Vacuum bags

I've been looking for vacuum bags for the longest time now, and I finally chanced upon an online seller with some affordable products.

The company is called XPLORE and aside from vacuum compressed bags, they also sell stuff like foldable boots, luggage scale, perfume atomizer and other latest travel products.

I emailed them to inquire and got a reply very quickly. The 60x80cm vacuum bags (2pcs/set) were P199 and you get 20% discount if you get at least 4 sets. Free delivery too.

So I got 4 sets for a grand total of P637 (for 8 bags all in all) and they got delivered two days after I deposited the payment. Super fast and efficient service. :)

I've been wanting to store some of my out of season clothes plus those that don't fit me right now (since I'm preggy) as well as some of the kids' stuff, and it's been quite a challenge fitting them all inside orocan boxes. Plus, I've always wanted to use these when we travel to save space in our luggage.

Anyway, the vacuum bags are so easy to use. Just put all your clothes in and close the bag like you would a regular ziplock bag.

Open the valve and use a vacuum cleaner to suck the air out. You can also do it manually by compressing the bag by hand to push the air out.

Close the valve and you're all done! Instant space saver, plus I love how the stuff inside are protected since it's airtight and waterproof. :)

Anyway, for inquiries and orders, you can check out their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/xploreunli. Or call 09998193543 / 09178227787 / 6246249 or email xploreunli@gmail.com.

Repost: 28 Rules For Fathers Of Sons

I'm sure most of you have already read or seen this article that's made its way around social media. But if you're like me who just read it for the first time, then allow me to share it here again since I absolutely loved it and couldn't help but tear up after getting to the end. :)

28 RULES FOR FATHERS OF SONS

1. Love his Mother. He will learn to love like you love, and hate like you hate. So choose love for both of you. Devote yourself to it. Love with your whole heart and express that love each and every day. Then, someday down the road, you will see the way he loves his own wife, and know that you played a part in that.

2. Let him drive. Every child remembers the first time they drove on daddy’s lap. For that one moment, he will believe that he is just. like. you.

3. Teach him to be picky. Especially when it comes to women and burgers. Teach him to never settle.

4. Take him to a ball game. There is something about sharing a day of hot dogs, sunshine and baseball with your father.

5. Love with Bravery. Boys have this preconceived notion that they have to be tough. When he is young, he will express his love fully and innocently. As he grows, he will hide his feelings and wipe off kisses. Teach him to be a man who rubs them in instead. It takes courage for a man to show love: teach him to be courageous.

6. Talk about sex. Sometimes, boys need to know that all men are created equal.

7. Teach him to be a man’s man. Show him how to be brave and tough around the guys. Then, remind him on the ride home that it is okay to cry.

8. Share secrets together. Communicate. Talk. Talk about anything. Let him tell you about girls, friends, school. Listen. Ask questions. Share dreams, hopes, concerns. He is not only your son, you are not only his father. Be his friend too.

9. Teach him manners. Because sometimes you have to be his father, not just his friend. The world is a happier place when made up of polite words and smiles.

10. Teach him when to stand-up and when to walk away. He should know that he doesn’t have to throw punches to prove he is right. He may not always be right. Make sure he knows how to demand respect- he is worthy of it. It does not mean he has to fight back with fists or words, because sometimes you say more with silence.

11. Teach him to choose his battles. Make sure he knows which battles are worth fighting- like for family or his favorite baseball team. Remind him that people can be mean and nasty because of jealousy, or other personal reasons. Help him to understand when to shut his mouth and walk-away. Teach him to be the bigger better person.

12. Let him dance in tighty whiteys. Dance alongside him in yours. Teach him that there are moments when it is okay to be absolutely ridiculous.

13. Share music. Introduce him to the classics and learn the words to the not-so-classics. Create a rock band with wooden instruments, share your earphones, and blast Pink Floyd in the car. Create a soundtrack to your lives together.

14. Let him win. Sometimes he needs to know that big things are possible.

15. Teach him about family. Let him know family is always worth fighting for. Family is always worth standing up for. At the end of the day, he has you to fall back on, and pray to God that you will have him.

16. Father him. Being a father—to him—is undoubtedly one of your greatest accomplishments. Share with him the joys of fatherhood, so one day he will want to be a father too. Remind him over and over again with words and kisses that no one will ever love him like you love him.

17. Listen to him now. If you don’t listen to the little things now, he won’t share the big things later.

18. Let him try on your shoes. Even if they are old and smelly. Let him slip his little feet in and watch him as he hopes like hell that someday he can fill them. He will fill them.

19. Give him bear hugs. The kind that squeezes his insides and make him giggle. The kind of hug only a daddy can give.

20. Give him baths. Because Mom can’t do everything damnit.

21. Teach him how to pee standing up. Let him pee outside- such is the joy of being a man. Mom cannot teach this talent, so someone has to.

22. Know the answers. He will assume you do. If you don’t know them, pretend you do and look them up later.

23. Toss him around. Because little boys love seeing the strength of their father. Throw him up in the air, so that he knows you will always be there to catch him on his way down.

24. Ask his mother. He will come to you with questions that he won’t always want to ask his mother, about girls and about love. Ask her anyway, she will know the answers.

25. Love him like you would love a daughter. Little girls are not the only ones who need hugs and kisses. Love is the color yellow of emotions. It is both happy and gender neutral.

26. Grow a big belly. Because every child should get the chance to rest their head on the absolute softest pillow ever. Daddy’s belly is the best place to land.

27. Don’t say, do. American inventor Charles F. Kettering once said, “every father should remember that one day his son will follow his example instead of his advice.” Be a good one.

28. Be his hero. You are anyway. To him, you have the strength of Batman, the speed of Spiderman and the brain of Ironman. Don’t disappoint. Prove to him that Daddy’s are the biggest heroes of all. Only Daddy’s can save the day.

my boys. my loves.

Source: http://www.viralnova.com/rules-for-fathers-of-sons/

NOEL Bazaar at the World Trade Center (Nov 22 - Dec 1)

After a successful launch in the South which marked the start of Yuletide shopping, NOEL BAZAAR returns to its biggest home on November 22 - December 1, 2013 (11:00am - 9:00pm) at the World Trade Center.

With a huge number of varieties pooled together, the event once again promises to be THE shopping mecca this Christmas. Simultaneous side events such as: The Search for Runway Duke and Duchess, Miss Campus Role Model 2013, GMA Variety Show and Celebrity Auction, Kiddie Fashion Show, Imaje's Top Model, Enchanted Kingdom Circle of Artists, Philippine Flair Open and Little Angels Show with parents will surely be an added attraction to the event.

Known as the biggest bazaar with a heart, NOEL BAZAAR will also feature "Dingdong and Marian's Celebrity Ukay-Ukay" which will sell pre-loved items by Kapuso celebrities. Proceeds of this project will benefit the Kapuso School Development (KSD), Unang Hakbang sa Kinabukasan (UHSK) and Give a Gift: Alay sa Batang Pinoy Christmas Projects of the GMA Kapuso Foundation.

See you there and happy shopping!

Scenes from our Cebu trip

It's been about 2 months since we were in Cebu for my brother-in-law's wedding and I honestly almost forgot to post about it already, with everything that's been happening in our country today.

We're just so thankful that we were able to enjoy this vacation in beautiful Cebu which has given us so many wonderful memories. It's just so sad and shocking that so many calamities (the earthquake and typhoon Yolanda) have struck the Visayas region since then. But there's no doubt in my mind that with everyone in the Philippines and around the world helping out, our nation will come out stronger than ever.

Anyway, here's some photos from our trip. I'll try to blog about the wedding in a separate post. :)

we made it! we're here!

the beautiful Shangri-La Mactan

kiddie play area which the kids enjoyed so much

Miley had so much fun on the slides!

while Sabe especially loved the water fountains! and check out the lower right pic - such a little BOSS lounging with his iPad and Chippy lol! ;p

Here are some more of the places we were able to see:

Lapu-Lapu Shrine



Chapel of San Pedro Calungsod

Magellan's Cross

Sto. Nino Basilica (so sad how it was damaged in the earthquake...)

Cebu will always have a special place in our hearts. Even the kids love it there so much, Miley keeps saying that Cebu is her favorite place in the whole wide world and she wants to go back there NOW na! ;p Well, hubby has already registered for next year's Ironman Triathlon competition which will be held in August also in Shangri-La Mactan. We haven't booked anything yet, but hopefully (fingers crossed) the whole family will be able to go. :)

Our Christmas tree is up!

Every year since we moved in our house, I've been setting up the Christmas tree from start to finish. I'm just OC like that since I like all the branches to be perfect and all the decors to be placed just where I like it. Since I'm heavily preggers now though, I asked hubby if he could be the one to do it this year. But of course, with my extremely close supervision lol! ;p

hello again Christmas tree!

Hubby hard at work. Now he knows it ain't so easy placing those branches one by one!

now the fun part - decorating!

It was so cute watching hubby and the kids decorate the tree while I acted as official photographer hehe. What's nice is that the kids are at that age where they actually help and don't destroy the decors anymore. :)

I left them to do their thing while I rested for a bit. After a while, they bounded back into the room all happy and proud. So when I went to check on the tree, I fully expected everything to be all done. But what was so hilarious is that they only placed half the balls and then gave up already haha! And hubby blamed the kids pa - tinamad na daw sila! haaaay! ;p

So I still ended up doing almost ALL the decorating, but I honestly didn't mind. :)

Now we're all feeling the Christmas spirit at home. Next on the agenda - wrapping all the gifts! ;p

Easy to do Banana Cake

Sadly, I don't cook and I also don't bake. But my kids love mixing things and when I saw this oven toaster cake mix in the grocery, I figured we'd give it a try. :)

It's so easy for a non-baker like me, plus all the ingredients and tools are stuff I already had lying around the house.

This is such a great activity to do with the kids because the directions are so simple to follow, you can't really mess it up haha. I love how the kids were so excited to help out! They practically did everything themselves. ;p

mash 2 ripe bananas

add the cake mix, 3 tbsps cooking oil, 1/4 cup water, egg

mix everything until nice and smooth

line the loaf pan with wax paper then pour the mixture in

cover the pan with aluminum foil

then pop it in the over toaster for 10-20 mins

It's that simple! The kids were so happy to see the finished product. And I was even happier when it tasted so good! Not bad at all for an instant, ready to mix cake. Btw, you can substitute carrots for the bananas if you want to do a carrot cake. Check out our masterpiece below! Yummmmmmy! ;p

 

How I wish I had been blessed with some culinary skills so I could whip up some homemade cupcakes, muffins, or cookies. But I gotta start somewhere right? I also bought a brownie mix which I can't wait to try out. Who knows, this may be the start of me becoming a baking queen in the kitchen haha! ;p

New pillowcases and paper napkins from Landmark

I haven't been to Landmark for the longest time so I was literally going crazy when I saw all the super nice stuff they had in the home section. I had a limited amount of time to go around so the only things I zeroed on were the pillowcases and paper napkins. Anyway, here's the stuff I ended up getting:

There were so many cute designs for these paper napkins, I wanted to hoard them all!
P39.75 each

I also got one pack with a Christmas design
P29.75

Now here's where I spent so much time - checking out the throw pillows since all the designs were to die for! I literally had a whole cart of pillowcases in different colors and designs, and it took me forever to narrow it down to my final selection. I finally decided on purple tones, since I'm about to put up my Christmas tree which has a purple and gold theme.

LOVE the embroidery on these cases! Size of these are 17"x17"
P229.75, P279 

These were the bigger sizes (about 21")
P109.75, P149.75, P169.75

got varying shades of purple and in different textures

Here's how I arranged them on my couch (you can see the previous arrangement and pillows HERE). Like I keep saying, I love how you can totally transform the look of a room just by changing your pillow covers!

I'm still deciding what pillows to use on the other side. Check out my 2 options. What do you think is better? :p

OPTION A

or OPTION B?

Anyway, there were also so many cute canvas pillow covers with vintage and travel designs like Paris, London, New York... But in the end, I was able to control myself and got just this one:


P179.75

Which I used for our couch inside our bedroom.

I totally want to go back to Landmark when I have more time! I think I can spend one whole day there just at the home section haha! ;p

Blue Coral Beach Resort

We took a quick overnight trip to the beach right before Halloween for some R&R. We stayed at Blue Coral Beach Resort in Laiya, San Juan Batangas.

This was our first time to stay here, although this resort would always come up when I'd do online searches for places in Laiya.

Blue Coral's facade

There's some expansion going on around the resort but it didn't really bother us since maybe our room was far from the construction.  I'm sure it'll be done by the summer season next year though.

construction going on in one side of the resort

main lobby with reception area on the right side

Their package includes the usual 3 meals - breakfast, lunch, dinner. The food was just ok for me. It was tasty but I found the meats, like the chicken and pork, to be matigas. Also, there were so many flies everywhere it was so hard to eat since you had to continuously swat them away! They really need to do something about that.

the dining area was big and spacious

buffet set-up

some of the food they served during our stay: shrimp with oysters, roast pork, chicken, buttered veggies

Anyway, here are more pics from the resort:

deluxe rooms above the dining area

way going to the pool area

main pool

We got the Poolside Family room with capacity of 8 - 10 pax.

The room was very spacious, with a 3 bed set up of 2 double-sized beds and 1 double-decked bed (plus there was a pull-out under the double-decker, but we didn't use that anymore). I liked how all the beds were big enough, with thick mattresses too. The blankets were really thin though, so better turn down the temperature of the air-con at night if you don't want to freeze like I did hehe.

There was a colored TV (which had the basic channels like ABS-CBN and GMA, plus a few cable channels like HBO) and a refrigerator. No electric kettle for heating water though.

There's also free wi-fi in the resort and the signal is strong in the dining and pool areas. Sometimes, the signal reaches in the room but you have to stay near the door though. :)

The best part about the room was the double-decked bed since the kids loved playing on it! They kept going up the top part and saying it was their "castle" hehe. I loved how the bed was really sturdy, since the kids kept going up and down the stairs.

The bathroom was also nice with a big shower area. There's just a funky smell at first (according to my MIL, parang un amoy sa pangkulot daw ;p), but it went away after a while or maybe we just got used to it haha. We sprayed the bathroom with alcohol but better bring air freshener if you could.

My only issue with the room was that there were a LOT of mosquitoes. I think it's because of the entrance to the room which is a sliding door. So there's a tendency for it to be left open or even if you close it, there's still a gap in between. Also, the windows in the bathroom had no screen and they were left open when we first checked-in the room. Tip: bring lots of insect repellant!

I would definitely recommend the poolside room since it's literally right in front of the pools. This was our view when you step outside our room. It was so easy getting stuff for the kids like snacks and toys since you just have to walk a few steps. :)

The kids had so much fun in the kiddie pool since it was shallow enough for them to splash and swim in. Miley super enjoyed the slide too!

kiddie pool

Our room was also near the beach and I'm so thankful we were blessed with lots of sun and clear skies during our stay. The beachfront was wide and clean, but we didn't swim that afternoon since the waves were kind of strong. We played in the sand for a bit, but then the kids wanted to swim in the pool again.

We did swim the next morning though, since the waters were a lot calmer. We practically had the whole beach to ourselves and we sort of wish we could have stayed another day.

We had a good time and for the price, I think Blue Coral is one of the better resorts we've stayed at in the Laiya area. Will definitely come back here again given the chance.

===================

Blue Coral Beach Resort
Laiya, San Juan Batangas Philippines

Website: http://bluecoralbeachresort.com.ph

Manila Office:
1209-B Alpha Grandview
M.H. Del Pilar, Malate Manila

Office Hours:
Monday to Friday - 9am to 6pm
Saturday - 9am to 1pm

Telefax:
[632] 559.9747 | 559.9754
[632] 567.4376 | 986.8668

Email:
info@bluecoralbeachresort.com.ph This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
bluecoral_beachresort@yahoo.com