Reminiscing Christmas with Lola

My fondest memories as a kid were the weekends we spent at Lola's which is a few houses away from ours in Las Pinas City. Sundays, my sis and i would look forward to taste lola's home-cooked meals and super delicious chicken soup! But as the years rolled on, our family relocated to Quezon City near the place where my sis and i trained for our future work. and Sundays were replaced with trips to the crowded malls where we gobbled processed food and replaced meaningful conversations with trips to the movie theater to find temporary solace with fictional characters. Oh how we missed lola so much! She turned 92 last September 6, and though Lolo beat her to the Better Place earlier, she is still happy to be with her 3 children - my kikay mom (71), my prim and proper Tita Ellie (61), and my goofy-techie Tito Ed (51).

*For this LO i used Jessica D's Shiver papers and elements.

It has always been girl power in our small family! The only guys are my dad and my 2 uncles. I have 3 other cousins from my mother's side who are likewise femmes! sa father's side -- guess what? he is an only child! hehehe. i guess for all of us gals, the ultimate role model is our Lola, who despite being weak at her age, still possesses that back made of steel - ever persevering despite life's challenges and can always manage to smile radiantly even though the world seems cruel and tough.

* For this LO i used NBK christmas papers and April Cotton's My Xmas Glass Brads.

Another addition to the girl power in the family is Lola's ever patient and dedicated caregiver, Prima. I would say that Prima is heaven-sent! Quite a lot had given up taking care of my Lola, but this petite young woman managed to warm her way into Lola's cold exterior. Our family is just so lucky to have her.

*This LO is a quick page from Flerg's Deacon's Closet Kit.

For my godchild, Bea

I am more than honored to be godmother to my best friend's second baby, Bea. It has been quite a while when their firstborn Bennet was followed by this "sorta unexpected" bundle of joy. Judging from my friend's aura, I would say that everything has fallen into its right place. She exhibits the glow of a happy and contented woman. My sis and I were likewise glad to see my other kabarkadas from med school, Joy and Peter. We did a lot of catching up during the reception at Max's QC Circle, and it seemed the 2 hours weren't enough. Looking forward to see them again on Bea's first birthday! Wishing you a lifetime full of blessings Bea!

Relocating Soon

My folks and I dropped by at Alabang to see our soon-to-be-new-home. We will be relocating there in 3 months' time, and I just cant wait to adourn my attic corner with all my scrap stuff! At last, my very own scrap space! Gone are my nomad ways! For this LO, i used FR elements and papers which i got from DigiFree. Other embellies i got from Art Explosion Scrapbook Factory software.

Of course i wasnt the only one excited about the attic. My sis will have her very own corner in the attic for her graphic art work and online gaming. And working in the same room with her might finally make her get into scrapping too! she should u know, coz if it wasnt for her giving me a scrapbook and starter kit on my birthday eons ago i wouldnt have become this hooked! This LO is courtesy of Kawounette QP i got from DigiFree in addition to elements from the Art Explosion Scrapbook Factory software.

To my mom's dismay (who is not a pet lover!), a stray kitten just appeared out of nowhere and tagged along with us as we toured the entire house. It was really a funny thing cause instantly i felt we had a connection that without batting an eyelash, i named her "Marbles" cause she reminded me of Goldilocks Chocolate Marbles that time. bwahahaha all i can think of is FOOD shame on me! Oh well, i dont know if we will still be seeing more of Marbles by March/April, but i am thankful the short time she was with us has brought me inexplicable glee! I added in this LO NBK spring papers and NBK muttertags from DigiFree along with elements from Art Explosion Scrapbook Factory.

Parties, Parties, and More Parties!

So one party after another i finally discover that i can simply ignore food. there were several times that i find the sight of it rather repulsive than inviting. hehehe. all i wanna eat is fruit salad! which is exactly what i indulged in at the Paranaque Doctors Hospital Christmas party. had loads of fun with the games and videoke challenges, and of course the neverending Papaya dance showdown. i think im fully saturated with parties though. Im not a party animal, you see. I would rather stay home and read a good book, watch videos, or scrap. hmmm but come to think of it, if it werent for these parties, what would i be scrapping about! ;)

SPCP Christmas party/reunion

i was just so thrilled to be with my kabarkadas from high school. its my first time to see them after soooo many years as they were not present in the previous SPCP gatherings. I was soooo relieved knowing that i wasnt the only one still in single status hehehe. this is just half of the group since the others are living abroad.

the whole idea was to come wearing the color of your section, so u can just imagine how colorful we all were. and winners that night with most attendance was section blue! there were loads of gimiks too like santa hats for section red, gold-glittered balloons for section gold, green teddy pins for section green. food and gifts were overflowing kaya all left with wide grins on their faces. i pity the kids and hubbies who were brought along though. i felt they were kinda shocked seeing their wives/moms in their worst behaviour that night. LOLZ

our sisters abroad never fail to keep us posted with their holiday celebrations. a few days after our reunion, they also held their night of partying! im pretty sure they turned heads that day. good thing hubbies weren't around. tee hee!

as for section Red, all i can say is that we are sooooo cool! and the main mover and shaker here was Chen of course. without her, we might have won Least in Attendance. by the end of the day, despite being drained from endless nights of recruiting members and party preparations, Chen still managed to be in her jolly self, endlessly taking pics and entertaining all of us. this group rocks!

Housekeeping at Columns

My first few attempts at digi scrapping! i owe this inspiration to Khei after checking out her blog and viewing her great digi LOs. its really fun doing these, though i have to admit it doesnt have the "wow" effect compared to what others have done hehehe! its less messy, less prone to errors, and most of all....LESS EXPENSIVE! ahihihi. but of course will still pursue traditional scrapping..nothing can beat that!

Christmas 2007 at Bulacan Provincial Hospital

I really love Christmas parties, but 2 parties in one night (one in Bulacan and the other in Paranaque) is enough to stress me out. I told myself that just after our dance number, i will just rush to the south in time for another night of partying. But after seeing the prizes at stake for the raffle draw, I was just unable to drag my butt out. Too bad i only won a can of fruit cocktail hahaha!

Happy New Year!

New Year's Eve 2 years ago! 2006. At the comfort of our second home (Fernandina 88), Dad, Mom, Cynz, and I celebrate New Year's Eve making noise, gazing at the fireworks-filled sky, and praying that the coming year will be a better one for all of us. Happy New Year!