Paypon Family Day Out

It's kinda refreshing to see "Paypon Family" on my blog. My Dad, sister and I live in very separate areas so it's not often that we get to spend a day together. I think I can consider this a milestone in our lives as this has indeed been a rare occurrence and there are a lot of firsts that you'll read about in this post. :)

It's a Friday and Den has no school on account of the Feast of the Black Nazarene that was participated in by probably thousands, even millions of people. Click on this link if you want to view a video of the procession. It's courtesy of GMANews.TV (thanks!)

Anyway, my dad, Den, Dylan, Dana and I went to the bank to get Dad's last share from my mom's insurance. He's going to use it to buy a car that Joel, Sharon's husband, was able to find. It was a second hand 1998 Toyota LiteAce and he bought it for P150K. Not bad, considering it's all powered and no major problems. Sharon, Joel and their baby Sofia fetched us from the bank and we all went straight to the car dealer. There, Daddy saw for the first time the car that will finally be his. It was only a few days after Sharon was able to buy her own car, a second hand Toyota Corona EX Saloon. Going to my dad's house from the dealer, Sharon, Den, Dana and Dylan went to ride in the new van. They were scared at first because it has been some time since my Dad last drove a car. He had a few misses, making Joel and me hiss in nervousness because we were following him, probably because he was still getting used to the bulk of a van. But, in fairness, he was still okay on the road :)


A milestone for me, is getting to meet our dad's mistress/now wife for the first time in my life. I think that it's about time, being the New Year and all, and since my mom has passed away. I didn't really know what to expect. I've met my half-brothers when we were in Calayan last summer. So, that wasn't so bad. But Ida treated us well enough and she and Dana were busy chatting like old friends. Dylan was afraid of their dog though :) She was surprised when she was told that Daddy brought home a new car. She couldn't believe it and I guess she didn't expect it. She served us lunch and it was a pretty okay meeting :)

After that, on to Sharon's house. It was only a short distance away from where my Dad lives and it was also the first time for me, Dana and Dylan to visit. Den already spent Christmas with them one time so she's already been there. It was a good day for us, catching up on what's happening with each other's families. Getting to see the new baby Sofia and seeing how my nephews have grown. Jianne just turned 12 and Justine will be 11 this year. The kids had a great time playing with each other. We also went to the market to buy tinapa (smoked fish) and it was so cheap it was unbelieveable! hahaha

We waited for the rush hour to be over before we headed home. Joel wants us to buy a car of our own so we can all travel out of town for the summer. I said we'll see :) He said, he'll look for a good high-end, but low-cost and low maintenance one for us :) I'm sure he will hahaha

I think it was a good start to the year. To be with family and to enjoy each other's company even for a day. These days are precious especially when you think about how fast someone can disappear from your lives and you not having a chance to show them or tell them how much you care about them.

Looking forward to summer, I think :)