Happy Day

Today is a happy day. We are reunited with Ma and Pa again. They are back here in the US to visit and await the birth of my nephew--my brother's second son. They'll be staying with us for about a month before heading out to Missouri, where my brother lives.

I am just happy to see them once again, happy that God granted them a safe trip, and happy that God has given them good health so they are still able to travel. Lucas and Nathan loves them and are thrilled to be with them.

They will be at my brother's on Thanksgiving Day, but we are going to be spending Christmas together, and New Year's too. They'll be around on my birthday and days later we will celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary.  Exciting times are ahead of us!  There is so much to look forward to!

Lost Too!

Speaking of lost, a man whom we once knew as a good shepherd has gone astray.

A scandal erupted in our parish this week. Imagine our shock when we were informed at mass on Sunday that one of the three priests in our beloved parish of St. Isabella has been arrested and in jail for inappropriate behavior.  Without knowing any details, the first thing that came to my mind was, "this better not involve a minor!" Thank God, it didn't (as far as we know)!

The story is now all over the local news. If you want to know more, read here.  I would only caution you that it's not a nice read at all! And for those of you who respect and value the sacredness of the priesthood, you might find this sickening!

This was not only a big blow to us parishioners of St. Isabella, this was a huge disappointment to our Filipino community here. Yes, he is a Filipino priest, to make matters worse.

I know we're all humans. We make mistakes and we all have our limitations. I am in no position to judge. But there is such a thing as common sense and a human's ability to distinguish right from wrong. I can only wish that he had used it before doing what he did. We all have our share of sacrifices, and I know that committing to a vocation like his requires a lot of it. I only wish he had sacrificed a little more for the greater good.

May God pardon him, be with him in this trying time and lead him to a better path.  I pray.

Lost

I got lost biking a few days ago. I was exploring trails and found one on the internet that looks like a scenic one.  I followed it. A few miles later, I found myself at a dead end of a road, right at the foot of a hill.  I've already biked for 40 minutes and going back would take me another 40 minutes, which I thought was going to be too long. I pulled out my iPhone to see if there was another route I could take only to realize that there was no cell phone reception in that area.  Crap!

Then I found a hiker who said she lives close by. I asked if she knew of another way to go to Lucas Valley Road (the part of the trail that supposedly leads to home).  I am one who is never shy about asking directions. She said it was very close. It's on the other side of the hill, and the quickest way to get there was through the hill. Otherwise, I'd have to go back.  

So I had a choice between riding back or hiking through the hill with my bike in tow. That afternoon, I was supposed to pick up Lucas from day care so I chose the latter, which was supposedly a quicker option. I was wrong. The hike turned out to be miserable. I went through dirt roads, boulders, gravel and very steep paths, I slid down so many times!  I was not even halfway yet I was so exhausted. A mountain biker passed by and wished me a good ride. I tried to respond but no voice came out of me. I had completely dried out my throat! It was so hot that day and ran out of water. It then dawned on me that the trail I took was a mountain bike trail, designed for off-road riders--pro level at that. It was too late to go back. I had to go on. 

Long story short, I managed to reach the top of the hill and what a relief it was! I survived! And not only did I find a perfect view of San Rafael, Marin County, the East Bay and San Francisco from afar (photo above), I also got my cell phone reception back, which allowed me to call the husband and ask him to pick up Lucas. Going downhill from up there wasn't as bad as going up. 

It was that time when I questioned myself, "what on earth did you get yourself into?!" It was also that time when I realized that I live in such a beautiful neighborhood that ought to be explored more. 

Braised Oxtail

Once upon a time, we had a favorite restaurant called Northbay. It was a Chinese place but they made both traditional and non-traditional Chinese food so good.  My former co-workers and I used to frequent the place. It was our "overtime hangout" (we would always go there for dinner when we work overtime) because they closed late.

Everything there was so good, we probably tried their entire menu selection. So when they closed their doors some years back, we were so sad. We heard they opened a place in San Francisco but until now, we have yet to find them. Until now, we haven't found a place like them. And until now, we still remember their special dishes and how good they were.

One of our favorites was the Braised Oxtail in Red Wine sauce. They served the dish in a clay pot. It usually took a long time to cook, but we would wait for it anyway.  This was one of the dishes I clearly remember, and one that I miss the most.

Today, I saw that I had oxtail in the freezer. I usually get some and make them into a soup. But today was a very warm day, I didn't feel like making soup. I immediately remembered the oxtail dish at Northbay and thought it was time to give it a try. I remembered it tasted a bit like "Humba" (pork stew) and a bit like "Adobo", but it definitely had the taste of red wine. The taste of ginger was pretty prominent in the dish, and I thought maybe lemongrass would give it more aroma. So to make this dish, I had to combine the ingredients of Humba and Adobo and add the ingredients that I know should be there.

So here's the recipe that I came up with. I have to save this somewhere because I am definitely making this again. This was a huge success and I think I made the husband very happy.

You'll need:
About 3 lbs of oxtail
4 cups water
4 tbsp. soy sauce
1 cube beef bouillon
freshly ground pepper
ginger
2 tbsp vegetable oil
garlic (1 whole bulb), peeled and chopped into big pieces
yellow onion (1 whole bulb), chopped into big pieces
1 stalk lemongrass (tanglad), chopped into 4-inch pieces
green onions, chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 large carrot, cubed
2/3 cup red wine
2 tbsp oyster sauce
2-3 tbsp refined or brown sugar

In a pressure cooker, bring the oxtail to a boil with 4 cups of water, 2 tbsp of soy sauce, sliced ginger, beef bouillon and freshly ground pepper (sorry, I don't measure pepper--just put as much as you want). Pressure-cook until the oxtail is fall-off-the-bone tender, about 20 minutes. Set aside.

To make the sauce, heat 2 tbsp of vegetable oil. Cook the garlic, onions and lemongrass until golden brown. Add the carrots. Add soy sauce, red wine and 1 cup of the beef broth from the pressure cooker and simmer until reduced by nearly half. Add the cooked oxtail to the sauce and continue to simmer. Add oyster sauce and sugar. You may add more sugar until you achieve desired sweetness. Add the green onions last.

The fat from the oxtail will usually make the sauce thicker, but if it doesn't, add a little bit of corn starch dissolved in water until you achieve desired thickness of the sauce.

Discard the lemongrass before serving. By that time, it would have served its purpose.

Finally, serve with rice and enjoy dinner with people you love! :-)

Rafael

Today, I made a new commitment. Commitment to becoming active--to living a healthy life. Commitment to exploring our beautiful neighborhood, city and county.

Along with that commitment came Rafael, my new road bike. I've considered riding since summer of last year, but I waited and waited and waited, hoping that I can convince the husband to join me in this journey. I didn't think I was going to be successful if I ride alone. I know it was going to be more fun if done with a peer, partner or a group. But after a year of convincing, sometimes renting bikes so we could both try riding together, he is still not sold to the idea of biking. He said he would rather just run. He used to be a runner back in the days.

Finally, I just made up my mind to just go for it. My will is strong and I think I can be in this for the long haul even if I were to do this journey alone.  Besides, it was quite a big investment to acquire Rafael. I have to recoup that investment by riding as often as I can and getting the most mileage out of him.

Today, I took Rafael out for our first ride. We were out for only less than an hour but it was awesome. He is so light yet sturdy and smooth. It almost felt like we were off the ground instead of on it. It's only day one, but Rafael is already proving to be one great buddy of mine!

On Wedding Photography

I've known it before, but now I am even more convinced--

--that Wedding Photography isn't for me.

Two weekends ago, I was second-shooting for my cousin J, who covered her first wedding gig.  When she first asked me to shoot with her, I said "Sure!" without any hesitation.  It was not because I was confident in my ability to do a good job, but because it was a privilege for me to shoot next to my cousin on a real life event.

I have never believed in my ability to do wedding photography, and I thought that maybe the experience would change my mind about it.  I was wrong.

Those who have done this I think will agree with me that it's laborious, stressful and exhausting. But those who have the passion for it will find a way to make it fun and rewarding. That's the part I couldn't do. At the end of the day, my entire body ached and it went on for days. And while others would say, "it was worth it", I was thinking "I would never do this again".

I'd say half of my photos were fine. The other half were bad and some were just simply unusable. The photos I'm sharing here are among those I consider the good ones. I only hope I didn't disappoint my cousin too much!

I was assigned to the groom (thank God!) during the preparation, so most of my photos were that of the groom and his men.

The groom's dad was so much fun to photograph. He loved the camera and he was very cooperative, especially with the "acting" part (not all of the candid shots were really "candid". I had to let them act out some of them). I found it a little too uncomfortable at first being in the room with all men, but the old man made me feel very at ease.

I must say he's a good-looking groom.

The groom, like most, didn't really need so much time to prepare. So I still had a little bit of time with the bride too.

After the wedding (before the reception), we had to drive an hour (each way) to a winery for the bridal party photoshoot. My cousin and I didn't think it was a good idea and she tried hard to convince the bride not to do it. But the bride insisted and because it's her day, we had to let her be. We ended up with some good shots in a very nice setting, but the couple ended up having really upset, starving guests!

My take at Pandan Flan

This weekend, I had to give in to my craving for something sweet, egg-y and creamy.  I thought of making some custard cake or tart, but suddenly thought of that really delicious Pandan Flan that I had at Crimson Resort in Mactan last month.

I like a good Leche Flan, but I try to avoid the ones that are too rich (unfortunately, most of them are). But when we were at Crimson, they had, among the many dessert varieties at their buffet, a leche flan with a twist.  It was Pandan flavored and it was sinfully good. It was creamy but light, melted in your mouth and had just the right amount of Pandan flavor in it--not too aromatic or overpowering.  I vowed to make my version of it.

Pandan Flan, along with other desserts from Crimson Resort in Mactan, Cebu.

So here's my take at Pandan Flan or Pandan-flavored Leche Flan.  It turned out really good, but next time I might make it a little lighter. This was so rich and creamy, I can even taste the calories in it.  I might make the caramel a little less sweet too.

Freshly baked. I was so happy to see these babies come out of the oven. They smelled so good!

But overall I was so happy with this. I'm already thinking about serving this for dessert the next time I have the neighbors over.

Finished product. Creamy, rich and delicious flan.

If you want to try it yourself, here's the recipe:

8 egg yolks
2 whole eggs
1 can evaporated milk (if you want the flan to be lighter, try to substitute this with whole milk or 2%)
1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 cup refined or light brown sugar
1/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Mix the custard ingredients (eggs and milk) well in a glass bowl. Do not use an electric mixer. It will cause the mixture to bubble and will result in plenty of holes or craters in your flan. Just mix well with a whisk until smooth. Set aside.

Make the caramel. Mix the sugar and water and heat over medium-high while continuously stirring until it reaches caramel consistency (it should be light brown in color).  Place ramekins on a roasting pan. Divide the caramel among your ramekins, making sure the bottom is completely covered. Once the caramel hardens, pour the custard/flan mixture in each ramekin.

Pour boiling water in the roasting pan, about 1-inch deep.  Cover the roasting pan with aluminum foil and poke holes on it so steam can come out. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes.

Chill your flan before serving. Run a knife through the sides of the ramekin and invert the flan into a plate to serve.  Top with fruit--raspberry or strawberry makes for a good garnish.  Enjoy!

Success

I must give myself a pat on the back.  I've been living a healthy lifestyle for almost two years now, did lose weight as a result of it and maintained my weight at goal.

Ok. I did slip once in a while. Earlier this year, I went back up to 130 lbs.  But I quickly shed the pounds off before it went out of control.  And now I must admit, rather proudly, that I look fantastic in my vacation photos.

So as I was browsing through our photos earlier today, while I had my brother giggling on the phone [my siblings and I do that all the time--look at photos together while on the phone and laugh, make fun of, or compliment ourselves], I couldn't help but feel ecstatic about how my body has changed.

Yes, those are my abs right there! I didn't cut my head in Photoshop and put it in someone else's body, or vice versa.  I do actually have a 6-pack now (I did count the packs and there are indeed six of them, hehe), would you believe it? Well, it's in there somewhere, I promise.  And sometimes it shows, like in this photo, when I get lucky and some amount of lighting, shadows and the right angle, along with some holding of breath, work together to give me such a flattering look!  Of course I hold my breath to tuck my tummy in!  Heck, even models with perfect bodies do the same when they have their photos taken.  Why shouldn't we?

Like my friend Chelo who recently blogged about her ongoing success with weight loss, I owe this look to exercise (mine is just cardio and pilates), a balanced diet, and discipline--lots and lots of discipline.  It helps to have a disciplined husband who knows exactly what "moderation" is. He inspires me too!  I have yet to do better with getting the right amount of sleep, but I'll get there.

I am inspired--yesterday by Chelo's blog and today by this photo.  I am beyond motivated.  I am committed to be in it for the long haul, for life.  It took a lot of hard work to get to this, turning back is no longer an option.

Join me in raising a glass.  To being healthy and looking good!!!  :-)

A Lovely Weekend

When my long vacation was over, it felt like my entire summer was over too.  But just as I got my vibe back to working, I realized that I don't really need to take a long time-off to feel like vacationing again. Afterall, we are not even halfway through the summer here. And all I need are the weekends to enjoy it, or what's left of it.

There are so many things to do and so many places to see here in the summer.  One of our favorites is Lake Tahoe. It's only a 3-hour drive away from our place. The idea of Tahoe didn't really appeal to me at first, especially after coming back from a long tropical vacation. But we had a raincheck on a cabin up in Tahoe from last Christmas. We were planning on a ski trip back in the winter but cancelled it at the last minute after we learned that my sister's father-in-law had died and they had to make an emergency trip back to the Philippines. My brother-in-law is from Ilocos.

My booking for a 4-bedroom cabin was non-refundable, but luckily the owner agreed to give us a raincheck that we could use anytime the place was vacant.  I almost forgot about it until last week. The owner emailed me that she was selling the place and suggested we use the cabin soon. Once she sells it, we could no longer use our raincheck.  So, without much planning, my sister and I and our families decided to drive up to Tahoe for the weekend.

The nice thing about impromptu trips is that you don't have everything planned to the minute. We did have a rough plan of how to spend the weekend there, but we weren't holding ourselves to a schedule. We did what we felt like doing. We were flexible. We had only one goal--to relax and enjoy Tahoe in the summer.  But there are so many ways to enjoy summer in Tahoe. You could go hiking, biking, boating, swimming, gambling, sightseeing or just have a picnic by the lake. I am happy to report that we did everything except hiking and gambling--all in one weekend!  And in the end, we had a lot of fun and we still came home relaxed.

Will share more photos soon.

Another boy!

I am so happy for my brother and my sister-in-law.  They are having another boy!  I'll be welcoming a new nephew soon--in November, puhon.

I had wished for a girl in our family since all of us siblings, and my cousin J, have boys.  But we're all equally happy with another boy. At least we won't have to buy new stuff!

I am also [secretly] envious. I wish it was me pregnant and going on maternity leave soon. I like the idea of staying home and taking care of babies. I like the thought of kissing the husband goodbye in the morning and throwing my arms at him when he comes home from work. Sometimes, I dream of that life!

But that's not the life I live, so having the opportunity to do that and be that, even for just three months, is like living a dream.

Rebirth

Wow! I can't believe it's been two months and I hadn't posted a thing. I mean, really? In the past, I've seen myself so many times starting something new and never finishing it. Well, it happens. But there are three things that I promised myself I would keep going with: photography, exercise and blogging. Sadly, blogging is slowly falling off the list and is hanging by a very fine, delicate thread.

It annoys me when the husband tells me that I spend way too much time on Facebook. My initial reaction, which I don't say to him, is always, "Well, aren't we the same? I see you on Facebook a lot too! Just because you don't post anything doesn't mean you are not there lurking!" Really!  Sometimes he is even more updated about my friends than I am. And when I tell him about something interesting that I see on FB, more often than not, he's already seen it. So go figure!

Ok, yes. I admit I'm being defensive.

But I'm afraid he's right about something, and I feel that I have to change that. Free time isn't a lot so when I spend too much time on one thing, another gets neglected. I would rather spend more time in this space and less time on Facebook. And here why...

1. Blogging tells me so much more about my friends than what I can see on their wall, their photos and shout-outs.
2. Blogging allows me to read and think and learn. I feel the exact opposite with Facebook.
3. I feel that I have to think three times before posting something on my wall or making a comment: "Is this the right thing to say? Will I offend anyone? Will somebody else see this other than the ones I'd like to show this to?" With blogging, I feel more empowered to say what I want to say and nobody will judge me.
4. Facebook doesn't challenge me at all. Writing does. And when I overcome a challenge (meaning I actually complete a blog post, hehe), the satisfaction that comes with it is so much better than any nice thing said to me or about me on Facebook.

When I met Aileen, she told me I should blog more. She said I write well, which I don't hear a lot from other people. I find writing so difficult, which is why I don't like it. But when Aileen Siroy--one who has a travel column and a celebrated blog, and one who has been published quite a bit--tells you to write, how can you not be flattered?  I've been thinking about what she said ever since she said it, and I can't help but be inspired once again.

Chichi paved the way for this blog to be created. Now, Aileen is giving it a rebirth!  Thank you to both of you!  More to come from me... I promise.

***

Photo: A nice gift from Aileen.  Thank you, Ai! :-)

Daycare

I dropped Lucas off at daycare for the first time today.  Grandma Nena (his nanny) is going back to the Philippines for a long vacation and we have at least a month before it's our turn to go.

The good news is, I found a daycare that I really like and it is operated by our next-door neighbor, who is such a wonderful person. So yes, Lucas' daycare is just right across the street from us. If ever he cries and screams, maybe we can even hear him from our house.

The bad news is, Lucas understood that we are going to leave him there for the day and after almost three years of being cared for in his own home where he has developed his little comfort zone, it was hard to get him to agree to the new arrangement.

It was heartbreaking to let him go. We tried to have a conversation with him last night to make him understand why we had to do what we plan to do. But he insisted that we (Charles and I) shouldn't go to work so we can be with him. And when he said "I need my Mama and Papa" with all seriousness, he just rendered me and his dad speechless!

I began to question myself again and whether or not my decision to work full-time is the right one. I am still convinced it is right, but have I really taken a hard look at what I am doing, how I am spending my day-to-day and whether or not my time is carved out right so there is good balance between work and family?  Maybe Charles is right when he said I have way too many extra-curricular activities. I am trying to do everything and be good at everything. In the end, I'm afraid, I might end up becoming good at everything except being a good mom.

We decided that sending Lucas to daycare was a better choice than finding a replacement nanny. It is a no-brainer. He needed to be out there and start spending time with other kids. He will be going to preschool soon and it is good for him to start being exposed to the routine. We thought daycare would give him that early exposure.

This morning, Lucas willingly held my hand as we walked across the street towards his daycare. I stayed there for a while hoping he'd get comfortable with the other kids and would happily bid me goodbye. But that didn't happen. While there, he continued to hold my hand and didn't want to let go. He liked the place and all the toys that were new to him, but he wanted me to stay and play with him. He begged for me not to go to work.

The plan was to make sure he sees me leave so he won't ask for me. But instead, the babysitter and the other kids, who by the way were extremely sweet to him, had to distract him so I could sneak out of the place.  I can't wait to learn how it all went after that.  I'm sure he is fine and that he'll blend in well with the other kids. My little man is a trooper and he'll find a way to be amused.  But it broke my heart to see him sad.  And now I realize how other parents feel when they send their kids to school for the first time.

The Invite

I am getting more and more excited about my brother's wedding.  My sister often reminds me that this may be the last wedding we will have in the family until several years from now.  The next family wedding may be Nathan's, Lucas' or Zach's, some 20 or 30 years later.  I don't even know if I will still be alive to see that happen.

I am finally done with my brother's wedding invitations--all 120 of them!  Yes, I designed it, printed it, cut all the papers, folded and pasted, tied all the ribbons and stuck them in their individual envelopes.  With the help of Charles and my sister Lot, we got it all done in one weekend and half a day.  Thanks to them! Without their help, this would have taken me an entire week--maybe more.

I am so proud of what we have accomplished.  I volunteered to hand-make my brother's wedding invitations because I love doing it and it reminds me of how I planned and prepared for my own wedding 5 years ago.  Charles and I did our own wedding invitations too. It wasn't something that we planned. We decided to do it after we couldn't find a vendor who would create a custom invitation for us without charging us an arm and a leg.  We are so glad we did it!

The invites are not perfect by any means. It drove me crazy that I couldn't get the right shade of green in the text and still make them readable. I had to make it darker.  But they're good enough for me and most importantly, my brother and sister-in-law are so happy with them.

Here are some more photos of the finished product.

Countdown

70 DAYS TO GO...

plane ticket to Cebu and back - check!

hotel for Hongkong layover - check!

Imperial Palace reservation - check!

hotel in Cebu for first week - check!

dress for brother's wedding - check! (might still change my mind though)

gift for brother's wedding - check!

Lucas' attire for brother's wedding - check!

plan for Lucas' Bohol birthday party - check!

To do:
hotel accommodation at Plantation Bay for brother's wedding

China trip/tour

one-day trip to Manila to visit office and maybe see some friends

reservation at Shangri-la Mactan for wedding anniversary - we got married here so I want to spend our wedding annivesary here and hopefully get the exact same suite we had at our wedding

see friends and relatives

eat Lechon - lots of it!

I am so excited for our homecoming this summer. Everything has been planned. A lot has been booked. This is our first trip home as a family, and it's Lucas' first trip to the Philippines. My sister, brother and their families will be going home too. Oh, just thinking about it makes me so ecstatic! I can hardly wait...

Anything Chicken

Chicken Pot Pie. I like this fresh from the oven when it's cold or rainy.

This is why it is so difficult to do what I said I would do in my previous blog.  I love food too much, especially chicken. Anything chicken. No matter how it's cooked.

When I was little, my dad would tease me and call me "mura'g nawong ug manok" (looks like chicken). Because chicken was my favorite and it still is. Whenever we had chicken, I would eat plenty. But I would eat very slowly so that when everybody else finished their share, I would still have some left to enjoy.

Buttermilk fried chicken. This photo was from months ago. I didn't make them recently but I wish I did.

To me, the best way to prepare chicken is crispy fried, lightly breaded. I like it when the skin is super crispy and the meat is so tender and juicy. And I like it best when it is still smoking hot. When it gets cold, it is not as good anymore. Hot, crispy fried chicken is my ultimate comfort food.

What about yours?  What is your ultimate comfort food?

10 in 10

I am angry.  Angry at myself for not being able to keep up to a fitness routine.

About the same time last year, I started adding exercise and a healthy diet into my daily routine with the goal of eventually adopting a healthy lifestyle.  I did very well and weight loss just followed the course as if it was a pleasant side effect.  I went from 136 pounds to 123 pounds.  My target weight was 125.  I challenged myself to another 5 pounds and I thought it would just easily come off.

But usually, there comes a point when you reach a plateau.  And if you want to lose more, you'll have to change something even further.  I didn't do that.  What's worse is I stopped working at maintaining and keeping my weight at that level.  Now I find my lifestyle slowly reverting back to what it used to be--one without exercise, one that involves a lot of eating--thoughtless, incautious eating, lack of hydration and inadequate sleep.

It is fair to say that I have not been taking care of my body and my health and I am now seeing the not-so-pleasant results. The last reading on my scale shows 128 pounds. If this reads 130, which could be anytime soon, then I'm surely freaking out!

Now, I am throwing myself a new challenge--lose 10 pounds in 10 weeks. I know I can do this. I did it last year. Yet the bigger challenge is what comes after that--maintaining the healthy lifestyle and keeping the weight off.

So help me God...

The Rage

Dear Chelo,

I cannot thank you enough for being so generous with sharing your expertise in the kitchen.  Your "Rage Chicken" is unbelievably delicious!  It's a killer! And you are right about it being very close in taste to the San Pedro lechon manok that we both so love.

I added a few things to your recipe, not because the recipe is lacking--it's not, but because I always just want to put my own twist in every recipe that I try.

Here's what I added/modified:

• Used cornish game hen instead of the regular chicken (it's what I had available and I always buy game hen because it seems that it has less fat)
• Used fresh rosemary (only because I have so much of them growing in the backyard)
• Substituted half of the oyster sauce with Mama Sita's Barbeque marinade (because I love the sweet-savory taste of this marinade)
• Added a little bit of honey (only because I put honey in pretty much everything)
• Marinated the chicken overnight
• Added melted butter to the marinade that I used to baste the chicken (because I want to fry the skin a little bit)

The result?  Such tender, juicy and very tasty roasted chicken!  I'm glad I cooked two at once.  Otherwise, we won't have anything left for lunch tomorrow.

I kept the other chicken longer in the oven because I wanted a slightly overcooked, perfectly caramelized skin.  It was so good! And you were right--just one slice and look at all that juice!

We ended up eating dinner a little late today because I didn't get home from work until 6.  But the wait was definitely worth it.  I paired the chicken with steamed rice and slightly sauteed broccoli with shrimp, and dinner was perfect!  Our hungry stomachs didn't just get filled, they were pleasantly satisfied.

Again--many, many, many, many thanks!

Your big fan,
Liza

What Will Become Of Him?

I often ask the husband, "what do you think Lucas will become when he grows up?" I guess we won't really know until it happens or is about to happen.

When I was growing up, my ambitions kept changing.  I once wanted to be a doctor, then a therapist, then a singer.  Then I thought, maybe having a business of my own will be best, so I thought I should go to Business School. But then before I went to college, I decided I want to become a lawyer.  So I took up Accountancy with the intention of proceeding to Corporate Law.  But even as I went to take my entrance exams at Silliman University, I couldn't make up my mind and decided to take both Accountancy and Physical Therapy exams.  When it was time to make up my mind, I decided I still want to take up Accountancy, then become  a lawyer.

I finished Accountancy and became a CPA. But when it was time to proceed to Law, I decided I didn't want to go to school anymore. I wanted to have a job and start earning money. And so that's how my career in Finance began.

I still wonder what Lucas will become.  Will he be an Architect?

Or a Builder?

Will he be a Doctor?

A Scientist?

Or maybe a Chef?

Will he be a Sailor?

Or a Construction Worker?

A Musician?

Or an Adventure-seeker?

Whatever he will become, I know it in my heart that I will be proud of him.  I will support his passions and I will dream his dreams.  I only hope that he looks out for himself and will aim only for the good.  And I also hope that I will live long enough to see a bright future ahead of him unfold.

***

Photos:  Lucas, 2 years and 8 months old. Taken at Bay Area Discovery Museum in Sausalito, CA.

A Quick Fix

I came home today realizing that we ran out of bread.  We can't run out of bread because we have to have bread for breakfast in the morning. I don't have time to cook breakfast on work days.

But we were heading to church for Ash Wednesday service and after mass, I had to make dinner--fast!  So there was no time to run to the groceries for bread.

Luckily, we had three pieces of very ripe, perfectly speckled bananas--perfect for banana muffins!  The rest of the ingredients were not a problem--I always have a supply of flour, sugar, eggs and butter in my kitchen.

I call this "Banana Cran-Choc-Nut Muffins" because they're banana muffins with cranberries, chocolate chips and walnuts.  This took less than 10 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.  Super quick and super easy!

Now, this piece, I'm afraid, will not live to see the morning...

Here's the recipe for those of you who would like to try making them:

You need:

3 large ripe bananas (mashed)

120 gram melted butter

105 grams sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs lightly beaten

150 grams all-purpose flour

75 grams cake flour (if you don't have cake flour, you can use all-purpose flour)

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

60 grams (or two handsful) semi-sweet chocolate chips

60 grams (or two handsful) dried cranberries or craisins

30 grams (a handful) chopped walnuts or pecans (you can put more if you want more nuts)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F or 180 degrees C. Line muffin pan with muffin liners or paper cups.

2.  Mix the dry ingredients (second set of ingredients above), including the chocolate chips, cranberries and nuts. Mixing the chocolate chips, fruits and nuts with the flour is a trick that I use so that when you mix the dry and the wet ingredients later on, they won't sink in the bottom of the batter.  Aha! ;-)

3. Mix well the wet ingredients (first set of ingredients above) in a separate bowl and then pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients.  Mix well.

4. Scoop the batter into the lined muffin pans and bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the muffin.

You can do this all by hand.  No mixer needed.  Enjoy!!!