Gabby's Wish List (Part 1)

Gabby had fun trying out head accessories in SM Ayala last Sunday, November 28, that we took the opportunity to look for things that would like to receive as gifts for Christmas. We're sharing it here in the hopes that more astute godparents, aunts, uncles, and grandaparents would take notice and get her any of these.

"Good choice!" I said to Gabby when she pointed to this. At least it would save me money in the next school year.

Accessories from Disney. Headbands, pony tails, clips, wallets -- anything from Disney. Basically.

Raincoats for the rainy season, which is expected on the first two months of 2011.

A hat for any day. 

She particularly liked this dress. It has a whimsical appeal.

A handbag for a kikay kid.

Sleeping bags for a little princess, 

Photos From Last Night's Jollibee Dinner

Last night was the start of Pamaskong Handong in San Pedro, Laguna and Gabby and I were there to witness it She had dinner at Jollibee and I took some pictures of her while we were there.  I just love taking pictures of her when she's in a good mood because it's easier to get her to play for the camera.

She had the garlic beef meal from Jollibee.

She wrote something on the table napkin.

Her mouth is full when I took this.

A closeup to cap this post.

Fun at the Accessories Section of SM Ayala

Sunday afternoon Gabby and I did some Window shopping at SM Ayala. We took pictures of the things she wants for Christmas and had a bit of fun trying out different headbands and hats. She was a game for the pretty ones but was totally uncooperative with the funny head accessories. It seems I have yet to teach my daughter the art of making fun of one's self.

This white headband is the one she liked the most. I thought it was too dressy for everyday use. It's better suited for use during weddings.

Obviously, she doesn't like this outrageous pink headband. It reminded me of peacock!

This hat she gamely tried on. I would have bought it for her but for the life of me I can't think of an occasion when she could wear this.

A frowning Santa Gabby! 

First Batch of Christmas Pics

SM Muntinlupa has decked the halls with Yuletide carols... err not really carols but your usual Christmas wreaths. There are penguins in strategic areas of the mall for shutter bugs. I took some pictures of Gabby.

Gabby tries to wink like this penguin in here.

Gabby sits on this luxurious red couch. It looks big with only her on it but if you're with your family or friends, this would look great on a pic.

Gabby mimics this Big Santa Claus in front of SM Hyper Market.

Another penguin picture...

Try visiting the SM Mall nearest you and see what Christmas decorations they have. 

Group Pictures from Gabby's Cupcake Party

Gabby celebrated her 7th birthday with an intimate set of friends. She had a cupcake party and everyone was went home with their self-decorated cupcakes at the end of the party. I am sharing with you more group pictures from that day.

The first girl on the right side is Gabby's godmother, my high school best friend.

The leaning line of girls.

They all look so serious in this picture.

Hopefully, we'll still have this girls over on Gabby's next birthday.

Kiddie Bash @ SM Muntinlupa

One of the things I love about SM Muntinlupa is that they've got a good line up of activities for children. Last Saturday, they had a kiddie bash for November birthday celebrants. In order to get in to the event, you need to buy two SM Eco Bags worth P35 each on or before the event.

The kiddie bash started on time, 5PM. But while waiting for the other participant, food was served. The children were each given Jollibee Spaghetti and regular coke. Lootbags were also given at the start of the program.


There were parlor games after the meal.Gabby joined in the musical chairs games but was not lucky to win it. She did enjoy the acrobatic performance of Kuya Omar the Ladder Balancer, who is the 6th Hall of Famer of Talentadong Pinoy.

Super yoyo masters Kyle and Paul also performed during the event. I was personally amazed with their talents and skills. And the kids were, too. Gabby was watching them intently but I don't think she'd take up yoyo anytime soon.

After the presentations, the host raffled off toys and a Jollibee birthday cake. The kids also sung happy birthday together on stage and got their cake slices afterwards.

All in all, it was well worth the P70 I paid for the SM Eco Bags and the time spent there Gabby and I enjoyed  the event very much.

Today, Gabby Brought Home a Boy

Usually, when Gabby comes home from school, she makes this big ruckus of putting her bag in place and announcing to the whole compound that she is home. This afternoon, it was a little different. Though I know she has arrived already (I heard her open the door),  she didn't call out. Instead, I heard her pull a book and plop down the floor.

I got up from my table and checked her out. She was sitting down on the floor, holding something white in her left hand and scanning the table of contents of her "Discover the Wonder" book. And there was her classmate, Camba. (She calls her classmates by their last names).

I asked her what she's looking for. She showed me the "butterfly" that Camba caught. I told her that it's a moth and not a butterfly but she wouldn't believe me. I didn't push the matter because she'd soon see the difference or similarity herself. And, quite frankly, I don't know the difference between a really small butterfly and a moth. Maybe you can help us out and tell us what this insect is. See picture below.

 She patiently turned page after page of her big book, looking for the butterfly we once studied.

After showing the butterfly to her classmate, she let go of the butterfly.But it wouldn't fly. Its wings, apparently, are broken. I told her to just put it in one of the potted plants our neighbor has. Maybe it will fly later.

Gabby's 7th Birthday Celebration

Last Sunday, November 7, we celebrated gabby's 7th birthday with a very impromptu party. We planned it to be a very simple affair, a cupcake party for kids, and it turned out to be a real children's party complete with games and lots of screaming, happy children.

I must admit, since we didn't plan anything at all, except for the cupcake decorations, the kids were bored at the start. So we decided to feed them first before we started the games. We served lasagna, as per  Gabby's request, corndogs, chicken lollipop and creme puff. 

Then, we had them decorate the chocolate cupcakes that my mom baked and topped with chocolate icing. We had black and white choco chips, mini M&Ms, and candy sprinkles. All the kids there, except for Gabby, experienced decorating their own cupcakes for the first time so you can just imagine how excited they were to make their own creations. This turned out to be a contest. My sister chose the best designed cupcake and we awarded it 50 pesos. (I told yah it's impromptu!).

Then we had some games. The first one was a game from our childhood. A 25 centavo coin was hidden in a small bowl of flour and the kids are not allowed to use their hands to get the coin. The coin was washed. Pretty Pam won the game. Her face ended up looking like this:

Then we did some animal sound game. it's like Hep Hep Hooray but instead of Hep Hep and Hooray, I ask for animal sounds. It was really funny because some kids kept saying Meh! for cows and Ko-kak for chicken. Hilarious in real life.

Of course, there was everyone's favorite -- the musical chairs game. It was amusing to see that some kids aren't inhibited at all. They gamely danced.

 

My sister wanted a singing contest since she borrowed a Magic Sing. But we cannot get it to work and it was getting late.We let go of the children, each one holding a box of cupcakes in their hands. That was their loot bag!

Impromptu as it was, we were happy to see kids having a good time, especially Gabby. She was able to bond with her intimate set of friends, reconnect with her godmother, and meet a couple of new kids. Plus, she got gifts which she really liked. 

Promise to post more pics later on! Gotta buy a cable for the phone for easy transferring. 

Experience a Whole Lot of Fun @ Zoocobia Fun Zoo.

Celebrating Halloween is an American tradition and I am amazed how we've adopted this holiday here in the Philippines. Usually, Gabby participates in trick-or-treat promos in malls but for this year, we've opted to have a roaring Halloween celebration at Zoocobia Fun Zoo at Paradise Ranch in Clark, Pampanga and Zoobic Safari in Subic, Pampanga on October 30 (the day after my birthday).

One of the first things you'll see in this open zoo is the Bird thrill. There's a small, man-made pon for the ducks and an aviary where you can feed love birds on the palm of your hand.You can see more colorful and exotic birds at Birds of Paradise. Gabby was too afraid to hold any of these birds so  I held them instead. She took the picture below.

We spent the day up close and personal with all kinds of animals. Gabby had a fun time feeding the birds, monkeys, and camels at Zoocobia Fun Zoo. 

She also rode a a white miniature horse with the assistance of one of the attendants at the zoo. I took a video of her of while riding the horse and will be uploading it on a separate file.

She wanted to feed the ostriches but these two were very playful. I was afraid they'd chew her head. We let a couple of other bloggers feed them.

Zoocobia Fun Zoo has a barn where you can pet and feed animals. It's A Small World is a an enclosure full of cute goats and adorable pot bellied pigs. You have to pay 20 pesos if you want to feed them a two ounces of fresh milk. I seriously wanted to take home one of those pigs!

The zoo features the first and only gravity car in the Philippines! It's like a bump car sans the engines. You just push and pull the handles. It wasn't able to take a picture of her riding this because I was riding it with her. It was a very fun ride down! She wanted to go another round but there were many guests waiting for their turn so we just went to eat at the canteen after which Gabby played on the railings.

There is a ZOOVENIR shop where you can buy stuffed animals, t-shirts, and other souvenir items. It was too hot outside so we played around the shop and tried their hats.

Here's a very cute picture of Gabby that was taken during at the zoo. I call it Gabby the Chipmunk.

There was also an animal show where Aeta kids performed their traditional dances to the beat of a native drum. A poodle and a pair of African birds performed tricks that held both kids and adults in awe.

One thing I notice though is that Gabby isn't as crazy about touching animals as I am. She's still afraid. I had to urge her to feed some animals and pet them. She did eventually. This made me think that maybe Zoocobia Fun Zoo should offer summer camps for children so that they can be comfortable around animals. It would be a good educational experience for kids and they'll come to value and love animals after the camp is over.

A Roaring Animal Slideshow For Gabby

One of the things that I teach Gabby is the importance of writing about her experiences. I wouldn't be the blogger I am now if it wasn't for my 2nd Year High School English teacher who literally forced me to sign up for the journalism class so I can be a news writer for the campus. I guess she saw something in me that my I didn't. I am thankful for that. 

To help her with her writing, I provide her with both online and offline references. I am embedding here a slideshow that I just made for her using Animoto, a free tool for turning your pictures into rockin' and roarin' 30-second videos. The photos I included here were taken from our Zoocology visit last October 19, 2010.  

Zoocology is an animal bone and skin museum located at Manila Ocean Park. Obviously, these are just some of the animals that you can see in this little museum.. Visit and like the Zoocology Facebook page for more information on their latest events and promos. Here's the Animoto slideshow:

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

I hope other mommy bloggers would also find this slideshow helpful. Why not show this to your kids and get them interested about animals. 

A Sagala in August

Last August 24, Gabby joined a sagala here in the new Barangay that we moved into. I just uploaded some of the pictures I have taken that day in my Photobucket account and I thought it would be nice to make a photo essay about it. 

Gabby wasn't smiling at the start of the parade.

 She wanted a very thick makeup and I was against it. I won.

They started the parade together but Kim (the girl who's not my daughter) 

got pulled in front of Gabby by the organizer. It was a very disorganized parade, 

but the kids didn't mind. The parents did.

See why I don't want her to be a very thick makeup? Not good in daylight. 

And this is Jenny, another neighborhood friend of hers.

After the parade, all the girls headed to the church for snacks and more picture taking

Hopefully, she gets to participate in a better sagala next year.  This one was just organized for the neighborhood kids so they'd have  an opportunity to dress up and be little princesses for a day.

A Day With Other Mom Bloggers... Thanks Unilab!

One of the dilemmas of being a mother is living your kid behind and treating yourself to a day of pampering and pleasure. This is especially true if you've got a baby or a toddler that's attached to you like an additional body part. You just can't bear to leave your kid for a couple of hours alone with your husband or nanny. You're always worried that something untoward might happen.

But mommies need some "me" time, too.  An afternoon of luxurious pampering or bonding time with friends. This personal times allows mommies to recharge themselves and come back at home better mommies. And Unilab understands it. Last Monday, October 11, Unilab treated a small group of mom bloggers to a luxurious Mommy's Day Out in Linden Suites.

The afternoon started with a very filling lunch buffet. Over lasagna (a favorite of mine and gabby),  buttered veggies breaded fish sticks, chicken, lemon squares and fresh fruits for dessert, mom bloggers exchanged amusing  tales about pregnancy cravings, potty training, and delivery tales. On a more serious note, we shared ways on how we can earn while we're staying at home as full-time mommies.

Jack Orendain of Unilab Corporate Affairs

Then the "mind pampering" started. After the very insightful welcome remarks from Jack Orendain of Unilab on the importance of spending quality time alone, beauty coach Ms Marie Calica gave us some must-follow beauty mantras that are guaranteed to keep us looking young and beautiful at our later years.

Beauty Coach Marie Calica

Next on the programme is the personal beauty makeup workshop with Anjie Gogna. She's a very charming -- and pretty -- makeup artist who taught us all we need to know about everyday makeup. The highlight of her workshop is the demonstration when she gamely answered questions from the her small audience. Suffice to say that I'd be coming more dolled up in my next event than usual, thanks to Anjie.

*Thansk to Mec for the photos. 

Finally, the real pampering began at Linden Suites' Mane Depot. We were treated to a refreshing hair spa, foot spa, manicure and pedicure. This provided an opportunity for us to get to know each other more intimately. Of course, there was blog talk and Wordpress and Google got discussed this time around. Since we all have kids to get home to, the ones who finished first left earlier and I was the second to the last one to go.

 I personally would like to commend Unilab and Wanda A. Pascua for what I think to be a very successful event. It was truly a Mommy's Day Out. I also welcome these mommy bloggers to my list:

• Mec of  Mec As Mom
• Van of My Lavender Fields
• Paula of Happy Thoughts, Happy Tots
• Peachy of Blowing Peach Kisses
• Didi of Chubby Mommy Me
• Pehpot of Make or Break