Mia in Blue

School Days

This was taken April this year before she had eyeglasses and before another haircut. In preschool, they are not obliged to wear uniform but I still bought a couple of jumpers and t-shirts just so she'll not feel left out.

Since Spring started I always dress her up with other play clothes and Jose disapproves of this. I pointed out how much clothes Mia has and I can't just let them be overgrown. Besides, as I've said, uniform is really not mandatory. So there... I will play dress up with my daughter for as long as I can because sooner or later she'll have her own preferences and that's the time I would gladly step aside. Well, I'm quite confident that she'll be on the conservative side because she does not want to wear skirt or dress without shorts, leggings or tights. Oh yeah!

When Mia turns five, Jose can push it and I'll zip... because they must wear uniform. ;)

See more school kids here. Happy weekend!

Golosinos in UK # 8

I have mentioned from the previous post about lack of time… It is because every last week of the month spells major home cleaning, online grocery shopping at Tesco and Pinoyminimall, and some more shopping for Mia. (As I have mentioned before, the budget I used to allot for her nappies are now for other growing up girl stuff i.e. books, clothes, shoes, toys…).

I’ve been meaning to take a picture of Tesco’s delivery van but it is only now that I found the right timing. (You know, I can’t get the Delivery people speculate…) I took these shots from Mia’s room.

Online Grocery Shopping Rocks!

Delivered to our kitchen!

Our kitchen, I would say is a pretty good size compared to most 2 bedroom houses that I have seen when we were searching for a house to buy. And the kitchen is the first room I would always look for. I want it enclosed. Open plan is something that doesn’t fancy me because I don’t want the whole house to smell food especially when I am cooking shrimp paste. Jose would always tell me that he would want to have our kitchen’s walls removed. I told him I will never cook if he insists. So the only option really is to remodel. I have checked Minneapolis Remodeling and their services are quite impressive. It is true that the remodeling business is a sure hit nowadays because people would opt to improve than to move as the latter would cost more, obviously. I just hope that in time, we’ll have enough savings to buy an entire kitchen showcase as what we’ve seen in Ikea. I’d really want to have my kitchen floor in matte tiles, and the whole room would be full of doors. Cabinet doors, that is! Nevertheless I would say that I love our kitchen. Until we could afford to remodel, I could always clean. A clean kitchen is hard enough to maintain so I’ll focus on that first.

I also want to share a few of my cool finds...

Finally! I found something like Nabisco’s Choco Mallows. Friends, let me show you… the tea cake. Imagine! After three years, I only discovered it through Sammie’s birthday party. And her family has only been here for a month then. Talk about blessing.

Next is this:

You would not want to know how long we’ve been using our fingers… Ulk! Dental floss nor harp floss are not always the first choice. :D

Then this:

Wooden skewers? Barbecue stick lang kasi alam ko e! I wanted to have these since I discovered Mama Sita’s Barbecue Mix but I guess looking on the brighter side works best all the time. I would always tell Jose that our pork barbecue is better without the stick because we can eat it ASAP. Kidding aside, I have seen a pack at Debenhams three months ago, but I can’t push myself to buy 50 pieces for £4! NO WAY! I wonder if it’s made to be recycled… Yuck! So, Tesco’s 100 pieces for 97p? Gorge-ous!

Here is a list why Online Grocery Shopping works best for me.

1. £3 for delivery charge is better than paying for taxi fare or fuel.
2. I save £s through online coupons.
3. I can stick to our monthly budget.
4. I only spend less than an hour grocery shopping - as all the items I usually buy are saved under Favorites, I don’t have to look for them one by one.
5. Free time or weekend is spent doing other fun things.

There She Goes # 16

New found lovely friends plus any occasion equals so many things to blog about. But I haven’t got time for it. I miss blog hopping too. Thank you to everyone who dropped by and left comments.

But I can’t let these slip…

Last Sunday, Father’s Day, I was so annoyed because the gift that I was supposed to give Jose was out of stock. I was left with no choice but to settle with the heartfelt blog post I made that day. Anyway, because of that, I forgot about the Father’s Day card that Mia was supposed to finish. Thankfully, Jose was in deep slumber even at 10am. And this is how the trying-to-be-very-quiet- card-making went…

Me: Mia! Come here!
Mia (Too engrossed with her new DS game): Mom! I am busy.
Me: Ok, one minute. No, 10 seconds! Oh please come now, Daddy might wake up!
Mia: Huh?
Me: It’s Father’s Day remember? You haven’t finished the card!
Mia: Oh yessss! Let’s hurry flurry scurry!
Me: Ok, let’s make this cut out look like Dad.
Mia: Mom can we color Dad’s shirt red? That’s his favorite color. Then his shoes blue because that’s your favorite. Aw! What about my favorite? Daddy’s pants cannot be pink!
Me: We’ll just put pink inside the card ok? Now put a face.
Mia: And purple? That’s my favorite too.
Me: Alright. But Mia why is Daddy’s face like that?
Mia: Mom! He’s looking for me. He looks grumpy because he can’t find me… Because I’m very good in playing hide and seek.
Me: Ah… Ok. That’s fine. Now inside the card, write D-A-D then write your name. Then let’s put a heart.
Mia: Mommy! Why a heart? It’s not Valentine’s Day!
Me: Hmmm… you’re right. What about balloons?
Mia: Silly Mom! It’s not his birthday! *Giggles*
Me: So what are we going to put in there?
Mia: I know! Let’s put a butterfly then two flowers. Daddy’s the butterfly because that is his most favorite insect and we will be the flowers. Well, because we are girls and girls like flowers right? I’ll be pink and you’ll be… blue? Mom, can you be just yellow?
Me (Too proud of her plan): Brilliant! I don’t mind being a yellow flower.
Then as I drew the butterfly and she finished coloring, she was sooo excited that she dashed right away to Jose…
Mia: Daddy! Wakey wakey! Good morning! Happy Father’s Day!
Jose: Aw! Thank you Mia.
Mia: Look, I told Mom to put a butterfly and… Grrr! Wait Dad I’ll be back again. (Then she rushed back to me).
Me (Pretending to be innocent): What did he say?
Mia: Mom! We forgot the flowers! Draw two flowers here. Quick!
Me: Well, you didn’t wait. That’s what you get for not waiting.
Mia: Oh bother!


For reference:

Grumpy Dad / Butterfly Daddy

With the Flowers! :D

And as we finished putting the two flowers, she went upstairs and did the same greeting to Jose like nothing happened. :D


Our whole Sunday afternoon was spent at Ikea, Jose’s place to be. Well, for a non-shopping enthusiast like my husband, Ikea is a definite rule bender. It’s a good all-in-one family store that’s why I like it too. Well, there’s shopping (obviously!), eating, tea/coffee/hot choco all you want, and time out with Jose (even for only 45 minutes) because of the free crèche they offer. Here are some pictures that day:

Fetched from free crèche...

We love Ikea!

We chose to sit very near to the Market Hall’s play area so Mia can have fun while we were having our dessert and hot choco. She was so thrilled with the green rocker that I let her play with it longer so when it’s time to get the items from our list, she’ll not want to get off the trolley because of exhaustion. I guess that rocker gave her more than that…

Out of the very big warehouse, Mia screamed, “Rocking boat! Mom! There’s the rocking boat!” very loud that all people looked our way. I was so embarrassed because I don’t know what she meant by “rocking boat” and that all I can see are brown boxes in huge shelves. So she continued screaming until I found the rockers colored black and red. So you just guess how long it took for me to see the thing! I was so excited for Mia that I almost screamed too when I saw… the price. The rocker is only £5 something! I could not believe how cheap it was! And it does the purpose alright? Even on carpets. Jose hearts the color of course and he plays with it too.

The rest of the day was spent fixing and building and cleaning and moving and until now, I am sooo tired. But very happy.

And speaking of happy, here are our first MK friends…

Kuya Rob, Alex, Ate Cech and Sammie / Jose with Ate Belle

While the Cat is not looking... look at the mouse! (Maybe she wants to taste the charcoal...) :D

Who wants Wii? We!!!

Everytime we enter their house, we can't help ourselves but exclaim how clean and immaculate the whole place is! The carpet is spotless and even the walls! Oh the walls! It's really a tough decision to keep the walls fixture and fitting free when a family is just starting on the property ladder. As much as possible, you wouldn't want any holes on them that's why having a welcoming hue of wall paint is important - be it in a room or the entire house's. I wonder how much it would cost to have our walls professionally repainted, especially Mia's room. Maybe Boise Painting could make a good deal for an estimate. I am thinking to have it splashed with soft tones of pink and purple then ours would have turquoise and red! Kidding! Haha! I'll leave our room alone. It just annoys me whenever I clean our room and I'll notice how poorly our wall paint was done. There are spots in places where there shouldn't be. I could only imagine who did the job. I really think that the previous owner of our house fooled us in many ways. He was more on "hiding" the ugly truths when we would really appreciate things more if we don't wait and guess what needs to be fixed next. Oh well, I guess that's just how he deals with business. I am just lucky than I have my own "Handy Manny" in Jose. :D

Kuya Rob, Ate Cech, Alex, Sammie and Ate Belle are the source of enthusiasm and guilt-free happiness that we are experiencing right now. Expect to hear a lot about them as when I asked Ate Cech for her permission to be “exposed” through my blog, she replied with, “Basta ba maganda kami sa pictures! Walang problema...” Well, her family has more than a pretty face. What made me crazy about them even more are their stories about how their family life revolves around God. And as Jose puts it, they are a breath of fresh air… a wonderful blessing. Oh I am just so happy!

This Father's Day...

Sa lahat ng mga Tatay na nagpasaya at nagpapasaya sa buhay ko, kamag-anak, kaibigan at bagong mga kaibigan...

~o~

I have seen the greatness of different fathers. There’s my Lolo Daddy; my five uncles (Tito Jody, Tito Rommel, Tito Dino, Tito Bing and Tito Glenn); my brother-in-law, Jd; my father-in-law, Tatay Dionie; and my husband. To have known all of them, I am so grateful to the greatest father of all, God the Father.

If you’d read my roll call once more, one father is missing. And that is my Papa. I am a girl who would forever feel jealous (and happy at the same time) when I hear wonderful “Daddy stories” from other people...

My Papa used to be the father one could ever ask for. He’s a dentist, a politician by heart, a ladies’ man, the cool uncle, and the favorite son. But he is also the ONLY son-in-law - he who never had his own house, he who can’t make a say without hearing grunts from people around him, and he who never felt how it is to be “padre de pamilya” because my Lolo Daddy is considered as THE padre. (Although my Lolo never insinuated that stand).

Over time, my Papa became a very insecure man. We used to celebrate Christmas and New Year feeling all fidgety because we don’t know if he will come out from their room to join us. He doesn’t have all the money in the world. He would always think that if he has more, he could be and would be treated more. Thing is, he wasn’t very good in keeping up with having more. So... He has done things that would somehow justify a child to dishonor a parent. Luckily, my Mama taught me how it is to be a good daughter.

It is funny that until this moment, I can’t deny the fact that I miss and I love him. I want him to become a Papa to me once more; he whom I could never ask for more. If only... I wish I could go on because there is really a lot to say about how I feel for him. But I must stop.

I’d like to end this by writing a letter to Mia. Please read on too. :)

Dear Mia,

I can’t express enough how happy I am every time I see your Daddy reading good morning time, naptime, good afternoon time and bedtime stories to you. I would always tease him that he’s such a funny reader. He has a VERY loud voice and he speaks words with too much effort. Little did he know that I envy you sooo much. I know that when you grow up, confidence will never be a problem because you have all the right reasons to be proud; mostly, because of him.

Your Daddy amazes me with how he instills discipline in a very loving way. I am a coward in that aspect because I panic and overreact most of the time. But Daddy knows what must be done.

Mommy is very bad in Math and all that comes with it. But Daddy takes care of our finances wisely. I am sure you’ll get all the things you’ll need. I repeat, need.

He knows when to hug you and when you need his kisses the most. I sometimes feel that his hugs and kisses are more special because of the magic they bring to you.

He dances crazily when you ask him, he sings beautifully just whenever. Most of all, he works madly just to let you have the best life he could ever give. Your Daddy is utterly, completely and absolutely in love with you. He is just crazy about you.

Mia, whatever this life brings, always keep in mind the goodness of your Dad. Forgive him when he reprimands you even when you don’t understand. I promise you, someday you will know why.

Praise Thee Father for you are one lucky and blessed girl; firstborn of Jose Dionisio R. Golosino.

With all my heart loving you and your Dad,

Mommy

Dad's Little Butterfly Mia / Mia Coloring a Butterfly for Dad

Perfect 10

THAT'S MY DADDY!

Jose is EVERYTHING Mia could ask for in a father. She has his (1) charming youth, his (2) precious time, his (3) solid energy, his (4) hot skills, his (5) amazing wit, his (6) 100% faithfulness, his (7) bank account and his (8) overflowing LOVE. There is NOTHING Jose will not do for Mia.

Jose is Mia's (9) greatest gift.

Jose is truly my (10) answered prayer.

We are SO PROUD of him.

Celebrate the generation of sweet and responsible Daddies. See more here.

5 Awards and My Top 5

I've received five blogging awards! Woohoo! These are:

1. The Best Follower Award - I'm kind of a stalker that way actually. Bwahaha!

Thanks Genebei !

My five blogger friends whom I really love to hear from are:

Cee , Che-Che, Beth, Seiko, and Yaying

2. The Perky Award - Oh yes! I like this so much whatever "perky" means. That's good right?

Thanks Kero !

My five Most Perky buds would be:

Ate Pinky, Kuya Keith , JoyD, Pehpot, and Willa

3. A Lovely Blog Award - I have received this award in many shapes and sizes but I STILL want to keep getting it. Feel na feel ko talaga. :D

Thanks Mommy Seiko !

The 5 Lovely Blogs I want to share this with are blogs of:

Cheche, Chris, Denden, Jacris, and Yami

4 and 5. Creative Mom Blogger Award - This is an anniversary award given by Jacris and I am just so happy that I was nudged as part of her list. And what joy to receive it twice! So...

Thanks Jacris and Chris !

The simple rules:

♥ Take your award and put the logo on your post.

♥Link the person who awarded you.Remember each recipient of the award should acknowledge the person who honored them and go to Mom's Special Diary to copy and paste the award.

♥Put your own blog title and link.

♥Nominate at least five deserving moms.1.Mom's Special Diary 2. The Mommy Journey 3. Twinkie Calls 4.You're Next!

The 5 Most creative Mommy bloggers I know would definitely be:

Ate Weng, Jes, Kero, Genebei and Bams

Please grab your awards anytime my dear blogging friends!

Twinkie Calls HELP

Please HELP!

Based from my little knowledge about gettting a custom domain, my old blog address which is http://twinkiegolosino.blogspot.com, should be redirected to my new one. I am just wondering why it isn't now. Last week, it was working fine, but now, IT DOES NOT.

I tried checking the Publishing tab from my dashboard and it clearly shows this:

We won't leave your readers behind!
http://twinkiegolosino.blogspot.com will redirect to your custom domain.

Now what should I do? Any tips?

And just in case you still haven't notice, it's now http://www.twinkiecalls.com. Please update. Thank you!

Our Backyardigan

OUTDOOR FUN

So the sun was quite generous and this week's theme is a perfect fit with our afternoon activity. While Mia and I were having a blast, Jose interrupted us and asked if it's best to do remittance today since UK stocks is doing great. When we first came here the exchange rate is around P90 per £1, but now P78 is already a dream. And finding the the best rate provider is also another story. Well anything about money like CD rates is kind of shaky nowadays so what's the best thing to do? Look on the brighter side of our lives. And simple joys like creating a mini "beach" in our backyard is one sure way of having outdoor fun.

So...

Sand 'N Water Table, check!

Rainbow pool, check!

Bubbles? Check, check, check!

And more bubbles, check! :D

We had a three and a half hour nap after. What happiness!

Please check out Chris' link on my Daily Reads to see more Mommy Moments entries. :)

Chic in Chucks

I can’t get enough of Mia’s hot pink Chucks. It’s best for any season. It keeps her feet warm during chilly days and just plain “cool” during summer. If only the size of her feet does not grow every three of four months, I would definitely buy her more than hot pink. I am so into the All Star hi cut design... just for Mia though. We, Mommy and Daddy could settle for the low cut. Another site to check out for outerwear (or shoes) is Maxpedition. They offer anything from tactical pants of different colors to tactical eyewear and best of all, if you buy two or more items from them; you get a free hat and free shipping too! Now I don’t know if Mia’s shoes can beat that coolness!

Houses

So I’ve mentioned that last Monday, Mia had a play date with one of her new found Filipino girlfriends; only one because the older girlfriend goes to school full time. Anyway, I can’t help but smile at this photo. The thing is, it’s not me who took the picture. It was Jose... mainly because the mothers are busy chitchatting. And maybe Jose can’t help but find the scene too cute not to capture. As you can see they are playing with Mia’s dollhouse. I so love this dollhouse because of its simplicity. If only it can be real, home improvement would be a breeze! (Like what needs improving right?) Speaking of cute guests, I was a bit conscious with our house because of the old furniture and fixtures like the kitchen sinks we have but I guess, one can be very forgiving as hard times hit this country in an all time low. And about dinner on Friday, I was teasing our generous friends that maybe we could have dinner in our place too except that we could not have a proper one because our dining table can only hold “the buffet”. Meanwhile, I know that what goes in the stomach and real fun found in friendship are better than any suave long dining table could give. :)

There She Goes # 15

Today marks Mia's 5th day without dede or bottle feeding. I've researched all over the net and read my What to Expect the Toddler Years book to find a tip or trick on how to make Mia stop drinking from the bottle. I panicked when I've read in one blog that a toddler must be stopped at age 2... max! It makes sense that tooth decay is the main reason this must not be prolonged but I just don't have the heart to brave the crying and pleading scene when it suddenly happened tea time of June 5th. And it went like...

Me: Mia, anak. You'll soon stop drinking from your bottle ok?
Mia: Ok.
Jose: Yes, starting tonight.
Me-in-panic-but-needs-to-back-my-insensitive-husband: Yes, tonight?
Mia: But Mom! (Starts to cry...) You can call me a baby from now on. I still need my bottle, please? Please?
Me (Close to tears): But Mia, I thought you're no longer a baby. You don't like being called a baby right? Only babies drink milk from the bottle...
Mia (Crying while trying to speak louder): Mom, Dad... please! I want to be a baby. I can still be a baby. But please?
Jose: But your bottles are gone. They were thrown and the garbage truck took them this morning. They are all gone. (Not true. Until now, they're in the steriliser).
Mia: Nooooooo!!! Oh please! Let's buy later, ok? Please Dad?
Me: (Cannot speak... If I had heart ailment, I could have died right that moment).
Jose: Ok. Tomorrow, I promise you, in the Disney store... You know the Disney store?
Mia nods while wiping and smudging tears...
Jose: Yes, you can choose whatever glass you like. Whatever.
Me: (In disbelief of the clever idea and very nice save...)
Mia: Can I buy Minnie Mouse?
Me (Smiling to Jose from ear to ear): Yes, whatever you like anak. Right Dad?
So Jose is not really the emotional type... but he answered YES in the sweetest way he can.

In short, hours of previous research went to nothing because I never read anything about "the new glass" tip or trick. (Now, I call it Jose's trick!) But it is important to take note that this moment is crucial for a toddler especially at Mia's age. Jose decided to do the process while he is still at home so that Mia will have both her parents around to support her. She should be understood more than ever, cuddled like every minute if possible and applauded with the efforts she makes. I am just so happy that Mia took the challenge without fits.

By the way, we didn't make it to Disney store. Because as soon as she saw the yellow mug with her name on at Toys R Us, she forgot about Minnie Mouse.

And I guess the timing could not be more perfect.

Mia found two Filipino girls to play with and she was invited in an actual birthday party!!! I only have good words to describe the lovely family we are now making friends with. We met them at church and our daughters glued in an instant. It's funny how Mia greeted them when she had the chance. According to Jose, she was so excited comparing her "Filipino hair" to them!

On June 6, our family attended "the first" birthday party. Mia had her first longest Happy Birthdaaay game (she lasted for two seconds), musical chairs game (she was the second out), pin Boo's eye game (she pinned it sooo out of target), newspaper dance game (her feet would go all over the place), piñata treats (she got a couple), and it was her first to choose a gift to give for a birthday celebrant. I don't mind that she didn't win in ANY of the fun games. I am just so happy for Mia. I guess she had the most neat and unharmed goody bag because the goodies that goes in her bag are all from consolation. :D

I am also proud with how Mia handled the gift giving part sensibly. You see even if Mia doesn't have a proper toy tea set (she only have a cup and saucer), when I asked her if she wants the same toy, she told me that it's not her birthday so she can't have it. Galing noh? She's always like that. She's someone who only gets one candy, one cookie, one sticker, one balloon, etc. even if she's been offered more than one.

I just have to say that the very cute celebrant had two candle-blowing moments. For the first take, Mia was the farthest from the birthday cake, she was the only kid on the other side of the table... So when the second was done for posterity, my daughter made sure to get close... so close "to help". ;D

I'm just relieved that they did not mind. As a matter of fact, it was followed by a play date last Monday... and dinner on Friday. We have been texting from time to time and I was also dearly asked how I was calling my relatives from the Philippines. I told her about magicJack, another of those VOIP phone systems which makes the latest buzz when it comes to keeping in touch with loved ones overseas. She said she's aware of it but I think what she's using is far more hitech. It was just so sweet of her to offer "her way". If you'd like to know more about phone systems like Call Recording, give Elitetele's site a go.

Oh I hope you are all as happy as I am right now. :)