First Post For 2008

I , actually , have nothing substantial topic to write but just for the sake of the New Year I thought it would be nice to have an entry for the first month of the year and also kinda like bringing good vibe to my blog .

Jan 31....midnight pacific time...I heard 4 maybe 5 pops of fire works from our neighbors.What a pathetic attempt to welcome 2008. Grant stared at my face for a couple of minutes. Perhaps he's waiting to see if I'll burst into tears and storm into the bathroom and luck the door...just like I did last year. No more drama this time.I'm used to it. Its never gonna be like how we celebrate it in the Philippines where you'd feel like your in a middle of a battle field and your nose is black from the fumes..It just the exact opposite. Too quiet...in fact I could here our next door neighbors opening & closing their closet.

Peaceful...I guess is the word I would describe our New Year's celebration and perhaps that would be my wish for our family too and the whole world.


We did watch Harry Potter the Order Of The Phoenix ( yes I am obsessed )As the main stars of this very popular movie has gotten mature so is the plot of the story and it is even more ( to me atleast )because you can kinda relate . The also enjoyed Goblet Of Fire but this latest sequel of Harry Potter made me cry .Ok , I wont reveal the story for those who hasn't seen it yet.
I am just so taken by the character and the whole story that I am planning to get me the entire books collection ! Yey...that would be something that I can look forward to this year.

Speaking of "something to look forward to ".....My husband gave me another surprise for xmas......a new "vacuum cleaner" hahahha :D

It was something I have been wanting to buy but I just could not find the right one ( and right price tag). Imagine not being able to vacuum your home for a few months...well, I used the small handvacuum that my MIL gave to us but it was not powerful enough to get all of the dirt ,crumbs and hair (gross , I know) For the sophisticated taste of the Domestic Diva..( that's moi!! ) this was a perfect gift for me because I have been wanting to get a really good quality vacuum and boy did I put the thing to the test immediately hhahhahaa. With 2 active kids and my long hair , an ordinary vacuum cleaner wasn't enough so even though we spent a little bit more if we had gotten something at walmart or Target , this one will sure to last and it has 4 year warranty . No more kneeling to clean the carpet using the handvac ( coz I broke our upright vac few months ago).I have been vacuuming joyfully since and I just love the feeling of clean floors .

New Year Resolution...??????
If you guessed "to lose weight"..you hit the jock pot ( dingding ding!!)
maybe I should have wished for a one year supply of " motivation" hahahah.. We'll see.. I have to make friend with my scale again and cardio equipment :)

Till here for now....


BTW..I got another cool awards from Tess and Bless ( nice rhyme)...Thank you both for your sweetness.I apprecaite it very much :)

A Trip To The Clinic & Some Funny Story.

I'm suffering from what most asian women does during the cold seasons...dryness.
Oopps , don't get ahead of yourself there...I am well lubricated.
I'm talking about dryness of the skin ,scalp , elbows ,heels and knees.
It usually starts on my head with little flakes visible every time I comb and like a domino effect , it goes all the way down to my feet. I've been drinking plenty of liquids and smothering myself with lotion but to little or no effect.
Now I had to wear socks like an old lady coz I had to saturate my feet with loads of gooey vaseline petroleum jelly which seems to help prevent further cracks on my heels. What a turn-off to look at my own feet coz they look like I've been working in the field all day. Sometimes my lips will get so dry to the point of bleeding.Neosporine Lipbalm is my solution to that.I think I might have bought 5 different kind of cream for my skin problem but so far only the two that I've mentioned about seems be effective and they are the cheapest too.

On the other hand , both my knees developed this ugly and super itchy rash that I scratched ( I know I'm not supposed to ..but it felt so good ). I thought it will go away after treating with cortisol but it just gotten worse. 2 weeks later the rash were still there & they'be gotten bigger and redder.It started to freak me out ( watched too much HouseMD and CSI ) coz it looks like it's gonna spread all over me or worse get my kids infected too. Today , I went to an Urgent care clinic to have my rash looked at by a doctor. Thank God there were only 3 of us waiting in line or I would have just walked out if there were more than 5.

I hated the waiting and my mind just starts imagining things like " what's wrong with this old lady..I hope she's not contagious"....or " That kid looks like he has something serious going on there, they should take them to the ER" ..or..." did he showered?"... That's what happens when your stuck in a small waiting room with sick strangers...you starts talking to yourself. After 15 mins of flipping through magazines , my name was finally called and ushered to a small room with no window. Again , my mind starts to wonder. The thought like " where are you gonna go if some psycho comes here?" or..."I wonder if the docs & nurse do something naughty here ".The nurse took my vital stats and probably a good 2 mins of her attention and she was gone leaving me on that tiny room. To keep my mind busy, I grabbed another magazine to relieve my boredom and paranoia. I felt so claustrophobic that it was hard to keep those grim images on my mind.

After waiting for what seemed like forever , there was a knock on the door and the doctor came in. We shook my hands & introduced himself ( later on I bet both of us realized that we should shook our hands because we don't know if my rash was contagious...but then again , he should have read my chart ). He examined my knees and I could see him frowning while looking at my rash and I told myself " this can't be good" .I got a little nervous plus I felt uncomfortable with his face so close to my knees and the tiny room with no windows. You could never guess what was going on in my tiny little brain.

He then proceeded to ask me standard questions and so my mind got distracted trying to recall what I did to cause the rash on both of my knees. It took me a couple of second to reply.....I was still on that same train of thoughts when I was alone in that small room....I asked myself " what did I do that I had to kneel down causing this irritation on my knees?"....."kneeling down?"..."on my knees"..."I hope he's not thinking what he thinks I'm thinking". I don't know if I was blushing when I replied " I had to go down on my knees when I'm cleaning the bathroom floors".
After giving him a few more ideas on what I thought caused this itchy problem , the doctor handed me a cream to apply 3x a day and told me to see a dermatologist if nothing happens .

I left but still couldn't believe what I had pondered during that hour long wait at the clinic.What a dirty little mind I thought!
Strangers...tiny room with no windows, nurses and doctors , dryness on my knees , cream...hahahhahhaha can you put the picture together??

I should lay off the TV for a while :)

Not Enough Days In A Week :)

It's been a busy week yet again.
Sunday we went with our friends to this huge farm for a pumpkin patch trip for the kiddos and boy did they had a blast!!.It was their first time and so was mine . Personally, I still couldn't completely embrace the idea of a "celebration" for this particular event because to me as a filipina ,it's a time to remember our relatives & loveones who passed away and also I was quite sure there were more bigger ,prettier & cleaner pumpkins at Costco or Winco so why in the world we were in the middle of a farm , all muddy and cold I would never understand but who am I to spoil the fun. Kids were just ecstatic to see all the activities in lined for them such as petting zoo,corn maze,haystack maze,train ride, pumpkin patch , boat ride and some delish food kiosks. For less than 15 bucks the four of us gets to do all of these stuff and bring home the best pumpkin that we could find for the Halloween.In the end I thought that it is indeed a fun holiday coz it's about family sharing activities that everyone enjoys. I'll try to remember to wear rain boots next time.

Boat ride,The Pumpkin Patch and Petting Zoo

Monday was spent general cleaning coz the next day is a special day for my MIL and I want to make sure that the house is impeccable in all corners . I was in such a mood for cleaning , I even clean my car that has been begging for some TLC :)
Tuesday , we celebrated my MIL's birthday.
Times like this when I'm not really in the mood to cook especial dishes, we just ordered take out from Red Robin. I am just so glad that we are so easy & predictable.We order same food everytime and everyone is fine and happy with it which makes life so much easier and we still had lots of time left to enjoy a movie.We had Baskin Robbins ice cream cake btw..how easy is that?? No fuss , no huss and MIL was happy with her bday celebration.

Shinjo school had their own little pumpkin patch on Wednesday at school too and they painted their own pumpkins & brought it home. It was so cute what my son did , he turned the pumpkin into something that looks like the globe because of it's bluish green color . I'll post pics of the pumpkins that we got after they've been carved.

Thursday , my daughter had a Parent Literature Night. I'm not actually the most social type and prefers to be on the back stage but I didn't want my kid to be left out and so I went. It wasn't as bad as I thought and many parents came with their kids and I got to meet some of them and they all have one thing to say about my daughter, " Oh my gosh your daughter is such a talker"...lols but I already knew that. There were book reading , family games & activities and the most fun of all is the free pizza and refreshment....oh actually it's the ruffle draw and the free books which I love tremendously coz there were no limit , only your guilt , coz you can take as many as you want!!!

Friday , I wanted to go window shopping for holiday outfit for the kids but I got so much stuff to do at home so I decide to re-sched my mall trip. I couldn't believe I spent 4 and a half hours ironing our clothes that afternoon. Heck I even ironed DH's boxer shorts , I think. I was just on a roll with loading up the dirty laundry & ironing the dried ones. Whew , what a day. While I was swooshing my arm with the hot steaming flat iron back & forth , I was in front of the TV watching new episodes of Law and Order SVU that I recorded , some old episodes of Scrap booking from DIY channel up to the evening local news. I was so glad when I was finally done.I think I've ironed half of our entire wardrobe. Dh felt bad so he ordered Japanese take-out for diner.

Speaking of scrap booking, I have made a few pages but I had to put them away for awhile coz I get to immersed with the whole process and as a result many of my daily chores piled up undone such as the laundry,dusting , bathroom etch etch.It's funny when my husband goes to work with crumpled shirt,his co-workers assumed we had a fight lols. Anyhoo..here are some of the pages that I have done. I will finish the whole album which means I still have maybe 300 more pics to go.

Some Of My Finished Scrapbooking Project

Saturday we went to the newly opened Ikea .About 20 mins drive if we didn't got lost.The navigation couldn't find the entrace to this humongous mall that sits amongst other big stores such as Staples,Marshalls ,Bestbuy etch etch. Ikea was so big and since it only opened in July this year a lot of people are still curious at what they could find in this popular Swedish store. The driving and the immense size of it got me so tired I totally lost my appetite to buy anything. I was contented on just looking around ,scouting and kinda making mental note at what I'm gonna buy next time. We had to stop by at Target on our way home but I was just too exhausted otherwise I would have gone inside Target to check out their dollar only section but instead I just stayed in the car .Hmmmmmm sign of aging :)

Sunday,we just stayed home. I think even the kids have had enough fun for the whole week. We watched old movies and I made toasty Philly Cheese Steak sandwich for lunch and when I'm done with this post , we are gonna watch The Pirate of The Caribbean:At Worlds End and have some nice rum and coke drink...ahhhh...relaxing.

Ta ta for now and have a fun Trick'a treatin' :)

Funny Ha Ha

The busiest time of the day for me is in the morning.
Everybody got to be somewhere....school...work...wherever!
I like having plenty of time to get the kids ready to go for school...I hate rushing esp. when I am half awake coz usually it means I'll be cranky the rest of the day.

My morning ritual would simply be a good steaming cup of coffee ,strong with plenty of cream & 2 packets of spleada. I like to sit for maybe 5 minutes & kinda let the caffeine kick in , maybe check my email in between sips. That would be one of the few highlights of my day.

This morning I had my coffee but I didn't get to sit down & enjoy it like I normally do . I was multitasking & taking sips of the joe and getting whip splash looking at the clock . This is another thing that ticks of off...being late!!! I like to plan things ahead of time coz I'm don't do well under pressure. No matter how hard I try to be organize I still can't find my comb!!
Is there a ghost living with us trying to play with my sanity?? I even got a little caddy where every stuff for grooming hair goes , but not the comb. I swear when I find it , I will put a string on it & tie it in one corner & see if it still disappear.

So the morning didn't start smoothly for me. I had to hot iron my hair coz I look like I have an afro hairdo & the 5 mins of fixing my hair screwed up my A.M. routine.

On our way to school , I always have the AM radio on to listen to news updates , weather & traffic reports. I'd like to be up to date with what's going on so I don't get trap shut whenever somebody asked me " Hey did you know what happened to this & that ?? yadi yadi yada" and I look like a deer on headlight. It's always a good thing to be armed with information as much as you can.

Still in the car with the radio on but this time waiting at the parking lot for DH .It was around 10am & I just had the FM station on the background not really paying attention till I heard the DJ mentioned "Filipina " . I turned the volume up & it was The T-Man Show at Z100 . They were talking about a dating website called FilipinaHeart.com and how many "hot" filipina has profile in there. Dating or penpal website are nothing new...even Dr. Phil made great money with his Match.com . This dj's were reading random profiles & describing how the women looks like in their picture . It was funny at the beginning coz there were girls who says that " I can describe myself as a jolly person " or " I like cleaning the laundry & loving my future husband unconditionally" . They had a good laugh about it while I was sitting there kinda feeling embarrassed coz they are making fun of filipinas and I also feel sad because these girls have no idea that they are topic of a morning radio show with the dj's getting a kick out of some poorly grammared profiles on that website. Out of so many topic that can be discussed , why does it have to be about some girls from the other side of the earth who , to be honest , trying their luck to find the man that will take care of them. They laughed at the word "penpal" or "unconditional love"...why because they don't exist in this country anymore. For 20 minutes I listened to them basically talking about how many filipinas are desperate to come here in the states and make fun of their english skills .It was offensive & demeaning. I don't know if I was just not in a good mood coz of a bad morning & I was just being too sensitive or that my reaction is valid because of the way they laughed at filipino women . I don't know....but I do know that there is nothing to be ashamed of. Maybe some of these pinays don't have computer at home that's why they are looking for penpals and we our domestic skills is one of our best assets that's why many american men seeks asian women to be their wife. It might not be put in proper words at their profile but we know exactly what they mean & it's a legitimate & even fun way to meet someone & it should not be made fun of on national radio show.

FilipinaHeart.Com

I wonder if I would agree with their humor if I'd had a good morning start....nah....I doubt it. I think they suck & they are running out of more interesting things to talk about on their show that's why they are picking on those people who can't defend themselves. Whatever!!!

Feel The Burn!

I've been ranting & raving about my weight gain issues and now finally I had some positive result. After 1 week of regular exercise & controlled diet , I lost 2 lbs!!! Ok , I know some will raise their eye-brows & say " Big Deal...2lbs is nothing!". Not for me coz this is the 1st time in a long while that I saw the scale actually went down. It was frustrating when you know you bust your ass everyday for 2 hours or so at a time & nothing happens. Clothes were still getting tighter,energy was so depleted ,and the scale is going the opposite way .I am happy even with the slightest hint that my effort & discipline is paying off. The hardest part is the first 5 minutes of it .Doing cardio felt like climbing the top of Mt. Everest.I started w/ moderate speed & the most amount of time I could manage (10mins..lols )then I gradually increases it the next day. I discovered too that if I listen to some up beat songs ,that I felt more energized & into the groove. So I made a play list of dance & hip hop songs to listen to while I am working out & its as if I just drunk a can of Red Bull , I mean , who wouldn't feel the urge to shake thier booty when you hear Beyonce, Shakira ,Rihanna,Lauren Hill & Sean Paul ?.I have more energy & endurance. I have increased my time to 30 mins and then I slowly incorporate streangth training. Hubby showed me how to do leg work out last night & because those muscles of mine aren't used to being subject to weight machine , it was hard. I kept telling myself " Feel The Burn , Feel The Burn!!"

Losing 2lbs is a good start. I'm not starving myself , not taking any crazy diet pills, not feeling depressed about my figure and if I continue & be consitent w/ my work out routine I would lose over 20lbs by December w/ is my goal.Hopefully I'll have enough confidence to post my whole body picture here.

First Week Of School

Nemo's voice is ringing in my ear yelling " First day of school , first day of school" to his dad.

Tuesday morning was torture. I felt like I was hung over. Getting up earlier than 10am is an absolute punishment for me but I had to get my lazy butt up . I can't remember when was the last time I had black coffee . I like my coffee creamy but that morning , I had extra strong black coffee ..whew it was awful but surely shook my brain off & I was up & ready to take on the world!.

Princess school was still under construction for the new classrooms & bigger parking lot....hence chaos everywhere....gosh what a terrible morning!! I bet everybody who took that road was late to wherever their destination was. There was no where to go & the usual 5 mins drive to school took about an hour including the time spent looking for a spot to park. Princess was getting hysterical coz she didn't want to be late but there's nothing we could do but all the aggravation was gone when she saw her former classmates. I was so touched when they hugged each other , so happy to meet again after a seemingly long summer vacation.

Shinjo went to preschool & in a new building. I like his teacher a lot & she's very pretty. Teacher Katie is young & energetic w/c I think is best to handle super active toddlers like my son.

I went home and it was so QUIET!!! lols....it felt weird but it's good for all of us to have time just for ourselves. Finally , I'll have an alone time w/ my exercise machine . I was so excited to don my work out clothes.. The first 5 mins was excruciating...who am I kidding , I have not touched it for so long and my body obviously is not use to physical activities. I tried really hard & I finished 20 mins ...whew.....that's a good start.. There's no more excuse...no more reason to procrastinate .

Our Bowflex Machine & Elliptical .Gathering Dust No More

The Favorites, Have-You-Evers.. and Last Times! Oh, the variety!

The Favorites, Have-You-Evers.. and Last Times! Oh, the variety!
What is your favorite..
gum:	Trident
restaurant:	Tokyo Tokyo
drink:	Diet green tea
season:	winter
type of weather:	not too hot
emotion:	when I'm excited
thing to do on a half day:	chores
late-night activity:	blogging ..lols
sport:	baseball & basketball
city:	Portland & New York
store:	Nordstrom
When was the last time you..
cried:	monday
played a sport:	centuries ago
laughed:	a few minutes ago
hugged someone:	this morning
kissed someone:	this morning
felt depressed:	a while ago.
felt elated:	can't remember
felt overworked:	all the time
faked sick:	never
lied:	secret
What was the last..
word you said:	stop playing w/ the water
thing you ate:	PB&J
song you listened to:	A Beautiful Mind Soundtract
thing you drank:	coffee , strong
place you went to:	the park
movie you saw:	Superbad
movie you rented:	can't remember
concert you attended:	Side A concert
Who was the last person you..
hugged:	My kids
cried over:	my sister
kissed:	my kids
danced with:	my kids
shared a secret with:	my husband
had a sleepover with:	not in a while
called:	my husband
went to a movie with:	my husband
saw:	my kids
were angry with:	my kids
couldn't take your eyes off of:	my husband
obsessed over:	my husband
Have you ever..
danced in the rain:	yeah when I was 5
kissed someone:	oh yeah
done drugs:	never
drank alcohol:	yeah
slept around:	no no no
partied 'til the sun came up:	yeah
had a movie marathon:	oh yeah
gone too far on a dare:	nope not yet
spun until you were immensely dizzy:	not since I was 7
taken a survey quite like this before:	a few weeks ago
Take this survey Find more surveys Bzoink - The Original Survey Site

I am tagging Tess, Lanie, Sarah, In-in,Geri,Bless,Kim,Pham,Anna,Sandy,Rhebs,Gilda & Vanessa

I'm Baaaackk!!!

Holy guacamole!!! I am begging blogger.com to phu-lease not mess up my page anymore.

I don't know how many times I had to revise my blog & it really takes a serious amount of time to get everything right , of course number 1 it has to be pretty :) & number 2 , that I could put all my nick-knacks & pics on the side bar. I had a few interesting topics that I wanted to post but I couldn't because my blog was all F-ed up!!!! (end rant!))


UPDATE:
My Weight : Still the same ( boo-hoooo) . Can't blame nothing but myself...and my bad genes.I didn't do enough. I know the right nutrition, the right work outs even have the equipments that I need. What's missing???? m o t i v a t i o n. It's even harder now that the kids are on vacation & I have no reason to get out of the house except maybe every other day to take the kids to the park or on the weekends to do grocery shopping. I know that diet alone wont do the trick.....my body needs to be physically active coz that's how it was programmed since I was a kid . I was used to walking a couple of miles to get to the palengke & buy fresh fish & vegetables for dinner or washing 2 big loads of laundry by hands or washing the wooden floor while kneeling . Now everything is so easy , so convenient , everything is automated & hardly needs any efforts. That's why I'm gaining weight ..coz I am eating more nutritious food & not exerting enough sweat.

September is the month that I'm waiting for . Both kids will be at school & I will be a lot busier plus the I will finally have the time "just for me" . I can do my work out w/out constant interruptions ( ahhh...I can't hardly wait ).

My Kids : I can't believe I now have a 1st grader!!!! I am partly excited & partly scared.It means she will be on her own longer...w/out mom & dad to watch over her. She told me she was scared ...she doesn't know why she's afraid but I don't want to make her feeling worse so I assured her that every thing's gonna be ok & that it's should be a lot of fun. I hope she didn't sense the fear in my voice. I want her to be brave & to know that mommy & daddy will always be there for her.

Shinjo is also starting preschool & he will go 4X's a week . His teacher says that he will be joining the Lunch Bunch & she promised that it's gonna be a lot of fun because the kids are older & bigger & they would be a better model for our son . We are expecting him to improve his social skills & to develop his level of play. It should be very interesting & lots of fun for Shinjo.


Entertainment: Me & my husband are both movie buffs but we can't always go to the cinema to watch the latest movies so our solution is to bring the cinema to our house . DH assembled our home entertainment system & it's just awesome esp w/ the surround sound & HD quality picture. All we have to do is wait till the kids are in bed & we could watch all kinds of movies that we want & thanks to Netflix huge lists of movie titles our weekends is never boring .


Here are a few of great movies that we've seen recently that I highly recommend:

1. Hot Fuzz - you'll pee your pants laughing
2.The Last King Of Scotland - a bit gory but it's also a real story about Idi Amin
3.The Good Shepherd - we luv Matt Damon & yeah the movie is ofcouse great.
4.Deja Vu - never seen a movie of Denzel that I didn't like
5.Blood Diamond - great performance from Leo..i wonder why he hasn't won any awards yet.
6. Breach - another true story
7.The Pursuit of Happyness - I cried on this one. Will & his son is so good in this movie.
8.Children Of Men - very interesting...makes you wonder "what if?"
9.Stranger Than Fiction - Will Ferrel is so good in this one. He even made me cry.
10. The Departed - Matt & Leo plus Martin Scorsese.....you gotta see this one.
11. 300 - Great effects..great story...one of my top ten all time favorite.
12.Casino Royale - jam packed action...


I'm sure there's more but these are all I can remember for now. When I can sneak some time to watch a romance movie I would choose The Phantom Of the Opera & Sleepless In Seattle .
Still on the topic of entertainment...I got hooked on watching Law & Order SVU and I have seen all the episodes ( yup..all of them ) from Season 1 till 7 & I'm just waiting for the Season 8 dvd to come out. Right now & finishing the Law & Order :Criminal Intent. I think the psychological aspects of the show is what fascinates me esp Det. Goren & his understanding of human behavior .


What else did we do ??
We went to the beach & boy did I looked like the most obvious foreigner & not because of my color but my lack of knowledge about Oregon water......damn it was cold!!!! I'm like " so are supposed to just stare at the water coz I ain't going in that freezing ice cold water!!" I was so disappointed & acted like a 6 year old girl pouting coz I couldn't swim in the nice beach. It was 98 degrees for christ sake but unless you wanted to get hypothermia then go a head & dive . Inspite of the water being unbearably cold, Cannon Beach on the top ten of the best family friendly beaches in the nation.

The Oregon International Airshow was held at the Hillsboro Airport & we had the chance to witness the great performances from the Blue Angels & some other planes . DH is a great fan of fighter planes & once dreamed of becoming a pilot himself. It was a fun weekend events for us & the kids really enjoyed watching the planes do their acrobatic skills up in the sky.


Okay....that's all for now. I'll leave you w/ some pics of my sweet little angles .

Such a brave boy. He didn't mind the bone-chilling cold water.

She's was getting ready to build her sand castle

Enjoying a nice sunny day at the park



Mommy finally agreed to have her pic taken.


My angels

The Work Out That Works For Me

A few months ago I started getting serious w/ my fitness goal. I've tried pills, low-Atkins , Juice Diet..etch etch...none of them worked. Instead of losing weight , I gained more.

The problem is not only my weight but my mind set. I was trying to solve my weight issue the easy & the fast way but I should have known that it's not gonna work. I might lose a couple of pounds but it always comes back & w/ a vengeance. My mind set & my will power is what needed boosts. After looking at my clothes that wont fit any more & looking at the mirror & facing reality , I told myself ...." I can't let this happen to me, this is not what I want myself to be & I'm gonna do whatever it takes but this time I'm doing it the right way".

I kept looking for something that will motivate me like the GYM but I'm too cheap to pay for the monthly dues .How about swimming??? Yeah ,but then I would have to hire somebody to teach me coz I don't know how to swim( what a shame for a girl who was born in a country surrounded by oceans & seas and I wont be caught dead wearing swim suit w/ my gutt hanging out ).

I thought about getting an exercise bike after seeing it on FitTV & heard that you can burn enough calorie if you do it 30 mins to an hour. I thought "that's great , I can get on the bike & pedal away while watching my favorite show". Anything that can help me get in shape w/o having to drag my 2 kids or pay for a babysitter. The bike isn't cheap either but I figure it's a great investment . I made a deal w/ my husband that I will start using my work out DVD again everyday if he gets me the bike . I kept my end of the bargain & so tomorrow I'm getting my new exercise bike .

I am spending my money on this baby instead of new clothes & shoes so I'd better stick w/ it.

I highly recommend this work out dvd if you wanna tone your abs & thighs. The Accelerated Body Sculpting work out & the Pilates Fat Burning for cardio are what I use & it's guaranteed result if you do it regularly & w/ healthy diet.

~~Beauty Tips~~

I have discovered an amazing product that gave my skin great result.It's a little pricey but hey, it's totally worth it. After using this stuff , I didn't even need to wear foundation any more. Just a light press powder & I'm good to go. Skin is soft,supple,evenly toned & it almost feels like your skin was literally renewed. Once you tried them you will never go back to your old cream.

These 2 I use in the morning


And these 2 at night. Just make sure that you wash your face before applying this cream.
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My Little Angels

Buckle Up!!
He's Belting Out A Song.
Have a great weekend to everyone.

A Survey

Tell Everyone About Yourself
Time started::	5:00 pm
Basic About you:
Name::	Just Mel
Gender::	female
Height::	tall enough
Eye color::	Dark Brown
Hair Color::	Dark brown
Age::	Old enough
Birthday::	Sometime in May
Lefty/righty/ambidextrous::	righty
Piercings::	ears
Tatoos::	thinkin about it
Zodiac Sign::	gemini
Ring Size::	the size of my husband's thumb
Grade::	highly lols
More about you:
Are you named after anyone?:	No , but my gradpa gave me my name
Do you live in the moment?:	definitely
Do you consider yourself tolerent to others?:	yeah I guess so
Do you have any secrets?:	hhmmm,.....some
Do you hate yourself?:	when I get too nervous & acting like a kid
Do you like your handwriting?:	yeah, I try to write nice
Do you have any bad habits?:	not sure
If you were another person, would you be friends with you?:	hahhaaa....no
Any regrets?:	none that I could think of right now but I'm sure there's some.
Do you think life has been good so far?:	yes
Are you confident?:	not 100%
How long does it take you to shower?:	5 min minimum
What color is your room?:	beige
Where do you want to attend college?:	Western Culinary Institure or OHSU
Do you...?
Smoke?:	5 years ago
Do drugs?:	NEVER
Drink?:	yeah, on occasion
Go to church?:	not in a while :(
Sleep with stuffed animals?:	my honey is my big teddy bear
Take walks in the rain?:	In Oregon yeah.
Talk to people even if you hate them?:	Yeah but I can't hide my true feelings
Drive?:	yes
Believe in premarital sex?:	Nope
Want to get married?:	already did
Want to go to college?:	yes
Want to have children?:	already have kids & I'm so done
Sing in the shower?:	yupp
Get along with you parents?:	yupp
Get along with your sibling/s?:	yupp
Color/highlight your hair?:	yes,
Like coffee?:	a lot
Wear makeup everytime you go out?:	yes, ven when I'm not going out. I like looking nice
Love roller coasters?:	yes
Like to cook?:	very much
Have you ever...?
Hurt yourself? :	many times
Been out of the country?:	a few times
Been in love?:	everyday
Done drugs?:	never ever
Gone skinny dipping?:	I wish!!!
Had surgery?:	2x , C section
Played strip poker?:	not yet
Been on stage?:	many times
Pulled an all nighter?:	not yet
Gone one day without food?:	are you talking about suicide :)
Slept all day?:	I wish
Kissed a stranger?:	hhmmm does kiss on the cheek counts?
Had a dream that came true?:	yeah, a few
Broken the law?:	caught shop lifting when I was 13 :)
Stolen anything?:	nope
Been on radio/tv?:	yeah
Been in a mosh-pit?:	nope
Bungee jumped?:	not yet but I will definitely try someday
Had a dream that kept coming back?:	yeah
Gone out of state?:	yeah , love road trips
Live in other states?:	yeah , NY
Eaten an entire box of oreos?:	nope
Had a movie marathon?:	yup . That' what we like to do on a weekend
Spun until you were immensely dizzy?:	when I was a kid I did that
Been on a plane?:	a lot of times
Ran into a wall?:	nope
Been rejected by a crush?:	yeah, but only because I was only 10 that time
Cried in public?:	yes, I'm such a cry baby :)
Cried over a movie?:	you bet
Pranked called someone?:	nope, my husband tricked me one time coz he's very good in copying foreign accent.
Gotten a cavity?:	yeah ( blush)
Shopped at Abercrombie and Fitch?:	nope, but I did went there just to look around
Broken a bone?:	no
Fallen from a tree?:	no, but I did fell off a moving car
Passed out?:	yeah , the millenium party
Been to a theme park?:	yeah
Eaten sushi?:	I devour them
This or That
Pepsi or Coke::	Coke diet
McDonalds or BUrger King::	BK
Chocolate or Vanilla::	Chocolate
Black or White::	Both
Burgers or Hot dogs::	Burgers
Boxers or breifs::	boxers
Book or magazine::	both
TV or radio::	TV. Oregon has shitty FM radio
is the glass half empty or half full::	half full...always
sun or moon::	both
hot or cold::	cold
romantic comedy or thriller::	Both
waffles or pancakes::	Both
Florida or california::	Never been to either one
Black and white or color photos::	both
The city, the beach, OR the country::	all of them
Tennis shoes or sandals::	Sandals
Sweet or sour::	sweet
Private or publie school::	Private
Cappuccino or coffee::	coffee
English or history::	history
Science or math::	math
Do you believe ...?
in miracles?:	Yes
in magic?:	yes
in God?:	of course
in Satan?:	yeah
in ghosts?:	yeah
in luck?:	yes
in love at first sight?:	yes
in Santa?:	yes
in the Easter Bunny?:	not sure
in witches?:	yes, there are some in my family
that it's possible to remain faithful forever?:	yes most definitely
in wishing on shooting stars?:	yup
that cussing is a necessity in life?:	yes, it spice it up a bit
yourself?:	yes I do
Love and all that -
Do you consider love a mistake?:	No
If someone you had no interest in had interest in dating you how would you:	I wont give him falls hope
Do you prefer knowing someone before dating them?:	yes
What is worst about the opposite sex?:	It's hard for them to understand us female
Who and when was your first crush?:	Ralph Machio "the karate Kid"
First thing you notice about the opposite sex?:	eyes, the windows to their soul
Right this moment...
What are you wearing?:	my wrinkle free black buttton up shirt
What are you worried about?:	life in general....and my wieght
What book are you reading?:	none for now
What time is it?:	It's 5:45pm
Are you bored?:	yeah sometimes
Are you tired?:	most of the time
Are you talking to anyone online or on the phone?:	my husband. we talk all the time on YM or email or phone
Are you lonely or content?:	I'm content
Are you listening to music, if so then what?:	I'm listening to my kids screaming in the next room
The Last...
Dream you had::	can't remember my dream usually
Nightmare::	can't remember too
Time you cried::	The other day.
Movie you watched::	I saw Ocean's 11 for the umph x the other day
Movie you rented::	never rent
Book you read::	Kids book for my daughter
Word you said::	a lot...
Time you laughed::	last second ago.
Person to call you::	My husband , mother-in-law
CD you played::	The Frays
Song you listened to::	Listen by Beyonce
annoyance::	kids hihiiii but I love them to death
IM sent or recieved::	from my husband
Time you yelled::	10 mins ago
Person you yelled at::	my kids
time you were a skirt::	centuries ago. I never wear skirt
time you fought with your parents::	when I was 12-14
Time you wished on a shooting star::	just recently
Thing you ate::	rice & chicken teriyaki
Time you showered::	3 hours ago
Nail polish color worn::	Red by Revlon
Your favorite:
Type of gum::	trident
Restaurant::	Charter Restaurant, Portland
Season::	all four
Type of weather::	early summer
Emotion::	I am very emotional
Color::	Black,Red,Navy Blue
Perfume::	Happy Clinique
Candy::	Almond Roca
Pizza topping::	Pineapple pepperoni
Fruit::	mango
Veggie::	all of them
Type of cake::	Black Forest cake
Magazine::	Any fashion & fitness mag
TV Show::	House MD,Law & Order SVU & CI
Day of the week::	Saturday
Month::	May & December
Holiday::	Christmas
Number::	5
Sport to watch::	Baseball,Basketball
Flower::	Rose & white lily
Finally...
Time Finished::	5:58pm
Take this survey Find more surveys MySpace Surveys Bzoink - The Original Survey Site

Time To Get Serious

I have been too comfortable lately. All those motivation that I had last summer to keep in shape just vanished .Winter came & along with it brought me extreme laziness and a total lost of focus with my fitness goals. It's hard for me to believe that just last October I was so into working out & eating healthy. I was working out everyday sometime for 2 hours or more. I was watching my calorie intake & making sure that I didn't go over my limit of 1200 cal/day.

I know I wasn't eating like crazy but the absence of physical activities & being cooped at home all winter are the reasons why I can't fit into my petite size4 jeans anymore. August of last year I could even squeezed in size 2 . It may not seems that much if you look at the numbers , 1-2 size bigger...but for my height , it is VERY BIG of a difference.

Memorial Day weekend & those ubiquitous ads about sales & discounts at the malls lured me into braving the flood of shoppers trying to get good finds & bargains. Husband being supportive (or maybe he's also thinking of the discounts ) he went w/ me & watched Shinjo while Princess & me went elbow-to-elbow w/ hundreds of women's at two of my favorite store White House Black Market and Calvin Klein . I really thought it's gonna be a fun shopping experience but turned out the exact opposite. I was trying on a nice shirt & pants but I was so out of shape I nearly cried because it felt like I was looking at a different person in the mirror. That wasn't me.....I used to look good w/ this kind of outfit :( Frustrated ,disappointed & devastated...I stormed out of the store empty handed. Grant couldn't believe his eyes . He wasn't quite sure whether to feel bad thinking he didn't give me enough time or to be glad knowing I didn't spend a single penny that day. I was heart broken...."What did I do to myself?" " Why did I let myself go?".....but of course I already know the answers to that .

So today , I begin. I want my old self back & 'Dagnammit I'm getting it.I begin w/ a more realistic goal & a better open mind.No more diet pills or crash diets. Just good old fashioned healthy & balanced mind & body.I don't want to be super skinny like Lindsey Lohan.. I just want to see myself in the mirror & feel good again. To look good again wearing my favorite clothes.

May 29,2007 I weigh in at 130 ( gosh I've never gone this heavy before ...not when I am not pregnant)Back to counting calories but not to the point of starving myself. I need the energy to play w/ my kids. Back to working out even at least 45 mins a day and since summer is here maybe I will add a little bit of outdoor activities.

Every week I will post my progress. Hopefully this will help me get more motivated to continue & not procrastinate.

To be fit & feel good again ...that's my goal & my gift to myself.

It's May

Time to celebrate Mother's Day .

The things that mother's do...we deserve not only a celebration once a year but every day.
I got 2 kids but it's feels like one football team.
I have nothing but admiration to those women who were able to raise more than 2 kids...coz frankly , it's more than I could handle. I can't remember when's the last time I finished a book , a novel or even the Sunday newspaper. But ask me how many children's book I've read coz I got a long list for yah.

Motherhood.....exhausting .....but even so....it's the most rewarding. Just wait till you hear your little kiddo call you in their most sweetest voice ( even though at most times, they did something bad & they are tryin to get your symphaty) . Waking up in ungodly hour to just a slight cry or weird noise in the kids' room. Heck , when I was a teenager my mom would almost spalsh cold water on me just to wake me up hahhahaa..and she said to me " there will be earthquake, fire, war..& you still wont wake up". Kinda miss those days sometimes. Hmmm.... children.....they are a full time job...but also your most valuable & life changing experience.

To all the mothers , Salute!!!



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May is also our Wedding Anniversary.

It's been 5 years and it's been good, can't complain really.
Lots of things happened , some good , some bad , but mostly good
and the bads only made our marriage stronger & deeper.
Along w/ the kids...our relationship has s also grown into maturity & more understanding.
Like we don't have to explain to each other anymore why the dinner isn't ready yet, or if we forgot certain appoinments.....just w/ one look & we know why....mutual understanding...I think it's very important. Saves you time arguing & who should sleep in the couch..lols.
All I wish for our wedding anniversary is........more....more of our love , more of our trust , more of our understanding........just a little bit more & every year.....and I think we will last....for a lifetime.

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and May is the month I was born.

At 30 something...I'm thankful how my life turned out.
I guess I'm one of the lucky ones.
I don't have anything to wish for ...'cept for a brand new BMW suv, a nice house in Skyline next to those.hhhmmmm...what do they cll them now???? ahh,....luxury homes...hhaaahaaa...,maybe a vacation , on a caribbean cruise or Europe in autum wont be too bad.....nothing too glamourous.....just that....hahahhahaha...hey I was told that if you dream, aim high.

Seriously , my birthday wish is to always be healthy & strong for my kids , in good shape & good mood for my husband *wink* and just peace to all man kind ...,that's all.


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