Frannywanny

I still remember the first time I packed my twins' diaper bag. It was for an hour check-up with their pedia and I think I must have brought the entire house with us. I didn't want to take any chances for the possibility of one getting hungry or another having a poop explosion. I brought as much sets of clothes, wash clothes, receiving blankets, cotton balls and swabs, even a bottle of water, a pack of diapers, breast milk in a cooler pack, bottles, colic ointment, bonnet, mittens, booties, the list just went on and on! I think if only my bag could still accommodate, I would also have brought my nursing pillow. As a result, we were painfully carrying our super heavy bag all the way to the doctor's clinic and back. As my twins grew, the contents of their diaper bag has changed too. Gone are the booties, mittens and bonnets which are now replaced by extra bibs, socks and toys. I noticed also that we've become more efficient in packing that at some point, Yaya D even told...

A mother holds her children’s hands for a while, but their hearts forever  - Unknown While doing my research for work a couple of days ago, I chanced upon this quote and I liked it. For one, I think it's so true by just looking at how my own mommy cares for us. I've mentioned before that despite being an adult myself, I still do get my Mommy's weekly reminders -- eat well, exercise often, get enough sleep, don't stress yourself out so much, take vitamins, don't eat too many fatty/oily food, cook more veggies...and the list goes on and on. I live thousands of miles away from home and this doesn't stop my mom in sending me her daily sms to check whether I've had dinner, if I'm home and what am I doing up so late. Surprisingly, I do appreciate all these messages and nothing brightens my day than hearing from my family. Theater lovers -- Me and Mommy During one of my long walks home, I was able to think. Not about what I have to do at work, not abou...

*SPONSORED POST* It’s true when they say that being a mother goes on for a lifetime. I’m 30 and having been married for 3 years, this doesn’t spare me from receiving my mom’s endless reminders on a regular basis. We used to live under the same roof and even Paul would also be part “beneficiary” of her daily reminders to eat healthy, avoid fast food and to exercise. Readers of this blog must have noticed that I would always describe my Mommy as a very healthy eater. Well, she really is. I got to hand it to her as she can stare straight at a bag of chips while saying NO. No hesitations, no double takes. She makes sure that we have fruit and veggies for both lunch and dinner and for Christmas, she even gave me a free pass to her gym in hopes that I would finally start a more active regimen. It’s no wonder that she maintains a very sexy 23-inch waistline and still finds the need to exercise for health reasons. How I wish, I got that specific gene type from her. Going back to exercisin...

"I'll always be your Mommy even if you're married and you'll someday be a Mommy yourself..." That's my Mommy's constant line whenever she would nag me about certain things and I would tell her not to worry because I'm a grown woman. Up until this day, Mommy never fails to call me at exactly 7PM to ask for my whereabouts. I never really got off my curfew as Mommy would start looking for us (yes, Paul included) and wouldn't sleep until she knows we're on our way home. She would always ensure that our helper would prepare breakfast for us and that I have lunch to bring to work. Initially, I thought my Mom must be the most protective Mom in the world...that was until I saw how my Amah (grandmother) was when Mommy went to Japan for a vacation. Amah would call me every single day asking if I was able to talk to Mommy online. On days where her favorite radio announcer would announce that it's a rainy day in Japan, she would call and ask if Mommy...

Tonight, we bid the hopping Rabbit good bye and welcome the fiery Water Dragon at the struck of twelve midnight. While last year was a pretty happy and prosperous one for us, we are filled with more optimism and good wishes for the coming New Year!! :) For our family, we have scheduled our annual Chinese New Year celebration tomorrow as it is also my dear Mommy's birthday! My sister, Paul and I have been busy completing our lunch menu and we are just soooo excited for it! Truly a double lucky day for my Mom, don't you think? To make it extra lucky, our menu has 8 different variants : Cha Misua, Crunchy Calamares, Stuffed Chicken (Pat Po Kwe), Sauteed Prawns, Lengua with Mushroom, Spicy Eggplant Hot Pot, Dumplings (Jiao Zi) and my Kongkong's signature Pata Tim ! My mouth waters just at the thought of our lunch menu! It will be a mix of dishes prepared here at home, some to be prepared by Paul's talented Manang and others store-bought. :) It will be truly a busy m...

I've always called myself Daddy's Little Girl. This is probably because I grew up thinking that Papa has always been on my side while Mommy would always be there to protect my younger sister. Whenever my sister and I would have petty fights on who gets the best part of the chicken, who should have more TV time and a lot more, our parents would play referee and it was Papa who would give in to my whims while Mommy has remained to be my disciplinarian, which in my eyes as a kid equals to a villain in any fairy tale. Papa would shower me with every little thing that I asked for. Be it a weekly supply of my favorite chips and cookies, never-ending purchase of my favorite pocket book, a trip to the amusement center and a lot more. For me, Papa was my knight in a shining armor who showered me with so much love every single day. Back then, Mommy and I never saw each other eye-to-eye. How she limits my fried rice intake made me feel like she was depriving me of my favorite food. ...

Today we celebrate Mother's Day . A special day where we are given the chance to thank and acknowledge the only woman who would love us forever and ever -- our Mom. This year, I'd like to say thank you to the three special women in my life... To my Amah , who continuous to keep herself updated with our lives. She's my biggest fan -- from supporting my culinary dreams to being the proudest grandma in her group who would brag about our achievements -- big or small. My Amah is the sweetest person I know, she never complains nor demands anything from us, she appreciates the littlest things that we do and finds joy in the simplest way. Amah, wo ai ni :) To my soon-to-be Mother-in-Law, Auntie Baby . while we rarely get to see each other that often, I enjoy every single dinner spent with her as she continuous to reach out and gives us sound advice. I'm thankful that she welcomed me into her family and I look forward to more bonding moments in the near future. :) Thank...

Here's my latest discovery with Mommy during one of our shopping dates in SM Megamall . Located at the second level of The Atrium, we found HK Choi which is the sister restaurant of Choi Garden , our favorite Chinese restaurant in Annapolis street here in San Juan . The ambiance looks very formal with mellow Chinese music playing at the background, servers were in the usual Chinese get-up and pretty rotating lanterns on the ceiling are lined up near the window area overlooking EDSA. We were led to one of their comfy couches as we marveled at the beautiful interiors of the restaurant. In our family, my Mom's the food expert and so she also took care of ordering for the two of us that day. For starters, Mommy chose the Xiao Long Pao (Php.90). She has always been searching for good Xiao Long Paos here in Manila ever since she tasted the real thing at Din Tai Fung during one of her trips to Singapore. :) For her, the best Xiao Long Pao must still have the soup inside th...