Kids: Dana's 2012 Field Trip - Part 1 Ocean Adventure

September 02, 2012

After a hectic week preparing for Dylan's Linggo ng Wika, September 2 dawned very, very early for me since Dana and I had to get ready for her Field Trip and we were supposed to be at her school by 530AM. I barely had any sleep but parents really trudge on for the love of their kids :)

Their field trip this year was held at the Ocean Adventure and the Zoobic Safari. Since we've been to Ocean Adventure before, Dana wasn't as excited about it but I told her that there may be new exhibits or added attractions that she may find entertaining and educational.  We weren't disappointed.  

The tour at Ocean Adventure started with the Walk on the Wild Side exhibit where the kids were taught about forest and domesticated animals.  Then there was a new attraction called the "African Balancing Act" which features African men performing wild acrobatic balancing acts.  The kids loved it!  The highlight for Dana was after the show when the kids were given a chance to have their pictures taken with the performers.  One of them picked her up for the shot! :) Was she surprised! :P  It was such a memorable event for her! :D

The next stop was lunch which was part of the tour package.  After that, we went directly to the Sea Lion Marine Patrol Show.  The venue was also new and featured a new pool for the sea lions to play in.  Expect to get a little wet since the seats are close to the pool, but it's fun!  The only drawback was that the light will mostly be in your way when you take pictures but other than that, it was entertaining.

With the Sea Marine Patrol show over, we all proceeded to the Dolphin Show.  It was rather hot where we were seated and you're not allowed to open any umbrellas because you'll be obstructing the view of the people above you.  It was a good thing that Dana had a light sweater and she wore the hood on her head (she's prone to nose bleeds from the heat).  I was able to great pictures of the dolphins though :)

The final leg of the tour was at the Ocean Adventure Aquarium where there are displays of various type of fish indigenous to Subic Bay and the South China Sea.

After coming out of the aquarium, there was a bit of rest period so kids can either eat some snacks or just while the time away.

Meanwhile, you can take a look at these slides to show you more pictures taken during the Field Trip.  The first presentation is mostly of Dana :)  The 2nd presentation is all about the animals of Subic.

Enjoy!

Kids: Dylan's Linggo ng Wika celebration

September 01, 2012

It's always exciting for me when there's a scheduled school activity for either of the kids.  Yes, it may be stressful looking for costumes and such and even preparing food to bring to school to share with everyone but in the end, it's seeing the joy that your child experiences that makes everything worthwhile.

So, in the beginning everyone was seated promptly and the kids were awaiting the arrival of the rest of their classmates.  Apparently, some of the kids, the girls mostly, were taking their time putting on their makeup .  

It was fun seeing Dylan actually participating in the choric recitation, the Sabayang Bigkas, which we practiced at home too.  But it wasn't nice seeing his classmate pushing and pushing him to the side while they were waiting to begin.

The parents and the kids had a great time eating together with dishes brought to school by the parents.  We brought fried chicken and there was a lot of food to go around.  We were even able to take some home :)

It was a good day for Dylan :)

Cars: Markyll - The Subaru Impreza

August 27, 2012

In the previous post, we went to UP and Tagaytay in the car that Patrick was test driving - The Subaru Impreza.  Well, we took Markyll (the car ) to North Edsa too together with Tracy because we rarely visit malls this far from our place.  It was a good chance to test the car as well as enjoy the day with the kids.

We didn't do much just went around the mall see what's changed since we last visited.  We ate lunch at Longganisa Express which happens to be one of Dana's favorite places to eat.  We did look for Dylan's costume for his Linggo ng Wika presentation.

Needless to say, even though we didn't do much, the kids had fun especially with Markyll's sun roof :)  It was Tracy's first visit to the Mall.. I don't know if she was impressed.. Maybe when she's bigger and there's a sale :) hehehe

Travel: Trip to UP and then Tagaytay

August 26, 2012

Ordinarily, we don't go out on Sundays because we just all want to rest and stay home in preparation for the new week ahead.  But since, it was going to be a holiday tomorrow and Patrick is test driving the Subaru Impreza, we all decided to take a trip to UP so that the kids can bike freely.  We were also looking forward to having lunch at Rodic's :) So here are the kids having Taho while on break :)

Now, we didn't take pictures at Rodic's because you've seen a lot of them by now.  What surprised us though was when Patrick decided to drive all the way to Tagaytay just to test the Subaru Impreza :)  So, we decided to go to Palace in the Sky which we haven't gone to.  It was quite a ride going up through the slightly  roads zig-zagging roads and we had to do a little climbing (walking) to get to the entrance.  Apparently, a lot of people had the same thought during this holiday as there were a lot of people here too.

So here we were, taking advantage of the views from our high vantage point.

Now these two succeeding pictures actually tell an unfortunate incident while we were there.  I took this picture (notice the umbrella behind them).  It was cloudy when we arrived that's why we took it and indeed, it rained a little while we were there.  At the next picture, Patrick took the shot and after that, we all went somewhere else.  Unfortunately, Patrick forgot the umbrella under this picnic hut!  We realized it after we climbed the other peak which was about 5-7 minutes away so by the time we got back to this spot, the umbrella was gone.  Patrick was pissed because it was his favorite Subaru umbrella and it was huge and can protect all four of us.

After a rather frustrating time trying to locate the umbrella, we just decided to chalk it up to experience.  We left Palace in the Sky (I think they call it People's Park now) but I was still keeping an eye out for that huge Subaru umbrella hehe.  To console ourselves, Patrick drove to Mushroom Burger since the kids haven't eaten there yet and it has been a long time for Patrick and me too.  After our snacks of burgers, fries and drinks, the kids went outside and spent some time in the playground :)

To end the day, we had dinner at Rose and Grace restaurant in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.

Kids: At the SM Toy Expo

August 25, 2012

I don't know if you are like me when I hear the word "SALE".  I sort of go into a panic and then I force myself to calm down When I saw on Facebook that there was to be a Toy Expo at the SMX in Mall of Asia, that's exactly what happened.  It's never too early to plan and buy for Christmas.  If there are sale events in the Metro which can help save you money, then by all means go to them and just be disciplined enough to buy only what your budget requires.  I know, it's hard! But if you concentrate on getting what you and your kids want, especially in a grand Toy Sale like the Toy Expo,  you'll have more money to spend on additional items.




We certainly spent a long time walking around the whole exhibition area and at the same time, the kids took their time getting their pictures taken at the displays and photo booths.  The Ben 10 and Thundercats section had their own photo background which the kids took advantage of.  Come to think of it, even Patrick got in on the picture taking :)

So, there was also a Power Rangers display, a small Bumblebee Transformers statue, an Iron Man statue and a Captain America statue.

Naturally, Patrick just had to try out the Gran Turismo on the PS3. It took him a while to get his turn because kids had to be dragged kicking and screaming by impatient parents.

One of the great buys that we got was this Spongebob Tent that we got for Dylan.

Kids: Tracy's first trip to Manila Zoo

August 19, 2012

It's always a pleasure when we have the time to go and visit our childhood haunts, like the Manila Zoo (along Adriatico Street in Malate, Manila).  It gives Patrick and I a chance to see the changes they've made (which they have in recent years) and for the kids to appreciate what we so loved before.  It was Tracy's first time to the zoo, although I think she wasn't really interested in anything at the moment hahahaha but here are the pictures :)

The Elephant paddock is the first you'll see upon entering the Manila Zoo.  Since it was a weekend holiday, there were a lot of people in the zoo which was why Dana's face looked like this.  Other parents, grandparents and kids were crowding the fences and taking pictures and there was one "adult" that literally pushed my kids out of the way at which time she got an earful from me.  Couldn't help it, you just don't push someone, like little kids for that matter, just so you can have your frickin' picture taken with the elephant who wasn't even facing you! ok I'm calm now LOL

Okay, so Tracy was just busy chewing on her pacifier the whole time we were walking around :)

We did get a chance to get a picture of the elephant and without any people to boot!! hahaha

The Zebra grazing

The Tiger lounging

Patrick pretending to eat Tracy LOL

The Hippo swimming