Zits Away

It's almost that time of the month again. Not my favorite, as I am sure it isn't as well for all women. One of the things that I am peeved about is the unwelcomed appearance of zits. And as if they are out to irritate you more, they come in massive sizes in the most hated spots of your face. Your only salvation is natural acne treatments in the hope that they will be successful in eradicating the zits in time for your important date or function.

Firsts and Lasts

I grabbed this one from Joey.

FIRSTS

First real job: Admin assistant at my mom's business
First screen name: mae (i just used my second name)
First funeral: My grandmother's
First pet: We had lots of pets. But I remember we had a Japaneses Spitz when I was a child and named her Daffodil.
First piercing: Ears. Had them when I was a baby, but got second ear piercings when I was a junior in HS.
First tattoo: Just went for a henna tattoo so many years ago on my right ankle. But it turns out I was allergic to it! I have a very light scar to prove it.
First credit card: Citibank (an extension from my mom)
First kiss: An ex-bf of mine when I was a junior in college.
First enemy: I don't think I have any enemies. There are just some people I am irritated with, but they probably don't know how I feel about them.

LASTS

Last car ride: Last night, when we had dinner at Zao in Serendra, courtesy of my sister's BF.
Last kiss: My hubby! ;)

On Vacation Mode

Speaking of vacations, it would be a wonderful change of scenery to travel to a different continent other than the one you are currently in. Well, we've got friends over in the states and hopping from city to city would indeed be something fun. Orlando vacations is definitely on the itinerary as we also have relatives based there and we've heard so much about the place. That's something definitely worth looking forward to.

I Scream For Ice Cream

Your Ice Cream Personality:

You are an incredibly modest person. You don't feel comfortable bragging about yourself... or even receiving complements. You have a wild reputation, but you're not as wild as you seem. You take risks, but only measured risks. You are a somewhat open minded person, but deep down you're fairly conservative. You don't like trying new things very much. And if you do find something new you like, you stick with it. You are a natural multitasker. You feel alive when you're doing more than one thing at a time. You can be a big dramatic and over the top sometimes. You are bold in every way.

The Ice Cream Personality Test

Ha! Now, ain't that a revelation? :)

Cleaning Concerns

When you have a kid, one of the challenges that you also must take on board is to try to keep the house clean. Children have lots of stuff that sometimes it is just so difficult to keep track of them or to even find storage space for it. But you have got to thank the heavens for whoever invented vacuum cleaners. Whoever this guy is a sheer genius. I don't know how we could have survived without it.

Travel Challenge

As you can see, I've been a pretty bad blogger lately. Updating this blog has been the least of my priorities right now as we have just travelled 11 hours. The trip was long, tiring and just a drag. The little girl was becoming a challenge as it was hard to keep her entertained and satisfied throughout our travel. All I wanted was for just our plane to land so we can finally rest from all the stress. It's a good thing that we are staying for two or three months so it's going to be a while before we subject ourselves again to this kind of situation.

Mindfulness

Now that the house is ours, we've got to tighten our belts as far as expenses are concerned. The monthly repayments are going to to put a dent on our finances so we have to be mindful of what and how we spend our cash on.

I am still pining for the Wii but by the looks of it, I reckon it's going to us a bit longer before we go out there and get our own console. If I can use some Circuit City coupons and get a big discount, and hopefully I can convince the husband to buy it. Isn't it obvious I am so wanting to get this gadget? LOL.

Wordless Wednesday

Creepy Old Merbourne Gaol

A Week Left

Yes, our trip back home is exactly a week away and our relatives there are as excited as we are at the thought. It's our last weekend here in Oz and we are scrambling for ideas as to what gifts to bring to the folks in Manila. They all have different tastes, but the one I am most sure of is that of my mom's. She likes jewelry even if they are just the costume jewelry ones. But I am thinking of probably giving her handcrafted jewelry. I am certain she will be pleased when she gets it. As for the others, I'll just have to brainstorm myself to death and be creative. Tough luck!

PPBC 2nd Edition: Call for Articles

The first edition has been a success. Now, Joey is calling for articles for the 2nd Edition which revolves around the topic of education. If you missed out on the last carnival, make sure to check out the second one. Deadline for all entries is on the 24th of May, and publication of all entries submitted will be on the 28th. Just visit Joey's blog for more information on the 2nd edition.

Feeling Lucky

You have got to forgive me for not updating this blog regularly. Lots of things came up which kept me busy, hence the neglect. But they were all good things so it was just as well that they were prioritised first.

Well, to start with, our broker told us the good news that our loan application has been approved. The good news does not stop there. J was informed that his job application for a position he wanted was accepted. It is pretty major stuff if you ask me. That is why we are over the moon.

It seems that the heavens have been so gracious to us. We are very much grateful about all these blessings. I just hope our luck doesn't run out, much like what my laptop did when it froze (the ram may need upgrading) while I was in the middle of something important.

Brothers and Sisters

I regularly watch the Brothers and Sisters series every Sunday night. They are quite a big and noisy bunch, which actually reminds me of my own family back home. There are lots of bickering but we love each other immensely.

My least favorite character on the show would probably have to be Justin, the youngest son, who once served in Iraq and has been in and out of drug rehab. I honestly think there's nothing much to his character, as compared to the others. Maybe the writers should give him something more to portray, hopefully one that is more positive. All his character been through lately are the negatives (getting into drugs, sleeping with his brother's mistress, etc). That would probably make the series a bit more interesting.

10 on Tuesday: 10 Places I’d Love to Travel To (That I Haven’t Gone to Yet)

It's Tuesday and here's my list (in no particular order)! :)

1. Italy
2. France
3. Thailand
4. Malaysia
5. Gold Coast, Australia
6. Boracay, Philippines
7. Palawan, Philippines
8. Batanes, Philippines
9. Perth, Australia
10. USA

Join Ten on Tuesdays! :)

Dream (Almost) Come True

In a few weeks' time, our family will finally have our own home. That is, of course, if all goes as planned and there are no hitches along the way.

Now that we are faced with this huge financial responsibility, we need to make sure we don't go overboard with our expenses and we must continue to maintain good balances of our savings accounts. We don't want the sheriff hounding us around taking back our dream away.

Pinoy Parenting Blog Carnival

Are you a parent and have your very own blog? Join me and other parent bloggers in the first-ever Pinoy Parenting Blog Carnival.

This month's topic is Becoming a Parent. Joey will be hosting May's blog carnival so you can get more information on how to participate in this event by checking out her blog.

Drive more traffic to your blog and get to know more bloggers by taking part in this wonderful event. See you there!

GonnaBe

Talent show contests on TV keep sprouting every now and then. People who think they have the so-called x-factor line up, hoping to get a chance at stardom. It can become very competitive and only the very talented and strong-willed do succeed.

Enter Gonnabe. This company gives children the opportunity to show off their talent and once accepted, they also get to appear on Be TV where they join other talented kids perform.

At Gonnabe, children also are provided with different resources to improve their talent more and give them the exposure they need in order to succeed in this tough world of showbusiness. It is a good thing that potential wanna-be child stars now have this option if they really are very keen on pursuing their dreams.

I was browsing through the profiles of their members on the website, and I swear there are a couple of Filipino kids out there! I hope they do the Pinoy race proud! :)

Time to celebrate

Mother's day is just around the corner. As for me, it's going to be my second Mother's day having given birth to the little girl just last year.

It is great that mothers (and fathers) have a special day dedicated to them every year. For all their sacrifice and hard work in the home and for their children, it is just right that they should be honoured, whether through gifts (like religious jewelry) or by giving a simple card to let her know you remembered. Now is the perfect time to think about how you can give your mom a very special mother's day next weekend.

Feast 189

It's the weekend already people! Hope you all have a good one. Enjoy! :D

Appetizer
What was your favorite cartoon when you were a child?
I loved cartoons when I was a kid. My parents bombarded me mainly with Disney classics. I also loved the Care Bears, Strawberry Shortcake to name a few.

Soup
Pretend you are about to get a new pet. Which animal would you pick, and what would you name it?
Maybe a fish would be nice. Both J and I have bad allergies so anything with fur would be a no-no. I wouldn't know what to name a fish. I've never done that before. I'd probably name it based on it's color (like Goldy) for lack of a better idea. :P

Salad
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy getting all dressed up for a special occasion?
I think that would be an 8. I do like dressing up -- putting make-up, wearing jewelry, styling your hair, wearing heels. Things which I hardly do these days. We would have attended a formal occasion last weekend, but we were in Melbourne then.

Main Course
What kind of music do you listen to while you drive?
I have this nice compilation of crossover music which I love listening to whenever I go driving. R&B music would also be an option. I guess it depends on my mood.

Dessert
When was the last time you bought a clock? And in which room did you put it?
It was last year. We bought a tiny one which could measure the room temperature. We placed it in our bedroom so we could monitor the temperature for the little girl.

Travel Tip

The big trip on the end of this month would have cost us a lot of dollars. But you have got to thank the heavens for whoever invented the frequent flyer points system. J earned enough points to get a round-trip ticket for free so all we had to pay was the taxes for the little girl and him and my ticket as the little one is not yet required to pay for her fare. So if you are planning a trip anytime soon, it's best to weigh your options so you'll be able to get the best travel deals out there in the market. It pays also do some research.

Wrong Unit

J was able to upgrade his mobile phone before our trip to Melbourne. I specifically told him to get the E65 which was up on offer by our provider. We separated ways before he completed the transaction so I did not see the unit until we got back to the car on our way home.

He got the wrong model. Instead of the E65, he requested for the 6120. He really thought the 6120 was what I indicated the entire time. I suppose it's okay since there is not much difference in their features. Well, there's always next year, which is my turn to upgrade my unit as my contract expires then.