New plates & mugs

If you regularly read my blog, then you know how much I love Daiso Japan store. Whenever I go to that place, I almost never leave empty-handed. And this last time was no exception. ;p

I was at the new Glorietta last week and just happened to pass by a Daiso store. I was just planning to look around but then I saw these babies and just HAD to get them.

I spied these plates at the bottom shelf at the very back of the store. Actually, they were underneath a pile of other dishes but I somehow saw a flicker of that colorful design and instantly fell in love. I had actually made a promise to myself to start buying all WHITE serving dishes just to make it more coordinated when having guests. But I just can't help myself whenever I see printed and colorful things! I just need them in my life haha!

Check out that embossed design. LOVE it!

Now, these mugs were also too cute (and cheap!) to pass up.

They're all white but that textured design makes it look so much more interesting. Sort of has a vintage vibe dontchathink? ;p

Can't wait to have guests to I can use and show off these babies! ;p

Flower Power

I would love to have fresh blooms in my house all year long. But since they're expensive and hard to maintain, faux ones will have to do. Besides, I think artificial flowers nowadays look so real and pretty don't you think? =) I bought these long flowers at Landmark at P170 each.

My plan was to cut the stems so that the flowers will sit on top of this low vase I had. FYI, the wooden things inside are kinda like potpourri which I've had for years but never threw out. I just thought it would look nice at the bottom and add texture to the whole arrangement.

But after I cut it, it didn't seem quite right for the glass vase. If you're wondering, I didn't want to shorten it further since the individual stems would fall apart. And the damn stems wouldn't bend properly!

So, what to do when your original plans don't work? Improvise! I stuck one flower in this empty tequila bottle I had lying around and I LOVE how it turned out! Note to self, drink more tequila to be able to collect more of these glass bottles hehe!

I also had this existing glass vase encircled below, seen from my DIY sunburst mirror post.

For now, I just stuck the flower on top of the existing leaves (also artificial) while I look for a more suitable vase. To be honest, I'm not quite sure if I like how it looks it or not hehe! But it'll do for now. =)

What do you think of my impromptu flower arrangements? ;p

Photo of the Day: Little Campers

They really love "camping" inside their tent!

Yabu: House of Katsu

I finally got to eat at Yabu after 10,000 years! I was really excited about trying this restaurant because of all the rave reviews online. What's more, I don't eat sushi or anything raw so whenever we go to a Japanese restaurant, the only thing I order is Tonkatsu or Katsudon. So imagine eating someplace called The House of Katsu? Heaven!

We ate at the Robinson's Magnolia branch, which was also our first time at that mall. Good thing we were able to get a table before 12 noon because the place got super full a few minutes after (and to think it was a weekday). Anyway, here's what we ended up getting:

Rosu Original Katsudon Set
Served with miso soup, Japanese pickles, unlimited cabbage with sesame dressing and a bowl of fruit
(P315)

Kurobuta Pork Premium Tonkatsu Set

Served with unlimited Japanese rice, miso soup, Japanese pickles, unlimited cabbage with sesame dressing and a bowl of fruit

(P515 for the 90g serving)

Kids' Chicken Katsu Meal
Chicken, potato croquette, edamame, Japanese rice, cabbage, and bowl of fruit. Served with your choice of curry or honey mustard sauce.
(P195)

I love how they have unlimited servings of cabbage or rice (depending on your order). Although they have pretty big servings so I didn't even completely finish my Katsudon no matter how good it was. I was super stuffed!

I definitely cannot wait to eat here again! Super yummy! ;p

Salon de Mommy

I've already said this before - I'm a frustrated hairstylist. I actually gave Miley her first haircut (well, just the bangs since her hair was still short then) which turned out looking like THIS hehe. And since Miley hasn't had her hair cut ever since that, I figured it was time for a trim - to be done by moi! ;p

bye-bye baby hair

To be honest, hubby was really against this. He kept saying I butchered Miley's hair the first time and we should just go to a salon to have it done (hey, everyone said Miley looked cute with her bangs!). I mean come on now, this is just a few inches, not a completely new hairstyle. So after some more convincing, hubby finally gave his blessing and even stuck around to document every single snip (and to make sure I didn't go overboard!).

this is it!

making sure the length is even...

adding some layers to the front (naks feeling professional!)

And here's the pretty girl after! She was so well behaved (watching on the Ipad helped big time) that I was so tempted to give her bangs again haha! And she was so cute when she saw her hair on the floor. She kept gasping and saying "my hair!" in a super dramatic way. ;p

Not to brag or anything, but I think I did a great job! Miley's hair is now even all around and she looks so cute! Clap clap! =)

Ok, so who's my next customer? =)

Repost: 50 Life Hacks to Simplify your World

I just read this article and it has completely changed my world! Haha! No seriously! According to the article, "Life hacks are little ways to make our lives easier. These low-budget tips and trick can help you organize and de-clutter space; prolong and preserve your products; or teach you something that you simply did not know before."

Here's some of my favorites, which mostly deal with organizing and for doing home improvement stuff. I'm telling you, GENIUS!

Remember how I fixed my internet and phone cords? This is a great alternative without having to buy a cable organizer.

I've been saving my toilet paper rolls for future arts & crafts projects, but nice to know I can also use them to organize stuff.

super smart and CUTE idea!

this is a perfect tip for my hubby, when he drills more of my picture frames on the wall ;p

this I've been doing ever since =)

I also use my hair iron to straighten creased gift wrapping ribbons

Aren't these life hacks fabulous? So simple and yet they make a world of difference. And I love how they make use of normal everyday things you have lying around the house. I am so trying out some of these tips and letting you know how they turn out. =)

To view the whole article, click HERE.

My son's 1st work of art

Sabe prefers playing with (or more accurately destroying) toys, eating and tinkering with the Ipad on a normal basis. He leaves the artsy fartsy stuff to me and his Ate. But lately, he's become more interested in drawing and coloring (yey!). One time, he just got a box of coloring materials, some paper, and started drawing on the floor!

Good job baby!

Look Mommy, I'm not even looking! I just let my hands do their thing. ;p

Oops, keep the writing ON the paper please!

pati sa forehead, may drawing!

Tada! So beautiful! Now we have something new to frame for Sabe's room! :)

An Ice Picnic

My kids, especially Miley, love ice! When we eat out, she always scoops out the ice from the glasses and starts chewing on them (I just pray the water used was clean!). So while shopping around at Daiso Japan store, it was no surprise that this popsicle maker is one of the things we ended up buying (of course, I had to tell Miley first what it was before she got all excited).

After filling the containers with water and letting it freeze overnight, we were ready for our picnic the next day!

our "picnic" area

little Sabe was more interested in putting the ice on his toes!

mmm... PLAIN flavored popsicles! ;p

yummy and cold snacks!

breaking the ice, literally

Again, putting the popsicles on his toes! He really did have COLD FEET haha!

After a while, Sabe discovered a new game - skating on the water droplets on the floor! He started doing splits and then running and sliding on the wet areas. Ooops, time to wrap things up before someone gets hurt!

I really love how it takes so little to amuse and have fun with kids! ;p