After two years, the family is on a holiday trip again. It has been really crazy the past couple of years. Thank God for allowing us to go on a holiday before the end of the year this time.

We actually went to see the Moken first. It was a great trip and deserves another blog post. Meanwhile, let me talk about our Phuket trip.

Phuket has changed. A lot. It's like I've never been here before.

Phuket bus terminal has been moved to... a far far away place. Tuk tuks are rare. The taxi fare from the bus terminal to Panwa Beach Resort was 500 Thai Baht. We thought of smarter(or so we thought) idea, took the song thaew (budget transportation in Thailand) at 10Baht each to Phuket downtown, only to realize tuk tuks were scarce. So we ended up taking a cab that cost us 400 Thai Baht. So all in all, we paid 440Baht for our fare to the resort.

I was really praying that everything will be worth it when we finally arrive at the hotel. Imagine my anticipation and anxiety before we reached the place because although we paid at a huge discount for this hotel, it was still not that cheap.
 

Glad to arrive at the By the Sea Phuket Panwa Beach Resort feeling amazed at how private the beach was and how romantic the setting was. Each room is designed in such a way as each faces the sea. Imagine looking out your window overlooking a beautiful blue cape. I can't wait to see that tomorrow. We arrived quite late so couldn't really see.

But we went down and took a quick tour.  The restaurant was at the beach so we stopped to have a simple dinner of soup, salad and pizza. Yep, Italian food. In Thailand. LOL. I promise, tomorrow, we order seafood, okay?He-he.

Anyways, there's complimentary seafood basket for dinner so we're claiming that tomorrow for dinner.

Meanwhile, let my photos speak for themselves. They don't really give justice to the beauty of the place but somehow it gives you idea on how the place looks like at night.

 We bought this package from Groupon Malaysia. By the Sea Phuket at Panwa Beach Resort in Phuket, Thailand is truly amazing.

Will be back for more blog post tomorrow. Kayaking is on the radar.

This is the time of the year again when people are looking for costumes to wear on their Christmas events.  I have seen invitations already with special announcements that those who will attend will have to dress up as super heros.  Other have K-Pop themes.

I won't be surprised if wigs would sell so much before the year ends. Honestly, I am not so fond of dressing up in costumes, but if it means that it will make parties more fun, why not? I think the kids would also love to dress up, too. Well, it's not much of a challenge for them, but I guess it's not as easy for us adults especially that we have to do an extra effort not to look stupid! :)

Some of my facebook friends are beginning to show photos of fall already. I could only imagine how beautiful those falling leaves are! Made me nostalgic of my first snow experience. I was like a child again, grinning from ear to ear. What I used to see in movies I have finally experienced for myself!

 Well, my snow experience was actually rather short, but I did get to wear those thick jackets, mittens and feet warmers. There's no snow here in the tropics, but I am still dreaming of a white Christmas this year.

Look what hubby got me today! I know, it says Happy birthday but my day isn't actually in 3 months.  Did I mention that hubby and I have the same birthday? Made me realize that's really close and we should be making plans of how we're spending our special days soon.

Maybe we should just have a simple dinner together-- I know of a place that plays good music. Hubby and I both love to listen to acoustic music. I don't know if that restaurant uses fender cf 140sce for their sound system, but they really sound good. I think three months would give us enough time to prepare for that... and to surprise each other!

I get so amused everytime I see photos posted by family members and friends in the Philippines-- most of them already have decorated their Christmas trees as early as this time of the year!

I am sure they are already enjoying the Christmas songs played on radios, too. Come to think of it, it's only a few more days until Christmas! Which reminds me, I have to make that list of Christmas presents soon. I am secretly wishing for hubby to come across a site where he could buy cheap wholesale jewelry! I really don't mind wearing not so expensive jewelry as long as I'd look great and I could match them with with what I wear. How about you? Have you finalized that Christmas shopping list already? Personally I think it's best to be prepared than having to cram and join the Christmas rush!

This photo really cracked me up today.:

  

You see, most girls would find a handyman attractive. But of course this does not hold true to anyone because I did not marry a handyman and I am happy with my choice.  Hubby, for me, is the most attractive man in the world-- handyman or not!

Actually, I am kind of a handyman myself (should you call me a handywoman then?) and there were times that I do the fixing of things around the house. I consider that a gift, and I don't have expectations that a man should do that. At least there should be someone handy in the house, right?  and it doesn't matter who. :) But don't expect too much!  I don't do plumbing and those complicated stuff  here, okay? So hope nobody gives me a ring when their roof or pipes have problems! LOL!

I don't know about you, but hubby and I really enjoy fine dining.  It could be one overwhelming experience for first timers but once you get the hang of it, you will find yourself looking forward to another fine dining experience.

 I love it that we could dress up with something nice and enjoy a restaurant's romantic ambiance. Most, if not all of them have table skirting from premiertablelinens and I really enjoy their intricate designs. Of course as a blogger I always see to it that I bring my camera along whenever we'd go out to dine. I love those food presentations-- plus moments like those are really worth-documenting!

Schenker is sick.

High fever.

Samantha decides to take care of her brother. She lends her blanket, asks me to play Brahm's Lullaby by Celine Dion on youtube, and pats him to sleep.

Sweet.

Hopeful that Schenker gets well tonight.

I feel like I'm talking to a wind.
A brainless wind.



If I can't get an encouraging word from you,
To whom do I go to?

Now is the chance to show,
The real need, now you know.

But you chose to be quiet.

Isn't there an empathy?
Somehow?

Or you're too busy to fill the need?
Too busy filling the needs of others
That you neglect to fill the one's that's closer to you?

Too deep
The  pain won't go away.

Well, I think time is a lot better.
Al least it does heal.

But where, oh where are you now?

Nowhere.

I'm like talking to a wind.
A heartless wind.

When it comes to the choice of chinaware, I prefer ones that are made out of ceramics or glass. It's a lot hygienic compared to its plastic counterparts. Although ceramic chinaware could be costly, I really think it's worth the investment. Aside from the health aspect, ceramic chinaware are also very presentable.

Hubby and I love to invite people to come over for a meal, so I see to it that our chinaware are presentable. I don't shop for new chinaware often, actually. I am always on constant lookout for sales and from time to time, I just shop for one or two because buying it by set could oftentimes be very expensive  and beyond my budget. Speaking of ceramics, I don't know what a ceramic tube is for. A friend asked me about it and I have to say I don't have any idea, either.

Anyway, back to my ceramic chinaware... I have to be extra careful in handling them.  It's not easy keeping them with little kids in the house, you know but I am just happy that our kids understand the value of the things in the kitchen they are very mindful not to break them.

It's sad that many young people these days are not that fond of books anymore. I guess we could not blame them-- everything they need to know is already available online, so what's the use of flipping through pages of a book when there's google?

 I could be a techie, but I still consider myself a bookworm. There is something about books that bring joy to my heart-- flipping through every page and finishing a book is just one awesome experience I could do over and over again. I remember how I would save up for books when I was in the university. Back then, photocopiers were not yet that popular so we should either buy books or borrow  from the library. I wish there we had books from becksbooks.com, but we didn't.

 I could honestly say that I was a hardworking student and my hard work paid off--  that and my being a bookworm helped me so much to be who I am now.

I am so happy that the kids, especially Schenker has a brilliant music teacher who has taught him how to play the guitar. He has also learned basic lessons on drums. It is really heart-warming when you see your kid play in a band at church or at school!

 I can't seem to get enough of watching the videos I took of him performing.  I think Schenker would not have a hard time if he'd learn Open Labs. I hope he also learns how to read notes, because if he does, he would not have a hard time learning other musical instruments like violin or bass guitar. Thank God for his music teacher, I don't have to send Schenker to a music school which would be quite expensive, for sure!

Again, I have asked myself, "Where has time gone?" because really, it was not so long ago that we took off those Christmas decors and now it's mid-July! It would be Christmas again before we even know it. Our Christmas last year was fun-- I mean, we don't usually decorate our house during the season but we decided, why not? 2012 has been a good year for us, and it's just fitting that we had a celebration during the last month of the year.

 I don't know if we could find brown christmas lights here in Malaysia... I have seen it online and I thought it would be unique to have those for Christmas this year. Red and green have always been the Christmas colors for hundreds of years so I thought, maybe brown would be good for a change!

I am not into business so much but I do have some friends who share some of their best business secrets with me. Most of my friends who are now big time entrepreneurs started small scale but because of their skills, they have made it to where they are now.

 Among the things that they share with me are: First, the importance of hiring/ working with the right people. Hiring workers with initiative, character and competence could definitely take your business to another level. Another thing they share is not to be afraid to invest in software or equipment that would lessen overhead costs. Production automation, for example, is guaranteed to lower your costs as this could take care or manage inventories. If you are into business and you want to make it big, I guess you can technology as your trusted business partner!

Lee Grane is trending on my Facebook wall.

Once there are more than 2 people posting something the same on my FB wall, I would usually check out what the fuss is all about. I am glad I did for this one, too.

She totally bowled me over.

Lee Grane's Full Blind Audition at The Voice PH


Here's another youtube video of Lee Grane, doing Voice of Angel - Sarah Mclachlan cover.

Have you ever answered those "ice breaker" questions in church small groups? I love those. Questions could be as easy as "what's your favorite food/ color?" And then there would be deeper questions about faith, trust and would even be given a chance to air out our opinions. I remember answering a question about what my fantasy was as a teenager. I laughed at my answer, because it was such a surprising revelation: I have always fantasized of being a rock star!! Well, who doesn't dream of being one at one point? Every rock star with one of those PRS Guitars look cool, don't they?

 But of course I knew then that it was just a fantasy. I wanted to keep it a secret, but the ice breaker questioned demanded for a truthful revelation-- and now I am blogging about it! So I guess it's a secret no more... everyone who'll ever come across this post would know that there's a rock star inside of me! :)

For many people (myself included a lot of times), saving up seems to be the last thing that comes to mind as soon as they get hold of their paychecks. What's even sadder is that there are so many who have to pay off their debts that they practically get nothing as soon as payday comes!

 The value of saving up is something that should be taught to people starting from an early age. It could begin with having a piggy bank or if at all possible, let kids open their own bank account. For adults, investing in silver coins could be a good start-- and eventually if finances are enough, investing in real estate would be a great idea.

I can't remember the exact time that I fell in love with taking photos. Way back when all I had was a handy point and shoot camera, I have always loved to shoot flowers, nature and anything that I find interesting. After years of practice and learning lots of tips from friends that are pro in photography, I have been given chances do photo shoots-- well, not for a living yet but I guess it's getting there.

 For now I am just happy with what I am doing and I love it when people compliment my work. I feel like, it's worth all the effort. I am also blessed with beautiful students who were happy to pose for me. It's not everyday that a photographer finds stunning models who could pose naturally infront of a camera, right? Many people encourage me to make a portfolio of my shots--maybe I should find printing companies at printingamerica.com if ever I'd plan to do that. I think that even if my shots are brilliant, the quality of the prints still matter a lot.

We miss going out for a movie with the kids. Our schedules have been very packed lately so we are thinking that if we could rent or buy a nice family movie that we could watch at home, it would be a good idea.

 I have been asking friends about a good movie they could recommend and one of those is "Flicka"-- a story about a wild stallion that has been trained for competitions. I searched about the movie and it actually has 3 parts now, but we still haven't watched even just one of it. Maybe the movie would spark an interest in horseback riding and equestrianism for the kids. Well, I don't know if it's a good idea to let them ride horses if ever. It's quite a rare sport plus I don't know where to get used english riding apparel here in Malaysia. But who knows, right? Horseback riding has always interested me as a child and maybe it would be a dream come true for me if one of the kids would be a professional rider!

 Ok, so much for my daydreaming-- let's watch that movie first.

I grew up having dogs in our family. Dogs, somehow are a part of practically every Filipino household. Its main role is not just to be a pet but to be a guard dog because they shoo robbers off with their loud barking at night.

Here in Malaysia, though, we don't get to have pets because of our busy lifestyles. It would have been okay  if I was not working. But during the day nobody would be home to take care or feed them-- also, I don't want to hassle anyone to take care of the pets while we will be away for a trip. So, yes... having no pets is a decision we have made although the kids would have loved to have a pet to care of. It would be expensive to raise pets here, too. The neighborhood would probably require us to have wireless electric dog fence and to assure them that the dogs would not make any noise that would disturb the neighborhood at night.


 

It's that time of the year again-- when thousands of young people have graduated. Once again my facebook feed is filled with posts of photos of proud parents and graduates. Another chapter of their lives has gone. It's time to look for work! It's tough, I tell you. I've been there, done that. You know, when you are just a fresh graduate and looking for a job seemed to be endless.

 I am just happy that I have landed in a job that I really love-- after being a stay-at-home mom for many years. I finished an Engineering degree and everybody knows how difficult it is to finish this very difficult and challenging course. There are not many lady engineers who know how leveling feet works, but I do! My job is not that related to what I currently do for a living, but that's alright. For me, as long as we are alive, we have every opportunity to learn new things, don't you think so too?

Now that our boy has shown so much interest in music (he has just joined a kids' band in church), our family wants to watch musical plays or if possible, watch one of Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra's shows. It is a good exposure for the kids-- like they would get to see other musical instruments that are not commonly seen in bands.

 Church bands usually have strings and percussion, but wind instruments like a good buffet clarinet are not so commonly used. Personally, I find wind instruments to be interesting.  It gives music that relaxing, calming and soothing effect.

 I hope that after mastering guitar, Schenker would be able to learn at least one wind instrument. But of course I don't want to push it too hard on him-- for now, his guitar is his first love.

I've been introduced to 9gag 2 years ago and have been enjoying the site since. Every time I have internet I access the site, right after I log in to facebook. There have been a lot of posts about 90s kids and about kids nowadays having no idea of the gadgets or the way we lived before. It's true, a decade ago there would have been no wifi everywhere but the development for the past decade has been rapidly rising. Two weeks ago, I went to a birthday party of a friend and a 7-year old kid asked me if I have an iPhone and I said no, then he showed me his iPhone 4s. Needless to say, I was shocked and stared at him open-mouthed. Maybe one day I'll hear my son say, "look toyota oem parts!". Below, is a picture of reality that I got from 9gag.

I posted a video of three girls singing "Oppa Gangnam Style" on my facebook one time. I am not really a fan of the song and the artist, but I have to say that those girls did a brilliant version of the song! So much better than the original, in fact.

 I saw that the video has been shared at least 40,000 times! I'm wowed. And they just sang that in their house with their kitchen on the background. I believe those girls will make it big-- and when they do, I am sure they would look back and marvel at their humble beginning. A friend shared to me another link of them singing, this time a Christian song and one of the girls playing the guitar. She was not playing one of those versatile Takamine Guitars-- she just had the ordinary one but she sounded good.

I have become such a fan of those girls.  Honestly,  I won't be surprised if I'd see them on TV one of these days!

One of the things that we love about going to church as a family is that we love the praise and worship or the singing time. Although we are not part of the worship band, we enjoy it just the same. Sure, we love the preaching part as well but the singing is always refreshing.

 When I was a lot younger I have always wanted to be a part of the worship band-- and who did not? Those band members and the choir always looked so cool with their esp guitars!  But  I guess I was  not really called to be in the worship band, but I am happy with just doing my part in church.

 I wish that my kids would be a part of the band when they grow up though... but then again, it's really all up to them. I would just be happy seeing them serve the Lord-- in a worship band or not.

I have been seeing blogs that have been visited by the Fairy Hobmother and been wishing that somehow, this fairy would visit my blog, too. Just recently, I got a surprise and realized the fairy did! He finally visited me!

I am so glad to be a part of those blogges who have been given love and happiness by the sprinkles of love from the Fairy Hobmother. And if you ask me what I would wish to have, I would so love to have one Hotpoint BHWD129 Washer Dryer Built In White. It would be great to have one, especially in this rainy season in a tropical country. Right now, I do have two equipment to do my laundry. One is to wash and spin, the other one is to dry the clothes. If I do have a washer dryer, I can do both on one go. Not only it saves my energy and time, it saves electricity, too. Thanks Fairy Hobmother for the lovely visit!

As I was browsing through the internet I saw this ad for a family getaway for four in Sri Lanka. I've always wanted to go to this country, I've heard so much about it. The only problem is that it's the wrong time of the year, school has just resumed and there are no scheduled holidays in the near future. I just like to imagine myself going somewhere new again with my family, watching people from all walks of life come together to relax, read books, smoke marmot packs, and socializing with people from other cultures. seeing people relax is also another way of a therapy for me. I'll just go ahead and look for good prices online, maybe we can go there this year.

It’s not only Schenker who’s an aspiring musician in the family, Samantha also wants to be in a band someday but she’s leaning towards drums. Nowadays, it’s no longer rare to see girl drummers and it’s actually cool to see women breaking through that barrier. Samantha even admired the Drum Sticks at musicians friend. I have a friend who plays the drums well, maybe I can ask her to teach Samantha the basics.

February 17—it’s a very special day for our family because it’s the birthday of our number one man, Papa. What would you give to the most special man in your life? It seems like all other things are frivolous and because of this I couldn't think of anything to give to my father. For fun, maybe I could give him swishers or a pipe just for his collection since he does not smoke. Or for his hobby, I could give him a couple of fish baits or additional manly tools. I know that whatever I give him, he will enjoy and I imagine his face would light up like a little boy that was given his first puppy. So I’ll just keep on thinking and I’ll let you know if I thought of something perfect.

Grey’s anatomy is one of my all time favorite series; it’s a medical drama with a sprinkle of humor, lots of love stories, stories of friendship, of life and death. Just watching an episode of Grey’s Anatomy would leave me breathless and aside from that I have learned a lot of things from it that I can use in my everyday life.

I remember the days when I would wait for the latest episode every week to see Derek and Mer's latest issues, or Christina's humor or Mark's hotness. I would also remember that my heart would break a little if they decided to have a hiatus and not show for a couple of weeks.

But it’s been a year since I've last seen it since right now I don’t have cable. And as a fan I would love to have one of the shows memorabilia, maybe a picture of me with Derek’s sailboat cap on or buy Greys anatomy scrubs or better a yet a picture with the main cast and all their autographs. That would certainly be a dream come true. But since I could not have that yet then I’ll settle for a Grey’s Anatomy marathon tonight with my best friend.

Sometimes I have trouble getting our things organized-- that's because at the end of a long day, I just don't have the energy and drive to clean up anymore. Well, that's what weekends are for, right? But I find myself busy doing many things on weekends too so I guess getting really organized can wait until the first school holiday! I am just thankful that there's this mount for ipad so I don't have to worry that my iPad gets lost among the many paper works or it can easily be found whenever it's needed.

Speaking of getting organized, I guess I need a new bookshelf for my books and other stuff.  I am looking for something that would not take much of our bedroom or office space.  Do you have an idea where to find practical shelves like those?
        

I blogged about our quiet Christmas last year-- we just did not have the energy to decorate a tree or buy presents under it with our very busy schedule. It was alright.. the kids have always understood the meaning of Christmas so they are always happy even without the merry-making and exchanging of gifts. But of course it would be good to have a family tradition, isn't it? So this year's Christmas, hopefully, will be a lot more meaningful to them with all those trimmings and lights.

 For now that Christmas is still 11 months away, we are trying to beautify our new abode. We already have furniture from our old place, but we are thinking of getting cushions outdoor so we could rest at the porch at the end of a long day. It's great to have one of those cushions because we don't have to worry if they'd get wet in the rain. I'm not sure when we will do the shopping for that, though. Beautifying a house is something hubby and I love doing together!