next-door uber-talented singer and instruments player will win American Idol season 8. WHEW! That was a looong sentence! Hehe! Oh yeah, when I said instruments player, I do not only mean the guitar and piano -- Kris Allen also plays the viola and ukelele. How cool is that?? ^_^ You can read his brief profile (and Adam Lambert's too) HERE.

In this season's Top 13 finalists, I rooted for Anoop Desai and Matt Giraud early on. Both were wild card entries and I just looove their smooth voices. Kris Allen didn't make much of an impression on me. Like most of you, I thought he was just another cute face. Hehe! And I thought it was crap that he was married -- after all, his looks and "eligibility" for hookup are what's attracting voting young girls pining for him. Even Simon Cowell said he should have kept quiet about his marriage. However, his being married didn't stop the girls from voting. Somewhere along the way they found out that Kris Allen is more than just a pretty face.

As for myself, I noticed his talent or ARTISTRY (as American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi put it) on Week 2: Michael Jackson when he sang "Remember the Time" with a guitar. He just blew me away!! ^_^ Then on Week 3: Grand Ole Opry, Kris Allen performed Garth Brooks' "To Make You Feel My Love" -- and I just felt the love! I was swooning! LOL! On Week 4: Motown, he sang Marvin Gaye's "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" and again I felt the love. However at this time I was pining for Anoop and Matt, was awed with Adam Lambert too, there was no room for Kris yet.. Hehe!

What made me a Kris Allen fan was his Week 5: Top Downloads performance of Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine" on piano!! I was like, what?? He plays the guitar AND a piano as well?? And it was a very moving performance, I felt his emotions, we just connected ;-) Then came his Week 7: Songs From the Cinema performance -- he sang "Falling Slowly" from a little-known movie called "Once" and he just nailed it. His artistry was just mind-blowing! Kris isn't just a singer, he's an artist through and through. I was definitely hooked! ^_^

I became a die-hard fan with his Week 9: Rat Pack Standards performance of "The Way You Look Tonight" -- his eyes were magic! I swooned, I pined, I just fell in love with him. My hubby was like, "He's just another pretty face babe.." and I was like "NO! He really connects with his audience, he's very charismatic.." From then on, I shouted on Twitter and Facebook that he's the guy who's gonna win American Idol 8. Nobody believed me, even Simon Cowell dissed him til Week 10: Rock. That was expected since Kris isn't really a rocker.

But everything changed in Week 11 when Kris Allen sang Kanye West's "Heartless". Everybody loved it, his artistry was all over the place! The judges even thought it was better than the original. WOW!! Simon Cowell also said that Kris was back in the game -- the highest compliment he ever got ^_^ That stellar performance was the one that put Kris Allen in Top 2. And tonight, he and Adam Lambert will have their final showdown. Two unique and oh-so different artists performing 3 songs each means it's gonna be one awesome show! And tomorrow, Kris Allen will be the American Idol 8 champ!! Mark my words!

8 THINGS ^_^

2009-05-18T22:00:00.000+08:00

It's being a long while since I did a tag -- but who am I to refuse sweet baby Sam? I can't.. coz she's sooo adorable! Manag-mana sa mommy! Hehe! ^_^ Anyway, here are my answers:

8 things I'm looking forward to:

- watching Angels & Demons in cinema tom!

- the coming weekend! can't wait to relax with hubby.. =)

- arrival of my parents this Friday = lotsa food gifts! yum, hehe!

- my youngest brother's college graduation next week, finally!!

- hubby arriving from work everyday ^_^

- getting the "Celebrity Chef" label in Hell's Kitchen - Facebook game, hehe

- our first wedding anniversary in 5 months! w00t!

- our Macau/Shenzen/HK family trip on October ^_^

8 things I did yesterday:

- slept in til 11am, blame the rainy cold weather! hehe

- watched the action-packed "Fast & Furious"

- watched the hilarious "The Promotion"

- watched the last 2 mind-blowing episodes of Heroes season 3

- lazed around the whole day with hubby =)

- cooked chicken oatmeal patties for dinner

- played Restaurant City and Farm Town on Facebook

- became "Cook" in Hell's Kitchen game on Facebook, hehe

8 things I wish I could do:

- read people's minds ;-)

- win the multimillion lottery! hehe!

- clean our house really, really, really well like my Mom

- finally decide on what medical residency to enter *sigh*

- speak Japanese, French and other languages

- DRIVE without fear!!

- read the Braille and learn sign language

- tour Europe with hubby and family!! ^_^

8 shows I watch:

- Damages

- Top Design

- Top Chef

- How I Met Your Mother

- Anderson Cooper 360 (CNN)

- American Dad

- Family Guy

- all CSI-esque shows (CSI, Criminal Minds, Bones, Numbers)

addicted to Restaurant City!

2009-05-15T17:04:00.001+08:00

I never thought I could get addicted to a game as I did with The Sims! But the people behind PlayFish (maker of the popular game, Pet Society) knew my weakness (food!!) and here I am, staying up late to run my very own Asian restaurant! LOL! Here are some screenshots when I was just starting. Note the number 50 at the upper right -- that's the highest popularity level and I'm sooo proud of that! Why? Coz I had the score despite dirty toilets! Hahaha!

Catholic Life in the Spirit Seminar

2009-05-10T20:31:00.002+08:00

It's also known as CLSS and last Friday, together with my husband, we attended the 3-day event. Friday was our 7th wedding monthsary and I thought it was great that we're doing something important to celebrate it rather than just eating out as per the usual when we celebrate anniversaries =) Anyway, for 3 days we stayed in St. Francis Xavier Major Seminary (REMASE), Catalunan Grande, Davao City. The area was fab! Lots of trees, very cool, very quiet. Perfect for a faith renewal activity =)

The Catholic Life in the Spirit Seminar we attended was organized by the Oasis of Love - Davao, a charismatic community where my parents have been members for several years. My mother has invited me to attend the seminar for quite some time but I always had something going on — 24 hour duties, reviewing for the medical board, stuff.. But finally, I was free. And Labsie (my husband) was in as well! Talk about “all in God’s time..”

CLSS is all about renewing your faith, healing your spirit (very helpful if you have lots of family and relationship issues) and receiving the Holy Spirit. I can't say much about it as the organizers asked us to keep the details secret so the next participants' experience won't be spoiled. Suffice to say, it was an awesome experience and the food in REMASE was home-cooked great! ^_^ I can’t believe I had 6 meals per day the entire time we were there! LOL! Anyway, if you're interested to join CLSS, there'll be another one next summer. Contact Oasis of Love for details.

Booking Through Thursday: GRAPHIC!

2009-05-06T13:53:00.001+08:00

You can join in the fun HERE! "Last Saturday (May 2nd) is Free Comic Book Day! In celebration of comics and graphic novels, some suggestions:"

1) Do you read graphic novels/comics? Why do/don’t you enjoy them?

- Yes, I read comics.. long before they were known as graphic novels! LOL! I enjoy them because of the illustrations and fast-paced story lines =)

2) How would you describe the difference between “graphic novel” and “comic”? Is there a difference at all?

- No difference at all. "Graphic novel" is just a term coined by the Hollywood people to glorify comics -_-

3) Say you have a friend who’s never encountered graphic novels. Recommend some titles you consider landmark/”canonical”.

- I'd recommend "The Dark Night Returns" and "Watchmen" for starters. Hope that will get him hooked so I can recommend "heavier" titles ;-)

watch Pacquiao-Hatton fight here!

2009-05-03T13:31:00.002+08:00

ROUND 1: Despite Ricky Hatton's aggressiveness (he was all over Pacman), it was Manny Pacquiao who drew the first blood! The Hitman also hit the ring floor several times after being caught by Pacman's punches. The round ended with Hatton being saved by the bell from Pacquiao's further onslaught.

ROUND 2: Ricky Hatton was able to hit Manny Pacquiao a few times. It appears he was redeeming himself. Unfortunately, Pacman had other plans and was connecting left and right punches as well. The final blow was dealt with 20 seconds left in the round. Pacman's south paw connected to Hatton's jaw and he was out cold instantly -- way before he hit the floor.

WHO raises swine flu global pandemic alert level to 4

2009-04-30T21:33:00.000+08:00

UPDATE 4/30/9: The World Health Organization just raised the alert level yet again -- swine flu pandemic alert level is now at 5, the second highest level.

My blog has been receiving lots of traffic from Google Search and CNN.com with regards to the swine flu so I decided to do a follow-up blog post. The latest major news about it is that World Health Organization (WHO) raised the swine flu global pandemic alert level to 4. The question is, what does it mean to the common people? Read on and find out!

Source: World Health Organization

Phase 1: “No viruses circulating among animals have been reported to cause infections in humans.”

Phase 2: “An animal influenza virus circulating among domesticated or wild animals is known to have caused infection in humans, and is therefore considered a potential pandemic threat.”

Phase 3: An animal or human-animal influenza reassortant virus (a combination of at least two other viruses, as WSJ explains) has caused sporadic cases or small clusters of disease in people, but there haven’t been “community-level” outbreaks. This “limited transmission” doesn’t mean that the virus is spreading easily enough among humans to cause a pandemic.

Phase 4: A reassortant virus is causing community-level outbreaks, meaning there are sustained disease outbreaks in a community. This marks a “significant upwards shift in the risk for a pandemic.” However, a pandemic isn’t necessarily a forgone conclusion.

Phase 5: There is human-to-human spread of the virus into at least two countries in one WHO region. Most countries aren’t affected at this stage, but declaration of Phase 5 is a “strong signal that a pandemic is imminent.” There is little time remaining to finish the organization, communication and implementation of the planned mitigation measures.

Phase 6: In addition to the countries affected in Phase 5, there are community-level outbreaks in at least one other country in a different WHO region. A global pandemic is occurring.

Swine Flu 101

2009-04-27T23:02:00.009+08:00

Just when you thought that the global recession is the only thing to worry about, along comes a health scare that leaves scores of people dying across the Mexican border. So what exactly is Swine Flu in layman's terms? Apparently it's a common respiratory ailment in pigs (1% to 4% die) but the strain that's causing human deaths now appears to be a subtype never before seen in pigs OR humans. It also has a component from bird flu and human flu -- now, isn't that scary?? Uber-mutated virus if there's such a term! Hehe! Anyway here's a Q&A writeup from USA Today about swine flu. Read and be informed on how to protect yourself from the flu. You can also read more at www.cdc.gov ^_^

Q: What are the symptoms of swine flu?

A: The most common symptoms are fever, fatigue, lack of appetite and coughing, although some people also develop a runny nose, sore throat, vomiting or diarrhea, according to the CDC.

Q: What should you do if you have these symptoms?

A: Stay home from work or school, to avoid spreading your illness to other people. Don't get on an airplane. People should call their doctors to ask about the best treatment, but should not simply show up at a clinic or hospital that is unprepared for their arrival.

:: SWINE FLU TREATMENT FOLLOWS ::

Q: Can you catch swine flu from eating pork?

A: No, according to WHO. Pigs coming in to slaughter facilities are monitored for flu symptoms, and those that are ill are not allowed to enter the food supply. Cooking also kills the virus. People who work with pigs, however, can catch the swine flu virus.

Q: Is there a vaccine against swine flu?

A: No, but government scientists could try to create one, according to the CDC. The scientists don't know if this year's flu vaccine offers any protection.

Q: What about antivirals? Can they prevent swine flu?

A: This strain of swine flu does appear sensitive to the antiviral drugs Relenza and Tamiflu, but not to amantadine, or Symmetrel, and rimantadine, or Flumadine. With normal seasonal flus, if taken within the first 48 hours after symptoms appear, antivirals can help people recover a day or two sooner.

Q: How can people protect themselves?

A: As always, people should wash their hands frequently. Surgical masks are designed to prevent the wearer from spreading germs, but may also catch large respiratory droplets if someone sneezes nearby. In a 2007 statement, the CDC said these masks could be worn if someone needs to go to a crowded place, such as a grocery store, for a short time. N95 respirator masks filter out 95% of particles to prevent the wearer from breathing them in. These must be fitted properly around the nose to create a seal, so they can make breathing difficult.

are you on Twitter already?

2009-04-25T07:22:00.001+08:00

If you love celebrities and addicted to knowing how their lives are unraveling then you should Twitter! If you haven't heard that Oprah Winfrey has joined this popular micro-blogging service or that Ashton Kutcher was the first ever Twitter member that reached a million followers then you're definitely living under a rock! :p Twitter is all the rage these days. Everybody is jumping on its bandwagon, even celebrities. Or should I say ESPECIALLY the celebrities who want to control their PR *cough* Anyway a website called WhoCelebsTweet.com allows you to see what the celebs are saying (tweets or 140-character messages) and who they're saying it about (followers) so go check them out. And if you're interested in my tweets, you can follow me @cutieissa. No, I'm not a celebrity :p

join PinayJade's contest & win $100 + 200,000 EC credits!

2009-04-23T10:07:00.002+08:00

PinayJade is a Filipina blogger living abroad who turned a year older last March 21. She decided to mark the event with a HUGE contest (click for the mechanics) and I surprised myself by sponsoring a prize! LOL! Yep, tightwad me decided to give away $10 of cold hard cash in celebration of PinayJade's birthday =) Here are the contest prizes and sponsors (click "Continue reading.." to see):

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Craigslist Killer is a Boston University medical student!

2009-04-21T11:20:00.007+08:00

DANG! What's with killers and violent people being doctors or studying to be doctors? We physicians have sworn an oath to take care of people, to heal them, to do them no harm at the very least. So how can a person be a killer and be also a doctor when one ends a life while the other one is for life? You just can't connect the two! Can a doctor's conscience even rationalize killing a person? And I'm not talking about euthanasia and other forms of secret mercy killings coz that's another debate -_- Can the doctor/killer be thinking that it doesn't matter if s/he murders coz s/he has saved a thousand of lives in return? Is there a higher percentage of psychopaths in the medical profession? Questions, so many questions! Anyway, here's a short history and latest update on the Craigslist Killer:

Boston police believe they have arrested the so-called "Craigslist killer" who murdered a young woman after she posted an advert on the popular site to offer massages, US media reported. The Boston Globe and New York Daily News quoted unnamed sources saying they believed the same suspect was behind two other attacks on women in hotels this month.

The first victim was a 29-year-old woman who advertised on Craigslist as an exotic dancer and was robbed of her credit card and 800 dollars cash on April 10. The second, a 26-year-old woman who offered visiting massage services, was shot dead. The third, just four days ago, was a 26-year-old prostitute from Las Vegas who was robbed at gunpoint at a hotel south of Boston, the Daily News said.

Police released surveillance photographs earlier Monday of the suspect. US media has dubbed him the "Craigslist killer." SOURCE

SOOC Sunday

2009-04-19T19:49:00.005+08:00

SOOC means "Straight Out of the Camera" =) Here's the description of this photo meme: ""Do you ever take a photo that you love and it comes out so well, (straight from the camera), that you're not tempted to do anything with it? It's wonderful and you want to share it." Well, now you can share it HERE. No fancy rules or themes, just post any photo you like (it must be one of your own) that hasn’t been tweaked or altered in any way (cropping is OK). Mine's below, just click to enlarge ^_^

"Pretty Eyes"

[ Calauit Island Safari, Palawan, Philippines ]

what's the perfect Mothers Day gift?

2009-04-19T08:59:00.000+08:00

The celebration is less than a month away and I still don't know what to get my mom. I've given her perfumes, health books, travel bags, money (LOL), personalized photos and picture frames, various trinkets, and what-nots in the past AND now I'm frankly out of ideas. My mother isn't into technology so no fancy gadgets for her. She's into house and home stuff but we differ on design sensibilities so what I like or think she might like, she may not like. Tsk! What we both like though are rustic furniture to put in our vacation home. Unfortunately, I can't afford them. LOL!

Now isn't the log bed lovely? Even if I can't afford them, I can point my mom to the right direction where to buy it. Is that enough to be considered a gift? LOL! Anyway, I found this magnificent rustic bed in ScenicFurniture.com -- a company that makes bedroom furniture (log beds and sets) and western furniture. They use woods ranging from oak to cedar to hickory. The set featured above is the "Eastern Red Cedar Bedroom" -- lovely! I'm sure my mom would love it too. ^_^

Happy 49th Bday Pa! =)

2009-04-18T14:53:00.002+08:00

Make a wish and blow! ^_^

is my new theme neat?!

2009-04-17T16:36:00.001+08:00

Yeah, I’m finally done messing with my blog’s template! If you’ve been visiting this blog the past two weeks, you would noticed its changing themes. I really couldn’t decide what theme to use. I started with a Pink WP Polaroid theme that had been “Bloggerized” (you can view how it looks HERE) and then I started modifying Minima Lefty using tutorials from BlogKori.com and BloggerBuster.com (that’s the thumbnail at left). I used the latter for about a week and I decided it was too amateurish, LOL!

So I searched for a new Blogger template and stumbled on Newspaper III which fitted my requirements of clean lines, easy customization of fonts and colors, and a “Read More” function. I sorely need the last one coz I write looong posts (see previous 2 posts to see what I mean, LOL) and it eats up the blog space. Anyway, I'm still tweaking the colors of my blog. This year, my lucky colors according to Feng Shui are blue, gray and black -- and that's why you're seeing a lot of blue instead of my usual fave pink now, hehe!

2009 Wrap Up — First Quarter Edition (part 2)

2009-04-12T10:41:00.001+08:00

COMPARED TO THIS TIME, LAST YEAR, ARE YOU:

HAPPIER OR SADDER? Happier of course! Not that I was sad first quarter last year.

THINNER OR FATTER? Me thinks I’m fatter with all the cooking and eating I did this year o_O

RICHER OF POORER? Financially? About the same. We “lost” a lot of money due to our wedding last year but gained back most of it from the monetary gifts =)

WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU’D DONE MORE? More writing! More promotion of my sites with affiliate links, hehe! More traveling!

WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU’D DONE LESS OF? Eating, sleeping and Twittering! If you’re on Twitter, follow me @cutieissa =)

HOW WILL YOU BE SPENDING CHRISTMAS? I don’t know, it’s still 8 months away..

DID YOU FALL IN LOVE? Yes, with Twitter – it’s been very helpful in tracking the latest medical updates. Oh you mean with a person? Hehe!

HOW MANY ONE-NIGHT STANDS? None, my husband will kill me! LOL

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TV PROGRAM? Hmm, ever since we had cable, I have so many faves! Damages (Glenn Close is sooo awesome!!), Jon & Kate Plus 8, Iron Chef America, Top Chef, Top Design, Project Runway, Jamie’s Kitchen and ALL his other shows, Come Dine With Me, American Idol 8, No Way Out, and the usual: CSI and Heroes =)

DO YOU HATE ANYONE NOW THAT YOU DIDN’T HATE THIS TIME LAST YEAR? Nope

WHAT WAS THE BEST BOOK YOU READ? So far all I’ve read were from the fantasy genre and I loved the Dragonlance: War of Souls Trilogy =)

WHAT WAS YOUR GREATEST MUSICAL DISCOVERY? Hmm.. none yet!

WHAT DID YOU WANT AND GET? Harry Potter hardbound set, yeah! ^_^

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE FILM SO FAR OF THIS YEAR? Hands down, WATCHMEN!!!

WHAT DID YOU DO ON YOUR BIRTHDAY AND HOW OLD WERE YOU? My birthday will be on July 18

WHAT ONE THING WOULD HAVE MADE YOUR FIRST QUARTER IMMEASURABLY MORE SATISFYING? More travel!! =)

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONAL FASHION CONCEPT THIS PAST QUARTER? Classic, understated and casual. I’m done with uber-colorful outfits! LOL

WHAT KEPT YOU SANE? My husband and our lovely dogs ^_^

WHICH CELEBRITY DID YOU FANCY THE MOST? President Obama, who else??

WHAT POLITICAL ISSUE STIRRED YOU THE MOST? Hmm, I’m not so into politics these days..

WHO DID YOU MISS? My doctor friends! Wasn’t able to attend their impromptu “reunion” last March

2009 Wrap Up — First Quarter Edition (part 1)

2009-04-06T20:29:00.002+08:00

1. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE THAT YOU’VE NEVER DONE BEFORE?

January - I bathed naked in a public room! LOL! Labsie’s Christmas gift to me was a SPA experience in a new Korean spa & massage center in Lanang which I "redeemed" first week of January. I spent 30 minutes in a sauna, bathed briefly in a warm jacuzzi (dang, the germs!!) and washed it all off with a cool shower. Since there were no closed stalls that offer privacy, I just bathed naked in the open. It was liberating to say the least, LOL!

February - Had my very first annual “Executive Check-Up” with Labsie. We had our blood sugar and necessary blood chemistry levels taken + chest X-ray and other tests. The bad news is we both have high cholesterol levels. The good news is mine was high coz my good cholesterol (HDL) was high. Labsie had low HDL and high LDL (bad cholesterol) which is NOT good! Time to say goodbye to fastfood!

March - [a] Made all-original dishes: baked savory beef-stuffed squid rings and pan-fried bacon-wrapped fish. YUM! =) [b] Touched a newly-operated person’s TITANIUM-implanted back. It was a bit cold and oh-so awesome!! [c] Asked a bartender for FREE shots at a bar and got two, LOL! ;-) [d] Joined Earth Hour for the first time and surprisingly, I got a lot of things done w/o electricity! [e] Had an overnight vigil with Labsie in a funeral home for my bestfriend’s dad’s wake..

2. DID YOU KEEP YOUR NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS? - Not all. I was still impatient and a bit moody at times =( What I was able to keep was the Project 365 photos and everyday diary entry =)

3. DID ANYONE CLOSE TO YOU GIVE BIRTH? - Hmm.. No one *that* close but I heard some of my friends gave birth.

4. DID ANYONE CLOSE TO YOU DIE? - One of my bestfriend’s dad died unexpectedly =(

5. WHAT COUNTRIES DID YOU VISIT? - Didn’t visit any countries, didn’t even travel save for within Davao del Sur and Davao del Norte =)

6. WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR THAT YOU LACKED EARLY THIS YEAR? - Hmm.. I guess more income streams. LOL! Right now my income is just from freelance writing and paid-to-blog opps. I want my Adsense and affiliates commission earnings to ramp up. Family and marriage-wise, I have nothing to ask for. Everything’s just dandy! =)

7. WHAT DATE WILL REMAIN ETCHED UPON YOUR MEMORY AND WHY? - February 13 and 14 coz Labsie got me a Valentines cake from Bistro Rosario and the entire Harry Potter series in hardbound! It was the first time he got me a cake for Vday, LOL

8. WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT OF THE YEAR SO FAR? - I can walk away from a heated quarrel without yelling and too much talking. Trust me when I tell you this is an achievement, hehe! It’s coz I’m a very passionate person and it’s hard to keep my emotions in check.

9. WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST FAILURE? - Character failure: I’m still a procrastinator, I’m still subject to my mood swings, I’m still undecided about my medical career *sigh*

10. DID YOU SUFFER ILLNESS OR INJURY? - Yes! Was down on New Year’s Day and the next 2 days due to a bad case of food poisoning. My mom and Labsie was also affected. Was also sick early February with atypical pneumonia which took weeks to resolve.

11. WHAT WAS THE BEST THING YOU BOUGHT? - YUMMY FOOD!! LOL! ^_^

12. WHOSE BEHAVIOR MERITED CELEBRATION? - Probably my youngest brother’s. He worked on his thesis and went to work at the same time. Awesome Tots!!

13. WHOSE BEHAVIOR MADE YOU APPALLED AND DEPRESSED? - Mine? Hehe!

14. WHERE DID MOST OF YOUR MONEY GO? - Savings! Where else?? =)

15. WHAT DID YOU GET REALLY, REALLY, REALLY EXCITED ABOUT? - Labsie’s Masteral thesis and upcoming graduation this April! Also our planned summer getaway alone and with my family, can’t hardly wait! I just hope I won’t get sunburn, LOL

16. WHAT SONG(S) WILL ALWAYS REMIND YOU OF THINGS THAT HAPPENED EARLY THIS YEAR? - Hmm.. Probably the theme songs from “Iron Chef America”, “Top Design” and “Jon & Kate Plus 8” =) The first quarter of my life was all about food, organizing our marital bedroom and finding the ‘new’ family rhythm -- there are now 2 married couples living in our home after all =)

Two4Tuesday: Dirty/Clean

2009-03-31T13:52:00.002+08:00

From the dirty and mucky forest floor, a crop of clean and refreshing mushrooms grow ^_^

Join in the fun HERE!

KISMET

2009-03-25T18:08:00.004+08:00

NOTE: I wrote this three years ago (July 2006, to be exact) and I stumbled upon it while cleaning up our hard drives. This is kinda long but if you like out-of-this-world love stories (though this is exactly NOT a love story, hehe) then you might enjoy this one ^_^ Copyright to Melissa Solito (C) 2006-2009.

Some things are meant to be. Some persons, no matter the time and distance, are destined to be together. There is that childhood sweetheart you lost, and amazingly, you met again and the spark was still there. Love is lovelier the second time around, as they say. Then there is that bestfriend you loved for so long but you never had the courage to express your feelings. That is, until you got drunk and spilled it all out – and incredibly, s/he loves you too! And then there is that ordinary person who you realized was your soulmate while you were hanging out together. You were talking to each other and there was something in his/her eyes that time, something that drew you in. You looked deeply and s/he does the same. Some alarm went off in both your souls’ deep recesses, and then both pair of eyes began talking in that secret language they only knew..

“Remember me? We’ve met before, in the hot dunes near the Sphinx. Then again by the cobblestones in front Caesar’s palace and also while we were riding one of Venice’s famous gondolas..”

“Yes, yes, I do remember you. We made ardent love by the river grasses of Nile and you proposed to me under the Duomo’s magnificent shadow. Where have you been all these decades?”

“I don’t know, all I know is I’ve been searching for you. Many of my lifetimes have been empty and meaningless without you. I have been restless but now I am home once again. Oh, how I loved you then! And now.”

“Oh yes, your love for me was one of a kind. Timeless, boundless, and despite the…”

But then the eyes, the windows of our souls, shifted; the connection was broken. Two persons were left staring at each other, somewhat confused of what transpired. But did something really happen? Did the soulmates, through the eyes, recognize each other? I have been wondering about it ever since. You see, I was the one who looked deeply into his eyes first. I felt the warmth of love embracing me while the “eyes/souls” were communicating. Every fiber and molecule of my being was connected to him in every level, yet I was also lost in the vastness of his being. I was startled, I was electrified, I was changed. I am now bonded to him irrevocably in this lifetime. And when our connection was lost, it felt as if I was freeze-dried. I was dazed, disoriented; I felt abandoned and lost. I crave to be connected to him once again, but he was looking away. Was he as perplexed and forlorn as me? Was he even aware of our souls’ momentary union?

Two years after the incident, I still do not know if he sensed our connection. I don’t have the courage to ask him because I fear that he will not remember it. Which will hurt me a lot for it is the only magical, ethereal thing that ever happened to me, and he didn’t even felt it? Ugh! That will certainly sting so badly. What transpired between us or within me is a once in a lifetime event. It is a rare occurrence for souls to recognize each other while in “human shells”. And for the “shell” to be aware that there’s an old soul within him and that his soul has made contact with another soul, well, that’s even more rare. The Philippines’ very own paranormal expert Jaime Licauco (oh come on, you don’t know him??) has a term for this soul recognition event. If I remember it right, he recently wrote about it in his Inquirer column. But whatever its name is, I know I’ll cherish our ephemeral soul connection for all eternity. We are meant to be.

And you ask, what happened next? Well, we became closer (we were good friends then), to the point of finishing each other’s sentences, understanding each other’s moods with a mere glance and texting the same things at the same exact time! This happened countless times and even occurs until now. We are like couples married for a long time. But we certainly are not married nor are lovers, at least not in this lifetime. Or maybe not just yet. Hehe! Naughty, naughty! And then there are also several instances when we meet at unlikely places, opening the doors of that place at precisely the same time, both of us pleasantly stunned at seeing each other. KISMET, I say! But the rational-you says I’m reading too much into these situations, that these are just coincidences. Probably. But I doubt it. I am a realist; I know things like these don’t happen. But it did – to me, to him (I hope!). And this is not the superficial crush-kilig connection type wherein you say “OMG! We’re so mfeo talaga, we rode in the same jeepney na naman!” By the way, mfeo stands for “made for each other”.

And you know what’s the distressing thing? I do not know what to do with what I know, with what we have. We share a very special bond, so what? Do I tell him and risk his ridicule? Do I keep quiet and miss out on life’s exquisite rare miracles? Do I just find somebody else to make me happy and forget him? Do soulmates even exist?? Damn our connection thingy (or perhaps my over-imaginative brain), it made my life complicated! I could do without it, thank you. Or could I? There is no end to this torment until one of us breaks and will profess everlasting love. Will it be me? Will it be him? Is love and being soulmates tied up together? Do I even love him? Too many questions! With no answers, unfortunately. If only I could look deep into his mesmerizing eyes again, and he into mine.. Eternal passion, undying ardor, infinite bliss! Yes, we definitely, are meant to be.

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KISMET is one of my favorite words. It sounds so out of this world, much like this article. If you don’t know its meaning, google it. You’d be surprised at the delightful links that will pop out. For those who are wondering if this article is a true story or a tall tale, 10 words: truth is stranger than fiction! And that art imitates life. Satisfied? I think not! ;p For those who experienced soul recognition or is interested in soulmates and the paranormal, I would love to hear from you! There is so much we do not know of our world, and I think it’s just right to start discovering first what is inside of us. Yup, I’m talking about learning everything we can about our very essence – our souls. A tall order? Definitely! But not as tall as the tale I’ve just told you! Hehe!

support my friend's perfume business! =)

2009-03-19T07:00:00.005+08:00

Penavi is one of my high school barkada (Filipino word for circle of friends) and since last year, she has been selling perfumes, colognes and authentic Pearl White capsules with her girlfriend. They started selling online (they have a new perfume blog at workNplay.weebly.com) and hawking to friends. In fact, I was one of her perfume customers -- I bought 2 Bath & Body Works colognes for my personal consumption and 1 Issey Miyake L'eau D'issey perfume for my mother =) Another barkada of ours bought the capsules with excellent results. Right Jinx? Hehe!

Recently learned from my hubby that Penavi has a perfume/clothing store in Damosa's Market Basket here in Davao City. WOW! I think she's the first one in our barkada that had her very own shop. Awesome Pens!! ^_^ I love scents, I truly do.. But it takes a lot of time for me to finish one bottle. And in as much as I'd like to buy perfume every month and support my friend, I can't. I'm not that rich! LOL! So guys, if you're in Davao City and wants to buy imported perfumes and colognes at cheaper prices than malls, go visit Penavi's perfume site or their store in Damosa. Thanks a lot! =)

ALL my updates are in FriendFeed!

2009-03-18T14:11:00.000+08:00

If you're exhausted of telling everyone that you've updated your blogs, social profiles and other online what-nots, it's time you get a respite. I've been fooling around with FriendFeed for awhile now and since I joined Twitter and Facebook, it has been very useful to my non-Twitter and non-FB friends. So what does FriendFeed do? It's sort of like your central office where everything you do in certain enrolled websites are listed. Take a look at my feed below (click to enlarge). It listed what I just tweeted in Twitter, what I blogged in yes, it's ME! and my status in Facebook. Awesome huh?? ^_^ But that's not the best thing about FriendFeed -- THIS IS: you can access my FriendFeed without making an account for it!

Yup, you read it right, no need to signup. Anytime you want to know what I'm (or have been) up to, just type http://friendfeed.com/cutieissa in your browser's address bar and you'll see the latest updates in my blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Picasa, Digg, StumbleUpon, YouTube, etc, etc.If you're too lazy to type the address, scroll down this blog and you'll see my updates at the right =) Currently FriendFeed offers 59 online services including Google Reader, Plurk, Netflix and others. Click HERE to see their entire list. So, are you going to use FriendFeed? Will you check out my updates using it?

Lindsay Lohan's latest "escapade"

2009-03-17T14:30:00.001+08:00

The sexy starlet has never been away from the paparazzi's spotlight. For the past few weeks, her drastic weight loss (drugs? obssesive dieting? eating disorder? alcohol?) and very public spats with lover Samantha Ronson have been fodder for gossip tabloids. One can't help wonder if her numerous stints in expensive rehabilitation centers in Los Angeles did her any good. I have seen these centers online and boy, they look awesome! It's as if you're just in a resort having a good time and not getting treated for something ;-) Anyway, the latest with Lindsay Lohan was her Friday the 13th fiasco -- a $50,000 warrant was issued for her, stemming from a May 2007 DUI arrest that ended in a trip to rehab for her.

The Beverly Hills Police Department issued this statement: "The $50,000 warrant issued by the Beverly Hills Superior Court stems from a May 2007 arrest of Miss Lindsay Lohan for DUI and hit-and-run. The circumstances leading to the issuance of the warrant by the court are not readily available at this time. It is our hope that Ms. Lohan will surrender herself so that this matter will be resolved in a timely manner." The good news is, yesterday, the warrant was dropped as LiLo's lawyer proved that the actress complied with the court-ordered alcohol treatment program for her DUI misdemeanor. All's well that ends well eh? I hope so coz I really like Lindsay Lohan -- she's talented but her behavioral problems is ruining her =(

the "REAL" slumdog millionaire

2009-03-11T09:35:00.001+08:00

Have you watched the award-winning movie yet? If not, you should! It's not really of heavy material but you can take a lot of lessons from it. The lesson I took away from Slumdog Millionaire was "All you need to learn in your life, you'll learn from your EXPERIENCES" =) And lest I'll be misunderstood, I'm making it clear that learning through formal education is also essential. Your experiences in a structured school will be important when you'll work in a structured work environment later. So please, no dropping out of school kids! Hehe! =p

Anyway, if you're one of the moviegoers who saw Slumdog Millionaire and wondered how the uneducated slum kids shown there learned how to speak English, wonder not anymore! It turned out they learned from tourists and more remarkably, they also speak other languages like French, German, Arabic, Nihonggo, etc, etc. You don't believe me? Watch the two videos of a slum kid below. The first one was filmed when he was a kid and the second one was when he was already a teen (and learned newer languages!). Be prepared to be AMAZED by Ravi!

Most purists would say the multi-lingual kid is not really multi-lingual. After all, Ravi *only* knew some words of the languages he spoke -- words that he needs to sell his peacock fans to tourists of different races. But let me ask you, do you know how to introduce yourself in the languages he spoke above? Or lets try something simpler, what's "HELP" in as many languages as you can? Hmm, hard huh? That's why I say hats off to this kid (and his "colleagues") for being very resourceful despite the bad circumstances he's under. And just so you all know, Ravi is my inspiration why I'm studying Nihonggo right now ^_^ God bless India's slum kids!

join me in Facebook! =)

2009-03-05T10:06:00.007+08:00

Melissa Solito Elbanbuena's Profile | Create Your Badge

I've had my Facebook for awhile but it lay dormant and inaccessible to people search as I pondered if it can help me with my online business. There's so much going on in my offline and online life that adding another social network is more work than play to me. Like most Pinoys, I have Friendster, Myspace (dead) and Multiply (which was dormant until it enabled cross-posting of Blogger blog posts). I also have multiple personal blogs plus websites of employers that I update daily. Do I really have time for Facebook?? ;-) It also didn't help that Facebook announced recently that everything you put here will be THEIR property. Thank god they backtracked after much hullabaloo from FB fanatics.

Around one month ago, I finally joined Twitter (check me out at http://twitter.com/cutieissa) for monetary reasons. For most part I'm an early adopter of early web technologies but since the dot com bubble bust, I have been wary of joining popular websites especially if the hype is overwhelming. Twitter was in that category but lo and behold! More than a year later it's still around and gaining more members everyday. Facebook even tried to buy it! But Twitter said no. Anyhoo, I found Twitter incredibly informative (I'm following doctors & tech gurus). My initial reason for joining (earning $$$) has taken the backseat and I'm just savoring the Twitter experience =)

So what has Twitter gotta do with my finally activating my Facebook? Well, I found out that I can update my FB status with my Twitter feed! I actually don't have to login to Facebook to tell you guys what I'm up to! I can update my Twitter (via PC or mobile phone) and it will publish to my FB. Now isn't that kewl?? It's almost like when I update my Blogger blogs and it will publish automatically to my Multiply blog. Neat! =) And did you know that Facebook's new homepage that will show REAL-TIME updates is based on Twitter? When Twitter turned down FB's offer to buy it, FB management thought "If we can't buy them, we'll compete with them!" And with 175 million users, Facebook might just bring Twitter down -- OR NOT!

this is all so true of me!! =)

2009-02-27T09:21:00.001+08:00

You Are a Calculator

No matter what someone tells you, you're likely to focus on facts and data.

You're a highly analytic person. You are only concerned with what you can know for sure.

You look at situations objectively, and you have no problem approaching problems from multiple angles.

You would make a good analyst or investment banker. You are confident enough to make tough calls and hard decisions.

What Office Supply Are You?

Your Birthday Predicts You're Adventurous

Ever since you were born, you've loved your life.

You keep very busy without meaning to. There's just so many activities that you enjoy.

Travel, friendships, an interesting career, and lots of hobbies fill up your schedule.

You find so much joy in the world. You have a very rich life.

What Does Your Birthday Predict About You?

my new Lakbayan grade!

2009-02-24T08:13:00.000+08:00

YESSS!! My new grade increased a notch! =) So what's Lakbayan? Click HERE. And before we go to my new Lakbayan grade, here's a rather longish backround --

July 2007 is what I consider my freedom month -- finally my formal education was over AND I WAS FREE!!! =) Six years of primary education, four years of science high school, four years of college in UP, four years of medical school and one year of post-graduate medical internship has taken a toll on my creative self. Mind you, 19 years of straight schooling (breaks during summer and Christmas vacations only) with good grades to boot is quite a creativity killer. I felt like an artist imprisoned and struggling to get out of the system and unleash my art on the world! Errmm, I'm not really an artist in the real sense okay?? Hehe!

Anyhoo, I realized in July 2007 that I just wanna loaf around for some time and not worry about what my parents will think about my life. You know how parents are, always worrying about their kids -- multiply that to infinity and you get my parents' worrying level ;-) I was set to take the August 2007 Medical Board Exam but my inner self kept on telling me to rest and nourish my soul. My inner self knew that once I'm a licensed doctor, my parents will not let up and will just pressure me to go into Residency (and then go into practice as a Specialist and so on) immediately. There would be no respite for me then =(

And so I put my foot down and "promised" that I will take the Medical Board Exam on February 2008. Of course, we all know that didn't happen coz Labsie and I announced our engagement that month and my parents were caught up in the excitement that their only daughter is getting married to think about my Boards. Hehe! ;-) Anyhoo, since I was off the hook and free to do what I want, I went traveling (with my family, of course). From October-November 2007, I was all over Luzon (Makati, Manila, Subic) and Boracay. I also spent time in the pretty Samal Island beaches with Labsie =) Then on December 2007, my family went to General Santos City (Gensan) and Lake Sebu.

My Lakbayan grade is B!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan! Created by Eugene Villar.

Yup, that's my new Lakbayan grade above =) I was B- in mid-2007 and now I'm a B! Whee! All the traveling I did for about 6 months really made a difference. YEAH!! Aside from my late 2007 trips, I traveled anew early 2008. The plan was to have a road/sea trip from Visayas to Mindanao. Awesome huh?? My grandmas were very thrilled about it =) So on March 2008, we flew to Iloilo City (from Davao) then rode a barge to Bacolod City which belongs to the province of Negros Occidental that we explored. From there we drove whole day to Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental. The next day we rode a barge to Dapitan City in Zamboanga del Norte where we visited Jose Rizal's home and the awesome Dakak Park and Beach Resort.

Then we criss-crossed Mindanao to reach Kidapawan City, my grandmas' hometown. We passed by several cities like Dipolog, Ozamis, Iligan, Cagayan de Oro, and other places I'm not familiar with. Hehe! In April 2008 I went back to Makati/Manila to scour for cheap wedding supplies in Divisoria. Our family also went to cool Tagaytay and visited Manila Ocean Park + Malabon Zoo =) After that I was busy reviewing for my Boards and planning our wedding. My last trip for 2008 was our honeymoon to Makati, Manila, Laguna and Coron in Northern Palawan which was more than awesome!! I still have to blog about Coron so stay tuned for that! ^_^ How about you? What's your Lakbayan grade? How much of our beloved Philippines have you seen?

Chris Brown vs Rihanna

2009-02-20T18:53:00.008+08:00

What's the real score?? I have been sympathetic to Rihanna's plight ever since the domestic abuse mess came to light. But her continued silence is really putting me of. I mean, what would all the girls looking up to her think? That it's okay to be abused and just keep quiet about it?? Argghhh!! Of course, until now, we're not 100% sure whether Rihanna was really the girl Chris Brown hit or that he really abused a woman physically. Still, I really hate their silence =( If it's not them, they could just give statement. If it's really Rihanna, condemn domestic abuse and say that she could not share more because of legalities.

It's more than a week after the incident and in Hollywood, a week of silence is eternity! At least Chris Brown has finally spoken out and apologized (Rihanna's "reaction" to it above). Though his apology is generalized and he did not really admit that he committed domestic abuse (who would? LOL). I hope Rihanna will speak out soon. What she's doing is really harmful to what the rights movement for women and children have achieved in the recent years. Also, I'm hating all the other Hollywood stars right now. All I've been hearing from them is that they're friends with both Chris and Rihanna, that he's a good boy, that they're "feeling" for Rihanna -- but there's 0% about domestic abuse! =(

Maybe all this is just much ado about nothing. I'm really hoping for that than think people are covering up a domestic abuse incident coz the involved are celebrities. THAT'S SO 1800s!! Ggrrr!

UPDATE: Here's Rihanna's battered face courtesy of TMZ.com -- sad huh? =(

Rihanna's "statement" about the incident with Chris Brown.

me and jinx are selling pre-loved books! ^_^

2009-02-15T12:14:00.002+08:00

And it’s all very affordable! Promise! =) Some books are in mint condition (bought from the US by Jinx) while most are in good condition. I also have books without front covers if you’re into book mutilation, hehe! So why are we selling our beloved books? We are certified bookworms so it really hurts to sell some of our prized possessions. Anyway, it’s all for a good cause guys.. Umm, but it’s not for some charity ok?? Hehe! Here’s the rather longish background --

Late in the year 2007, Jinky (that’s her below) shared her dream to our high school barkada of nine – she wanted our kada to TRAVEL ASIA (backpacker style) while we’re all still single! =) Many of the kada were like, “I don’t have any savings, much less have money for travel..” or “Where are we going that we can afford?” Of the nine of us, only me and Jinky were really into it. Fortunately, the others warmed up to the idea as months went by. Warmed but not yet won over, huhum! =p

So why did Jinky wanted this? From what I understand, she wanted our Pisay barkada to be complete in a gathering (there’s always 2 or 3 missing when we meet up) and that we *finally* travel together. We’ve known each other for around 15 years but the nine of us never really travelled for fun together. Now is our chance – and since we all have strong personalities in the kada (save for 1 or 2, hehe), this dream trip would surely be a blast! I’m 100% sure our time together will make good reality TV, hahaha! ;-)

Anyhoo, Jinky wanted to travel by summer of 2009. By January 2008, I broke the news I’m going to be married by October that year. I will still go on with our trip though – but I won’t be single anymore. Hehe! Then late 2008, Jinky announced her own engagement! LOL! Now it’s looking more and more like a trip for married-girls-who-didn’t-travel-with-friends-when-they-were-single =p So again, the question, why are we selling our books? One sentence: TO RAISE MONEY FOR OUR TRIP! Hehe!

As I’ve said, there are nine of us in the barkada (HOVER over our pics above & see our names) but not all of us are blessed with a high-paying job like Jinky (hehe!!) or earning Singaporean dollars (Charo) and NZ dollars (Sophia). Three of us are in call centers (Mhe, Ceej, Pidja), one is in the beauty retail business (Penavi), one is a teacher (Chin; and we all know how small a teacher’s pay is) and I’m currently a stay-at-home wife earning online. Two thirds of us don’t really have a budget for travel – and this is where the money for our booksale will go to – so that we’ll all be together in the dream trip! ^_^

Jinky’s eBay store (books, beauty products) <-- click the links guys!

My eBay store (books, cds, dvds)

Cheap bestseller books (P80 and below)

Cheap romance books (P25-45)

Cheap non-romance and nonfiction books

my DavaoSale Items (summary)