Mother's Day 2020 Celebration

May 9, 2020 (Saturday). To continue our previous Mother's Day steak tradition, syempre nagpa-steak si Mayor Coblancs noong Mother's Day weekend. Walang steak for the past two years kasi nasa Pinas kami. Ngayon lang uli naulit.

I would normally prefer to eat out na lang when we need to celebrate para iwas-luto at ligpit na (saka masarap kumain ng hindi mo niluto, aminin!) kaso naman... nasa kalagitnaan tayo ng pandemya! Sarado ang mga restaurants.

But still,  dahil may okasyon nga, sa "labas" pa rin kami kumain lol. Thankfully, maganda ang weather. By the way, Sabado night na kami nagcelebrate para walang pasok si Dad kinabukasan.

My only request to Dad this Mother's Day was that chocolate cake. Ilang weeks na nga kasi akong nagke-crave sa cake na yan. Hindi siya mura at $40 (I bought it from my suking Pinay baker) pero keri lang... Mother's Day naman eh! Mother's Day! Haha!

Aside from (well-done) steak, we also had mussels, macaroni salad, and buttered veggies. Busog na busog na kami at sobrang sulit. Mas mura talaga kapag sa bahay lang kakain.

Sa totoo lang, sanay naman kami sa social/physical distancing haha. Lagi namang kaming tatlo lang ang magkakasama. Pero talaga, I am grateful kasi I am blessed with a small but happy family.

Thank you, Daddy Ford and Nathan! I love you so so much!

My 6th Mother's Day! I am far from being a perfect mom pero alam kong alam ng anak ko na mahal na mahal ko siya. Mama's boy nga yan eh! =)

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Here's the 'steak tradition' I am talking about:

Roadlink's 10th Anniversary Celebration (2018)

Our tourist bus company Roadlink Travel and Tours, Inc. turned 10 last April 11, 2018 (Wednesday). A lot of things have happened in our family the past few years but I am grateful because Roadlink continued to be the source of Mamoosh's pride and entertainment (now that she's living 'alone').

A brief background --  Our family started operating EDSA city buses in December 1995. In 2001, we finally were able to get our own franchise so the parentals established a company named Royal Star Transport, Inc. A few years after that, my father learned about tourist bus operations so he began acquiring tourist buses (which we operated under Royal Start). In 2008, we bought a tourist bus franchise and thought of establishing a new and separate company that will cater exclusively to private tours. Hence, Roadlink was born.

We sold our city buses in November 2012 and decided to just concentrate on the more lucrative and less-stressful tourist buses. I was already married then and about to migrate in Canada already. My parents were not young anymore and my only brother will be the only one to take-over the business once I am gone. Kaya ok na na isang company na lang ang i-maintain namin.

However, after so many years of tumultuous marriage, my mother finally kicked my philandering father out of our house in 2014. And in 2015, because of my major fight with his married live-in partner (who's the most evil person I've met, I swear!), it was my brother naman who left our house, our mother, and Roadlink (he took several buses and a franchise with him). Hence, my then 68-year old mother had to take over everything (sa Canada na kasi ako nakatira noon at may anak na). But with the help of our loyal employees, she's proven that she can do it even without us. Ayan nga at 10 years na ang Roadlink.

That's the reason why I couldn't let April 11, 2018 pass without a celebration, no matter how simple it may be. Ang sabi ko nga kay Mamoosh, yung ibang bagay nga napaghahanda namin, iyon pa bang nagbibigay sa amin ng kabuhayan? My mother kasi is very simple, wala siyang hilig sa mga parties. Hindi naman siya kuripot, talaga lang wala siyang hilig sa mga pabonggahan. Pero ako naniniwala that occasions are there for a reason - para tayo makapagreflect at makapagpasalamat.

At first, I planned on just treating all our employees sa isang buffet restaurant dito sa Bulacan. But we later realized that it's impossible to gather all of them in one place at a given time. Scattered kasi sila. Yung iba nasa biyahe, nasa garahe, nasa gas station, etc. Peak season din kasi ng tours ngayong summer so everyone is busy (at iba-iba ang schedule), hindi ko pwedeng hilahin sila, say lunch time para sabay-sabay kaming kumain. Marami rin kasing rush na trabaho, lalo na sa maintenance ng mga buses na bibiyahe the following day/s. Tapos malalangis pa sila kasi nga gumagawa sa bus, kaya sobra silang mahahassle kung iinterrupt ko.

So I told Joanne (our trusted overall admin staff) na sa bahay na lang kami maghanda ng merienda. Kahit ano lang, basta may cake lang to celebrate a milestone for our dear Roadlink. Ang sabi ko itext na lang niya lahat ng employees na pumunta sa amin kung gusto nila, no pressure.

We just bought a cake na lang from Red Ribbon. Buti na lang blue ito kasi blue ang color ng Roadlink.

And prepared some ihaw-ihaw. (Sorry naman sa high-tech na ihawan namin, palpak kasi yung talagang ihawan kaya nag-improvise na lang lol).

That's my famous pork barbeque haha!

 Then Joanne cooked spaghetti, request ng isang driver namin na ayaw ng pancit haha.

Super simple lang talaga.

But my little boy was so happy na kasi may cake, makakapag-blow siya ng candle haha.

Only three of our employees came. Yung mga mekaniko, nahihiya ng pumunta kasi marumi raw (kasi nga naggawa ng bus), alanganin kung magbibihis pa sila at babalik kasi sobrang traffic dahil ginagawa ang kalsada malapit sa garahe namin. Yung ibang drivers, nasa biyahe. Yung iba pang drivers, nasa mga bahay nila (kasi nga walang biyahe). Oh well, at least nasabihan naman sila.

Buti na lang may iba pa kaming bisita -- si Tita Oya (Mamoosh's only living sibling na palagi namang nandito) and Raxie (my BFF na talagang pupunta sa amin that day, natapat lang na may chibugan).

Many of our buses are parked in gas stations (malayo kasi ang garahe namin at ginagawa pa ang kalsada kaya mas gusto na ng mga drivers na doon mamalagi at tumambay) so we decided to pack some food para sa mga employees doon. Pakisama saka syempre sharing of blessings.

So there, nairaos din kahit pano. Haha, pero ang sabi ko next time eh ayaw ko na maghanda sa bahay talaga. Sa totoo lang, sa napakakonting pagkain na yan, grabe naging pagod naming lahat haha. Mas mura at madali pa kung kumain/nagpakain na lang kami sa Jollibee o tapsilog lol!

Happy 10th year, Roadlink! Maraming salamat kasi hindi mo kami pinababayaan ni Mamoosh. Mahal ka namin!

Noche buena food fail

We ate at Grandt Kitchen, a Filipino restaurant here in Surrey, last December 16 and I've decided to just order our noche buena food from them. Wala na rin kasing choice, di ko na alam kung saan pa bibili (unlike sa Edmonton na maraming pwedeng orderan ng kung anu-ano). Nasarapan naman ako sa kinain naming kare-kare noon (pero hindi sa crispy pata) kaya nag-risk na rin ako. Ang sabi ko sa asawa ko, let's get surprised lol.

The owners of Grandt Kitchen were very nice and accommodating. I was thankful that they accepted "small" orders for Christmas eve, sa iba kasi puro tray-size lang. Tapos hindi na rin sila nanghingi ng deposit. We agreed to a 6:45pm pick-up on December 24 (they will close daw by 7pm).

We ordered pancit canton, beef caldereta, pork sisig, and pork barbeque nga pala.

Sobrang ginusto kong maging masarap ang pagkain namin kasi puwera sa pasko, I wanted to have another Filipino restaurant here in Surrey na masarap kainan. Kaso fail talaga. The beef caldereta was too cheesy na hindi lasang caldereta, hindi ko talaga malunok (favorite ko pa naman yun), the pancit canton had too many red and green pepper, the pork barbeque was mediocre (ni hindi naubos ng asawa ko ang isang stick), and the sisig was dry (medyo gusto ko naman ang lasa pero hindi type ni Ford). Overall, sayang ang $43.79 na binayad namin.

I made a mental note, next time hindi na nga ako magririsk. Sa Max's na lang ako magtetake-out kung hindi pa ako sure sa dishes ng mga Pinoy restos dito.

I threw the caldereta and pancit later. Hindi na talaga nakain.

At dahil konti lang ang nakain namin for dinner, naglook forward na lang kami ni hubby sa chocolate cake na matagal naming inasam-asam. Natikman namin ang cake na ito last Thanksgiving at nagustuhan talaga namin.

I ordered it from a Filipina home-based baker last November pa. Mabilis kasing maubos ang slots niya kapag may occasions kaya maaga talaga akong nagpareserve. Ang sabi ko nga, this will be the star of our noche buena and our ultimate cheat food. Kakalimutan ko munang magbilang ng carbs.

Toppers were not included in the cake.

Kaso fail din waaah! Matigas yung cake, masyadong dry yung loob. Na-overcook, obviously. Sobrang disappointed talaga kami. And to think hindi siya mura ha, kasi $40 siya.

I somehow felt guilty kasi as the wife and mother of the house, obligasyon kong mapakain nang masarap ang pamilya ko lalo na kapag ganitong Christmas season noh (sexist stance, I know). Kaso bigo. Kaya sabi ko sa sarili ko na babawi na lang ako talaga next year. Hindi na mauulit ang ganito.

So there, I am putting it in writing to put pressure on myself. I WILL PREPARE A GOOD NOCHE BUENA FOOD next year. Promise talaga yan.

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The following day, sinubukan kong kainin uli yung cake kasi sayang naman. Kaso I felt that it's not worth cheating for. Susme, halos diko na nga malunok tapos tataas pa ang sugar ko? Uneasy na talaga ang pakiramdam ko so I messaged the cake-maker nang madaling araw na (December 26).

She's actually very nice naman kaya ang sabi ko magfi-feedback lang ako. I wasn't demanding for anything. I just felt the need to release haha. Ang sabi ko nga medyo matigas yung cake, unlike doon  sa previous order namin.

When I woke up, may reply na siya. She was apologetic, siguro raw sa dami ng cakes na binake nila kaya nagkaganun. She offered to replace the cake which I gladly accepted. Medyo nakahinga na ako kasi nahihiya rin ako sa asawa ko kasi nga $40 ang matatapon kung hindi mapapalitan.

So on December 30, may new cake na kami (hindi pwedeng December 31 kasi fully booked na sila).

And it tasted so good! Moist na hehe.

Minessage ko agad yung cake-maker to tell her na perfect na yung cake this time. She was very happy, binantayan daw nila talaga yun sa oven to make sure na maayos na. Ayos, both parties were happy!

Note: Dapat kainin ang cake in 2 days kasi titigas na rin after. 

Christmas Eve 2017

My aunt invited us to spend the Christmas eve with them but I graciously declined. I told her Nathan won't make it till 12 midnight because he's been sleeping quite early lately. While it is half true, the real reason is that I really just wanted to stay at home for noche buena. We may not have the best Christmas decors nor the most delicious food this year but I want to be comfortable with my two boys. Ok na yun.

December 24, 2017. After having lunch with friends, we spent the rest of the afternoon at Metrotown Mall killing time. We shopped a bit and left at around 3:30pm to pick up the cake that I ordered at 4pm. We went home after that and tried to make Nathan nap so he will be awake later that night. But he couldn't sleep. Ford got a call from Grandt Kitchen (a Filipino restaurant here in Surrey) and was requested to pick up the food that we ordered earlier than 6:45pm, so he did.

At around 6:15pm, he's back and complained that he's hungry. So instead of waiting for 10pm or 12mn (my original eating time plan), we had early dinner na. Mabuti na rin para bumaba na ang sugar level namin later that night at nang makakain uli.

Ang hirap mag-isip nang ihahanda for a party of three, lalo na kapag hindi pa kumakain yung isa at diabetic yung dalawa. We just ordered food sa Pinoy resto because it's practical and economical.

Our handa -- pancit canton, beef caldereta, pork sisig, and pork barbeque.

We ate in front of the TV watching news. Our plan was to watch all night.

As expected, the little boy only ate apples. I was hoping that he'll eat pancit kaso ni ayaw tikman. I'll do a review of our food on my next post.

Then at around 8pm I brought out our ultimate holiday cheat foods na. Big time cheating talaga ang plan lol.

We ordered this cake from a Filipina home-based baker. Si Jesus pa ba ang mawawalan ng birthday cake?

Nathan joyfully delivered a birthday song for Jesus.

Family groufie after.

And the little boy couldn't wait to open his gifts! Ang alam nya kasi pagkatapos magblow ng candle ng cake ay gift-opening na haha!

I am thankful that we bought several gifts for him. Enjoy na enjoy siyang magbukas.

Here are his three major gift requests -- "animals,"hugas-hugas," and "toilet." Paniwalang-paniwala talaga siya kay Santa (I don't remember believing in Santa when I was growing up. Siguro kasi poor lang kami noon haha!).

Ford and I also opened our gifts from Juris and Tess. Haha, we didn't have gifts for each other kasi nga wala naman kaming separate money/bank account. Basta I buy whatever I want and tell him gift na niya yun sakin lol.

A little past 9pm, we started watching Seven Sundays na. We rented the movie @TFC.TV for $7.99. Medyo pricey pero ayos na rin kasi I've always wanted to watch this film.

Carbs overload!

Pero mukhang mas nag-enjoy ang asawa ko sa palabas haha. Plus he kept on saying "Ang gwapo talaga ni Dingdong" kaloka!

I think we'll do this na every Christmas eve, watch Filipino-themed movies. Sana lang palaging meron.

Halfway through the movie, nakatulog na ang bagets (not that he was watching lol). Sabi na nga ba eh, hindi nga kasi nag-nap nung hapon.

Pack-up na kami around 11:30pm. I had my red day din that night kaya I wasn't feeling well. It was the husband who washed the dishes, salamat naman.

My major wish that night was for us to have our own place na (be it a condo or a townhouse) by next Christmas para mas bongga naman ang celebration. Pero kahit simple lang ang naging noche buena namin, I was happy and contented kasi kasama ko ang asawa at anak ko. Iyon naman ang pinakaimportante.

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By the way, I am glad that that morning, I was able to talk to my Mamoosh and Tita Oya via Facetime. How I wish na magkakasama kami on Christmas kaso hindi naman palaging posible. Buti na lang talaga may internet. =)

Baby Marco's First Birthday Party

Nathan only has three friends here in BC (and I got two) so imagine how excited we were because one of them celebrated his birthday with a party last Saturday, December 9.

Baby Marco's birthday is actually November 30 but his mom Tess was only able to get a slot at the Queensborough Community Centre (in New Westminster, BC) for December 9. They live in a townhouse so they opted for a bigger venue for the party.

Tess' invite said the party is at 1 to 5pm. We reached the place at around 2pm (we were so busy that morning plus she asked me to pick the cake up from Safeway) but they were still decorating the place. The food wasn't even there yet. It was perfectly understandable because they rented the place for 1-5pm and they could only start fixing the place by 1pm. Tess also lacked manpower who could help her full-time. That's the thing here in Canada, inasmuch as your friends would want to lend a helping hand, they are restricted by their own situations din. We either have work, other appointments, some familial/household obligations, etc. Like me, I couldn't come early because I had to take a language exam at 10am. Juris couldn't come early too because they have a scheduled heater cleaning at home. Tess only had herself, her husband, and mother-in-law to fully rely on that day so it was really challenging. I am glad though that some of her other friends arrived earlier than us and they helped her arrange the place.

As expected, Mommy Tess went overboard haha! Super dami ng handa and echos. In fact, Juris' Caucasian husband was so shocked, saying that it was so extravagant. In Canadian standard, talagang bongga na ito. Juris' reply to her husband was: "This is how we Filipinos do parties."  Haha!

The place itself was super expensive na for $400/4-hours, if I remember correctly.

The food was overwhelming. Canadians typically serve pica-pica lang for children's parties. Filipinos have it all -- from appetizers, to main dishes, to desserts, to kung anik-anik pa.

Such a long table for the food.

And what's a Pinoy party without a lechon? But yeah, ganito lang ang lechon dito sa Vancouver. Roasted pork na Chinese style/tasting. It costs around $240-280 siguro.

Most of the party decorations were from Pinas. Tess and her family went home last October so they were able to hoard a lot from Divisoria.

So many goodie bags, souvenir items, and prizes. The kids were so delighted!

I am a "cake person" though I generally don't eat cakes (except for plain chocolate ones). Baby Marco had two cakes that day.

This one is nice. It's hard to find a nice-looking fondant cake here in Canada. Very pricey pa. I forgot to ask Tess where she got this.

This is the cake that we picked up from Safeway (a grocery/supermarket). It's worth $30. Ganito lang talaga ang mga normal cakes dito, mas maganda pa ang cake sa Pinas na nabibili sa panaderya sa kanto (objectively). I guess Tess bought this for dessert. The main cake wasn't sliced eh.

At around 2:30, the party hasn't started yet and the kids were getting hungry. It's good that they had green grapes, may nakain ang picky-eater son ko.

Nathan loved his party hat haha!

Feel na feel niya. Bata na talaga siya.

I am now enoying kiddie parties because of this little guy.

It was almost 3pm when the party began with a prayer. Marco's dad wasn't there yet because he went home to take a shower. Sobrang nangarag siguro. But people were starving na so kelangan ng magpakain.

Here's two of my many many plates. It was a total cheat day for me. Aside from rice, I ate a lot of pancit, spaghetti, and puto. Carbs overload talaga. I was super hungry din kasi, my last meal was just a sausage and egg mc muffin from McDonald's.

I really loved the lumpiang shanghai. I must have eaten 20 pieces, seriously. Carbs din ang lumpia wrapper kaloka. But I didn't mind. It was the first time since I was diagnosed with diabetes that I splurged on carbs. I felt that  I deserved it din because the language test that I have just taken that morning stressed me out the past week (I'll blog about it later).

I was expecting a lot of guests, given the size of the venue, but not so many came. It's really hard for all people to be free at the same time, especially here in Canada. Everybody's busy. December na rin kasi so maraming ibang events and parties. Yung ibang friends ni Tess ay humabol na lang yata sa bahay that night.

Nevertheless, we had so much fun. This little tikes inflatable bouncer was a perfect entertainer to the kids. It was lent by Tess' friend.

 

Super enjoy si Nathan. First time niya, lol. If only we have space, I would consider getting one kasi for sure masusulit sa bagets.

While eating, Tess started the "bring me contest." Nathan didn't want to participate at first but when I took him in front with me to bring the Philippine peso that was asked, ayun natuwa sa prize. Nagready na sa mga susunod pero hindi na kami nanalo uli haha.

It was Nathan's first time to join party games. Clueless talaga siya haha.

But he learned fast!

I am glad that he has overcome his anti-social behavior. Though still a bit shy and reserved, hindi na siya takot sa tao, especially to those who he sees often.

His favorite part of the party was the blowing of the cake's candle. He enthusiastically sang the happy birthday song for Marco.

Kuya Nathan and the birthday boy. Nathan sincerely cares for Marco and treats him like a little brother.

Mommy Juris, Mommy Tess, Mommy Ces. I am glad to have met and made friends with these two.

 After much eating, time for endless selfies!

My face looks so thin haha! Anggulo lang yan. I naturally have malapad face and even though I've lost a couple of pounds already, malaki pa rin talaga in person.

Juris took this photo. It is very rare that there's someone who can take our family picture. Medyo pangit lang ang lighting that day.

We stayed until the end. We helped in the clean-up. This is actually the most difficult part of throwing a party here, you'll be the one to clean the mess. Walang waiters or waitresses, walang helpers. Kaya mostly disposable ang gamit -- from utensils to table cloths, etc.

Buti na lang we didn't have to clean the floor and fold the tables. Yung centre na raw ang in-charge dun.

I felt sad when they started bursting the balloons. Nakakapanghinayang. Ang daming bata sa Pinas ang gustung-gusto ng lobo. Though I am now living in a land of plenty, where kids are very much privileged, I still can't help but think of my less-fortunate kababayans in the Philippines. Ewan ko ba.

We were able to bring home a lot of food, sobrang dami nga kasing natira kaya lahat kami sangkatutak ang uwi.

The boy was so happy with his loots. He particularly liked the McQueen plushie.

I loved the Goldfish crackers naman. Ang cute! Sakto, hindi nako bibili nito pambaon sa Pinas.

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Thank you for inviting us, Baby Marco! I am sure that this is just the first of your many birthday parties that we'll be attending! =)