Showing posts with label Shopwise. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shopwise. Show all posts

The simple joys of Dylan's birthday

18 March 2017


Dylan's birthday came bright and early.  We all had a hand in choosing the activities for Dylan's birthday and everyone was just itching to get on with the plans.  It was rather hard to narrow down the choices because, after all, we just wanted Dylan to have what he wants but due to time and financial constraints, naturally we had to compromise.  The following post tells of what we ended up with.

Cheetos Quesadilla, A Surprise Reunion and Winning a Desk Fan in Shopwise



30 November 2016

Ever since we all saw the Cheetos Quesadilla teaser ad from Taco Bell on Facebook, we all wanted to try it out.  Who wouldn't?  It's got Cheetos, Cheese, and our favorite Quesadilla!  So, when we planned to do our Christmas shopping in Cubao, particularly in Shopwise, we immediately put Cheetos Quesadillas on the agenda since there was a Taco Bell in Gateway Cubao! :)

It was a pretty serendipitous day as I also found out that an old friend was in the area and we were able to meet up after a long time of not seeing each other :) And in Cubao of all places! haha

We also won a 12" Desk Fan from Shopwise and we didn't even know why and how?!

2015 Christmas Day


25 December 2015

Merry Christmas Everyone!

The day started bright and early despite the late night we had.  I was first to be up and about since my biological clock unfailingly wakes me up at 630AM every day.  I sorted out the gifts we received last night on the bed so that when the kids wake up, they'll be ready to be unwrapped :)

Dana's Day Out

Today is Chinese New Year and it's a holiday! yahoo!

Funny enough when we asked the kids if they wanted to come with us to go out, it was only Dana who wanted to come.  Dylan wanted to remain at home to "use the computer" hahaha He doesn't get to use it once we're all home so since he knew that 3 of us will be gone, he has more time to use it hahahaha

Anyway, so this started a new tradition of sorts.  We will take one child on a Day Out so that all the attention will be focused on him/her.  In this case, Dana got first dibs :)  She had already asked me before, you know, for just the two of us to go out and have fun together.  Well, she's getting both parents this time so that's even better.  The original point of going out was for me to look for a pair of shoes for my friend's upcoming wedding.    We ended up having the first "Dana's Day Out" outing.

For starters, we went to Cubao where I knew there were a lot of shoe stores aside from the usual stuff they sell in the department stores.  So, we went to Farmer's Plaza, where I was fortunate to find a pair that was just right for me.  And it only cost P250!!  I also bought Dana her own pair :) Love shopping with her :)

After all that walking around and looking for the right pair of shoes, naturally, we got tired.  We ate some quesadilla, tacos, nachos and churros at Taco Bell.  Dana had fun refilling his Dad's cup of coke :)  Simple joys for a simple girl hahaha

Next, we went to Shopwise to buy some necessary groceries.  What we didn't know was that they had an ongoing promo in line with Chinese New Year!  People who are wearing red will automatically get a fortune cookie!  Imagine that! And Dana was wearing an all-red outfit courtesy of her Tita Shawie LOL

She got one fortune cookie as we entered the grocery.  But then we had to go out for a bathroom break.  When we came back, through a different entrance this time, she got another fortune cookie! hahahaha It was great because then she had one and Dylan will have one too !!

After depositing our grocery items in the car, we went to Gateway for dinner.  Dana wanted to eat at Teriyaki Boy because she loves Japanese food and she loves their Yogato dessert :)


So here they are, Daddy and Dana enjoying a cup of Yogato!




And here we are having a few moments together.. but the last picture looks a little creepy hehehe



The Story of the Coffeemaker

December 24, 2010

The week before Christmas just passes so fast because everyone is hyper about buying gifts, wrapping gifts, thinking of menus, buying ingredients and actually preparing and cooking the Christmas dishes.  It's even harder to juggle everything when your kids are underfoot because their Christmas vacation has already started.  Still, you persevere and hope that you don't catch a cold to bog you down.

It's very much the same for me.  I hardly knew the day, much less the date, until I hear news anchors on TV announcing, "It's only X days away from Christmas!"  We've gone to different malls in search of groceries and ingredients for our Christmas meal.  Can you believe that fresh basil was nowhere to be found?!! It's like everyone decided to use fresh basil for Christmas! LOL  I have had to change the menu several times because I couldn't find the necessary ingredients.  I also had to experiment with some of my menu, like making sago and gulaman because I haven't tried that one yet :)  The first try was a failure because the gulaman got too mushy! LOL  Funny, but I never got to do it again hahaha Then we all helped make banana bread to test Ate Mel's practical knowledge with baking seeing as she took some classes in Dana's school for it :) It turned out okay :)

Patrick was also having a hectic time at work.  He had to deal with fixing the documents needed for his trip to China in addition to his actual writing.  It was funny because when he told me that he was invited to participate in an event there, I was writing China Visa articles for a website hahaha It was like serendipity hahaha Anyway, with all of the things that he needed to accomplish, he hasn't found the time to buy me a gift since we were always together when we went out.

Finally, on the 24th, we went to Cubao for some last minute shopping.  We went to Gateway and after having lunch at Teriyaki Boy, he casually strolled into the Rustan's store.  I was wondering why because we hardly went there.  But it gave Dana a chance to buy her Dad his Christmas gift (a Batman face towel to leave in Stanley so that when Patrick perspired, he would have something to wipe himself off with).  He did mention that he was looking for a gift for me then and he found it but he and Dana will just have to return to buy it hahaha So he took us, Dylan and I, to Shopwise so we can buy what we needed while he and Dana went back to Rustan's to buy the gift.  To cut a long story short, they ended up buying the gift but failed to have it gift wrapped due to time constraints.

Once at the house, I was stuck in the 2nd Floor while Patrick went about his business of wrapping the gift.  When he was done, he presented it to me with a flourish, giftwrapped with a bow! :) It was wonderful!! Then it was my turn to finish wrapping the presents so I went back to our room where he left the Rustan's shopping bag.  It was calling out to me and I was really tempted to check it out hehehe So I did!! Curiosity killed the cat and all that!! My bad!!  I saw the receipt and I knew what was in the box !! hahaha  I went back down to tell him hehehe I told him I knew but I was already practicing my surprised look for the pictures the next day hahaha

The funny part was when we were all in the bedroom and I started tickling Dana to reveal to me what was in the box (even though I already knew).  She was laughing so hard but she was really trying hard not to say it.  I tried a different tactic - I asked her, "If I gave you P100, will you tell me what's in the box?"  I wasn't really expecting her to answer but then - she blurted out, "It's a coffeemaker, Mama!" LOL Patrick did that face-palm thingy LOLWhat's even funnier was that, later on, everyone was downstairs and Dylan was near the Christmas tree checking out his gifts, he was murmuring - "That's mine, That's Ate Dana's, That's Mama's coffeemaker!" LOL

Patrick said, "this is the last time I take you with me when I go shopping!" :)

More House renovation stories :)

Okay so obviously, I owe you my dear friends, family and readers the continuation of the house renovation epic that we're currently undergoing :)So in my last post, we were already able to buy the curtain rods and curtains in Divisoria. Well this is what they look like once we've installed them.



After installing these curtains, we went to Cubao for some downtime :) We ended up going to Shopwise to do some grocery shopping. While there, we chanced upon a "buy 1 take 1" deal. There were 334x290x800 mm shelves in light blue color for P1000. So it's like P500 each which was a steal!! We also bought Dana her Lightning McQueen bike while we were there :)



As soon as we got home, we assembled the shelves that we got. We liked them so much that we decided to go back and buy 2 more sets, for the kids and for extra shelves. While there, we chanced upon another bargain. We bought this entertainment cabinet in Shopwise Cubao for P2K less than the original price. Add to that, they just released a new color so instead of the light-colored wood that they had on display, we chose this darker one because we were thinking of painting the living room too. But since this whole set couldn't fit through the doorway if delivered as is, we ended up in negotiations with the guy who assembles them :) He came home with us and assembled it right in the living room and we just paid him extra for his service :)

Here's a picture of what the kids' toy shelf look like :) The kids' now have a kind of display shelf for their toys and they're so good at keeping them in their proper place too :) While I was assembling the shelf cabinet, I was so excited because I had the idea in mind how the toys will look like :) I'm glad the kids liked it. I live for this stuff ! LOL

Going shopping in Cubao!

It's the first time that we're going out for the New Year. This time it's with Bing our Nanny. We're going to the Araneta Center in Cubao to look for a cabinet/closet for her room. Also, it was my intention to look for some office clothes for my job interview with Summit Media on Monday.

We first had lunch at the Gateway Food Express where Den and I ordered a big bowl of Mongolian barbecue while Patrick and the rest of the gang had steaks at House of Mini's. We then went to check out Shopwise first because they usually have a great selection of houseware and furniture at a very affordable price. Unfortunately, we didn't find what we needed this time. What we did find was a Body Slender exercise machine which I've been eyeing since I saw it on an infommercial LOL It was on sale for P2700 (which I bargained down to P2600 and that also included pink 0.5kg dumbells, a CD and a special floor mat). We then went to SM where we found a cabinet that's just the right size and the right price.

After buying that, we went around the ladies' section to look for clothes. Naturally, after giving birth I've gained some pounds (from 100 pounds to 130 pounds!) I went from size S to size XL!! I couldn't believe that the clothes they have available don't fit well on me. I needed to try on size XL!!! I refuse to believe that I'm an XL!!! boohoohoo I was getting teary-eyed in the fitting room because it's frustrating looking for clothes that look good on you. I think that they're either cost cutting and scrimping on the cloth or the sizes are really small!!! I ended buying a black, silk blouse which Den assured me looked good enough and will look better if I lost a few more pounds. I wanted to buy a pair of decent pants but I can't even bring them up over my hips hahahhaha Time to really lose weight! LOL

From SM, we went back to Shopwise for grocery shopping. There were some great bargains though.. Like a 6-seater dining table set for roughly P4,500. A computer table/desk for less than P1,000. I wanted to buy that desk for Dana but we still have to fix the house hahaha

All in all it was a good day despite that crying jag in the fitting room.. I'm such a drama queen ! LOL Tomorrow is going to be a tiring day because we're moving furniture about woohoo!!

A trip to Manila Zoo

Saturday, September 20, 2008


It was Patrick's payday so we decided to take the kids to the zoo. For the longest time, they've been wanting to go but we always had little or no money to take them so it was such a relief that we were finally able to take them out of the house and bring them to where they wanted to go :)

The kids were so excited! Patrick and I were too because we knew that the zoo had undergone some renovation so we wanted to see just what's improved.

We were lucky enough to see the elephant during feeding time, so he's more active than usual hehehe We timed our trip to be a little late in the afternoon so the animals were awake when we got there. The highlight of our trip was the tiger who was up and about. I wish he had let out a huge roar to top off the experience but really it was such a magnificent animal.. and scary to think that he's so big and can bite your whole head in one gulp LOL

The experience was a bit marred when we encountered a family along the way and the father was pointing to the tiger and telling his kids it was a lion!!! oh my gosh!! how can you not even distinguish a tiger from a lion!!! there was even a sign on the fence telling you what animal that was! I was so irritated (can't you tell?!) hahahaha

Anyway, we were also happy to see the hippo moving about.. usually we just see the top of his body in the water :)

The ostrich was alive and kicking as well :) I wonder what happened to his other friends? The last time we were there, there were three of them.. hmm..

So finally, we get to the playground - there were swings, slides, jungle gym and even a fountain park where water shoots out from the ground in sequence. It would have been nice to shoot it but there were kids running around naked in the water LOL Only in the Philippines, I think LOL

Dana went immediately to the slides. She didn't like the swing because she says she may fall. So up and down she went on the slides.

Dylan was different. Since this was his first time to actually be on the slide by himself, he was a bit wary, although he was looking closely at his Ate Dana. When Patrick put him on top of the slide and let him slide, the expression on his face was priceless! It was like, "what was that?!" and then he smiled LOL Then Patrick put him on top again, let him slide, this time he made a sound LOL He said, woooooow!! all the way down hahahahaha after that he was literally unstoppable :) Poor Patrick hahahaha

After the zoo, we went to the nearby shopping mall to buy some groceries. We were able to buy Dana a Jumpstart CD which we immediately played when we got home.

It was a good day! :)