these make me happy

because i can rarely grab the camera these days

this kind of shot makes me smile...



while this makes me laugh...



and this makes me, happy

why do they grow up fast?

it feels like it was just yesterday when i gave birth to you.
and now that you are almost 7, you choose your own clothes and shoes.
fix your hair, yourself and already wear perfume.
how i miss the little you yet love every bit of the growing up you.



and as what i always tell you, no matter how big you get (bigger than mommy).
you will always be my baby.

power interruptions + the save

i know that electric companies like it during the summer to fix their powerlines, etc. but why does it always have to be at the time when: you are enjoying a peaceful afternoon nap. in the middle of blogging. at the highlight of the CSI episode when their CSI supervisor is leaving? huh? why?

before this season started i knew that Gill was leaving [and Fishburne will replace him] but i was in denial [i really like his style]. it took them how many episodes before he actually exited and i hate power interruptions i didn't get to finish the whole episode. grrr. anyway, will have to watch from the net.

on to a good news. the AI judges used their save. yey. it was a dramatic scene and i actually almost cried {but i did cry when Gill announced that he's leaving}. hihi. i do agree with Simon though that Matt can't win this but still they saved him {i was moved when he cried and Kris was all hugging him and they were all jumping up and down the stage}. yeah. for the drama.

i have been rooting for him since the wild card {my other fave was Ricky}. what i love about him {with my best Kara voice and hand gestures ;-D hihi } is the improvement he'd shown every week. he may have lapsed a week or 2 but as of this week in the competetion, he showed so much potential {reminiscent of Elliot Yamin, which by the I love too}. he has another week to show America that he can still be in the finals {i am really hoping that they'll vote for him}. but as of AI history, you know as early as the top 24 {this time top 36} who will be battling it off at the finals {and Adam it is for me :-D but i do like cute Kris too}

winner or not. isn't it an honor for Matt that Simon even considered to save him? well, he seemed to be a nice guy and he can really sing {and play the piano too}. i am so excited to see next week's show. {still crossing my fingers for Matt} :-D

how would you feel when someone questions your parenting skills?

a tough situation to be at, huh? a big YES indeed.

it is quite challenging raising children nowadays. i am sure most of you would agree with me on this. children today are rambunctious. so different when it was us. we sit in a corner and we won't speak unless we are spoken to. i was that kind of child and so it was pretty difficult dealing with a very active boy {to say the least}.

am i a disciplinarian? i think i am not. yet i think i am.

my siblings and i grew up with disciplinarian parents. that given, i knew i didn't want to completely adopt this when i raise my own children. i do want order. yes. but i didn't want to control my children or their childhood.

and i often find it good. children showing independence and willfulness. as long as they don't get hurt in the process of their exploration, i am good with that. guidance is the key and not control. but be questioned for being a parent because your child is simply being a child? is it fair?

i guess i can only shrug my shoulders and wish that people would see my son as we see him everyday. a very loving and sweet (unruly, yes) but sweet as it is. knowing that, i guess being questioned doesn't bother me that much (no one knows me better than i know myself and no one knows my son better that we, his parents, do)

and so i rest my case.

a successful attempt

with all the baking that i do, decorating has never been that good to me.
i usually slump some frosting and cover my cake using a spatula or a spoon.
but this time, i decided to bring out my mom's wilton tips and see what happens. :)

hopefully, this is going to be the first of many successfully decorated cakes from me. :) TFL!

my boys: my pride and my joy

looking at these photos,

all the exhaustion i felt these past weeks was all worth it.

{wanted to share this milestone in our son's childhood}




he was serious, he was raving of becoming a chef :-)
(our mini bobby flay)


and despite his absences from school due to asthma attacks,
he was able to snag some awards


what's a family portrait without the mom in it ;)


and concluded the day with a thanksgiving dinner with his grandparents
(my parents, my aunts and my grandmother - JP's great grandma)

it was a very-fine-day :-D TFL!

tired?

will you also feel this way if...

have to stay up for almost 24 hours. cooking and preparing for your child's graduation {at the end of our celebration, i literally felt my knees buckle}

son went to his graduation and reading recital without his reading materials {imagine me so confident that his copies were left with his teacher kasi wala sa bag nya e} we have to resort to sharing his co-reader's copy {kawawang mga bata}

hubby's first day of work overwhelms him. manageable and challenging according to him. but because i don't get to see him in action anymore, it makes me anxious

haven't scrapped a page for almost a month. {thank goodness i recently did some ATCs - at least scrap na din yun}

have to go to push myself to go to work {lahat bawal, paghinga na lang ata ang hindi - hehe - ganyan talaga approach when you are itching to just stay home hihi}

but i have to say that after a 10-hour sleep, i feel better. energized and optimistic. :-D

{venting out: TFListening}

*****on a totally different note {these kind of news i won't get tired of sharing :) }*****

a good friend launched a new blog for her scrap shop

The Scrap Yard Shop

expect lots of contests and giveaways. visit Gracie to see what i mean. :-D