TGIS!  Thank God, it’s Sabado!  This is the continuation of this entry.

As I was saying, the fun we had on October 18th didn’t end at the pumpkin patch.  Nobody seemed to want to go home yet, after all, the sun was still out!  After spending more than 4 hours at the farm, C and L graciously invited all of us to hang out at their house.  And then it was decided that we will go to Oasis, dubbed the Sunset Capital of Texas to, you must have already guessed, watch and take photos of the sunset!  Reservations were made for 6:45 pm.

In spite of the reservations, we still found ourselves without a table when we got to Oasis.  The place was packed with people!  While waiting for a table, we proceeded to the 2nd floor balcony to enjoy the view of Lake Travis and the sunset.

This was our (Hubby, Abby and me) first real good look at Lake Travis.

Houses on the land surrounding the like must cost a ton of money.  And check out that lone structure towards the upper right hand corner of the photo.

Here’s a closer view!

That’s the house we’re building for our family.  You’re all invited to our house warming.  Yeah, right! Hee hee.  Here’s another palace by the lake…

I was kinda expecting Rapunzel to come out to let her hair down. :D  But there was no sign of her.  Hu hu.  There were a number of speedboats lined up near the shore and there here were jetskiers, too…

Did I manage to take a snapshot of the sunset?  I did but most of them are not worth posting.  I didn’t realize the sun sets so quickly!  The most decent photo I was able to take was this…

See?  I almost missed the sun!  Tsk tsk.  Better luck next time.  I hear the sun will set again anyway. 

The sun has already set and yet, there was still no sign of a table for us.

Abby and Lica waiting for a table

It was decided that it might be better if we just had dinner elsewhere, Denny’s, to be exact, where kids eat free on Saturdays. ;)  When we stepped out of Oasis, our ride was already waiting for us…

Ha ha ha!

At Denny’s we were given a private room.  Naks!

There were five tables in that room, one for each of the family in our group.  Seven of the 9 kids got to enjoy a free meal, the other two are still babies so no restaurant food for them. :D  And guess what, our drinks were on the house, too!  Our server explained that he wasn’t exactly very organized when he took our beverage orders, and since we were paying separate checks, it would be too much of a hassle for him to go to each table all over again to find out who drank what. Poor guy.  I hope the cost of drinks won’t be taken out of his paycheck.

That’s about it for our 12-hour lakwatsa.  We have busy but fun days ahead of us.  We have about 3 parties to attend within days of each other plus trick or treating.  You’ll be hearing all about them soon.

Have a great weekend!

oOo

Oh yeah, I almost forgot!  I have a personal milestone to share with you.  *wink*

Last Wednesday, the 22nd of October, at the ripe old age of 33, I bought food from a McDonald’s drive thru for the very first time ever.  Hahaha!  I don’t know where my drive thru issues are coming from.  Must be fear of dropping the food or payment.  Or maybe, I really just don’t want to talk to a box.  :D  And you know how a lot of drive thrus back home are so narrow that damage to property is almost expected.  Anyway, Hubby wasn’t with Abby and me that time.  Normally, I’ll just park the car and order from the counter.  But it was raining and I just wanted to get home right away.  To cut a long story short, I did it!  Finally.  Another layer of shelteredness, if there’s even such a word, stripped off of me. :D  Woohoo!

It’s been a while since my last Abby Talk entry.  Abby, at 4 years old, speaks at the speed of lightning and with her twang, Hubby and I sometimes have a hard time understanding her.  Curious and inquisitive, she has so many questions about oh so many things, some of which she would ask over and over again, even after I’ve answered them over and over again, too.

Allow me to share with you, some of my amusing exchanges with Abby.  Enjoy!

oOo

SMART

I was putting Abby to sleep when Hubby accidentally sat on Abby’s Hannah Montana doll on a nearby armchair.  The doll started singing.

Abby: What was that?

Me: Daddy sat on your doll.

Abby: If you sit on a doll, it will break.

Me: You’re right.  How did you become so smart?

Abby: Because I think!

Manang-mana talaga sa ina ang anak ko! Hahaha! *wink*

oOo

BABIES

May I just mention that Abby used to not want to have a baby.  Then again, a lot of her classmates have baby sisters and brothers whom she sees during pick-up and drop off times.

Abby: Mommy,  I want a baby.

Me: Not yet.  We’re not yet ready.

Abby: I’m ready (to have a sister/brother)!

Me: I’m not!  We have to save money first.

Abby: Why?  To buy a baby?

If only it were that simple!  We would have this conversation over and over again.  Sometimes, she’ll ask, “Can we have five?”. I almost fainted the first time she said that.  Sometimes, it’s  “Can we have twins?”.  I’ve now stopped watching John & Kate Plus 8, just so the funny ideas will stop.  *wink*

oOo

SHARING…or the lack thereof

Last Saturday, Hubby and Abby bought lunch from a Vietnamese restaurant.  Before leaving the house, I reminded Hubby to buy fresh spring rolls, which Abby loves so much.  There are two pieces in one order.  The following conversation transpired while we were opening the boxes of food at the dining table…

Abby: Look Mommy, we bought spring rolls! Yey, spring rolls!

Me: Yes, Daddy bought those for you.

Abby: There’s two, Mommy.  I’ll share with you.  One for me and one for you.

Me: What about Daddy?

Abby  pauses for a few seconds…

Abby: Daddy will eat something else.

Awww.  My poor Hubby!

oOo

AGING

This happened while I was getting Abby ready for bed…

Me:  I love you, Abby.

Abby:  I love you, too, Mommy.

Me:  Will you still love me when I’m old.

Abby:  Like Mimi? (Peace, Mimi!)

Me: Mimi’s not old.  (Hee hee.) Will you love me when I’m old and wrinkly like a raisin?

Abby:  No.

Me:  No?

Abby:  Why will you get old?

Me:  Because people get old.   Every time you have a birthday, you get older. Will you love me when I have white hair and wrinkly skin like a raisin?

Abby:  Don’t become a raisin, Mommy! (And she gives me her cutest pout.)

Haaay. =)

That’s all the Abby Talk I have for you…for now.

oOo

Moving on…

It’s no secret that I do SPs (sponsored posts) in my other blogs.  One assignment I recently got required me to do a video or slideshow showcasing their product, which are freshwater pearls.  I was sent a pearl necklace to be used for the video.  The advertiser specifically requested that the video not look like your usual jewelry ad.  A couple of my Plurk buddies have already seen this video here (Thank you, Meeya!)  and I want to share my handy work with you as well.  Oh, and just so we’re clear, I won’t get paid for showing the video here.  Hee hee.  So this blog is still “clean” and SP free!  *wink*

What do you think?  Don’t be too harsh, ok?!  I don’t handle criticism very well.  Hahaha!

With that, I wish you all a wonderful weekend!  Cheers!

Where FB stands for Facebook, EB for eye ball and Weebee, well, that needs no explanation. :)  Having said that, let me announce to the whole world that we just found ourselves some new friends *insert “Weebee!” here*  Filipino friends at that!  It all started with a message I left on cousin Millie’s Facebook wall last Thursday:  “

Belated happy birthday to Alyssa! Hugs and kisses from all of us here in Austin! Mmmwah!

A few minutes later, I got a message in my FB inbox from Lori, a friend of wonder twin sisters Millie (wife of Hubby’s first cousin, Monty) and Carrie, who happen to be living in Austin as well.  Lori was just telling me how glad she was that her former classmates Millie and Carrie “know” someone in Austin.  I was surprised, too, to find out that Millie and Carrie know someone other than our family of three here in Austin.  The next day, I sent Lori an email, too, telling her where I am exactly.  And guess what, we live in the same community!  Just a stone’s throw away from each other!  The emails led to live chats and then to an actual phone call, an impromptu invitation to Lica’s (Lori’s daughter) 7th birthday party scheduled the following day, and finally, an eyeball after I picked up Abby from school last Friday.  All these happened in a matter of three hours or so last Friday.  As I told Carrie, ang bilis ng mga pangyayari!  Not that I’m complaining!  Hee hee.  We, of course, accepted the invitation to Lica’s party.

For the first time in the more than one year that we’ve been living in Texas, we attended a kiddie party exactly the way we know kiddie parties to be…fun-filled and food-filled, too (think pancit, dinuguan, fried chicken, at marami pang iba!)  Hee hee.  With Lica’s guests numbering over 70, it was the most number of Filipinos we’ve seen gathered in one place here in the US since we moved here!  If you’ve read the book The Host, I tell you, I felt what Wanderer/Melanie must have felt when she discovered a cave-full of humans!  Hahaha!

The best part is meeting and being welcomed by a warm and friendly bunch of people.  It would have been nice if we had the chance to meet and mingle with everybody but that would be stretching our luck far too much.  Hubby and I met about 4 or 5 other couples who also live in our community.  We didn’t realize there were so many Filipinos practically next door to us.  Gosh, we really don’t get out much…well, we do, but… :D  Abby made some new friends, too, friends whom, hopefully, she will see again and again and again.

Hubby and I went home with silly smiles on her face.  We teased each other about having new friends, “Uuuy, may friends ka na!”.  :P  Hubby may have friends from work but it is I who actually has friends (Bet and Ate Aileen) that we hang out with.  So the joke’s more on Hubby than me!

What a difference several days make!  I’ve made more friends since my last blog entry!  When you’re living thousands of miles away from everything familiar, you just can’t not welcome anything or anyone that brings you a tad closer to home.  Thank you, God, for a most wonderful weekend miracle!

To Lori and Chris, Alet and Edwin, Weng and Andre, Michelle and Andrew and Camille and Art, we say thank you, for a very warm welcome.  It was such great pleasure meeting all of you and we had a truly wonderful time.

Unfortunately, blogging moment as it was, I didn’t get to take pictures.  Just believe when I say that I didn’t make any of these up. *wink*

oOo

Moving on to other things…

To the five people who subscribe to my feeds, you may have noticed that my feeds are now  the full text of my entries, unlike before when you get but a few sentences of a blog entry.  Truth be told, I had self serving motives for having summarized feeds.  I thought a summarized feed will lure subscribers to visit my site, which is tantamount to hits.  Hee hee.  I apologize for that.  I guess I’ve matured after a little over three years of blogging.  I have finally seen the light!

I only realized the beauty of full feeds these past few weeks when I’ve been very busy.  I like being able to read the entries of blogs I subscribe to without having to leave my feed reader (Bloglines).  Between you and me, I have a tendency to skip blogs with summarized feeds and visit them at a later time.  I’m sorry about that, too. :D  It’s the classic case of having so many things to do with so little time.

oOo

I’ve got more stories for you tomorrow.  For now, I wish you all a great new week ahead!  Cheers!

That’s a word I coined using this formula: Bento + Toy = BenToy.  Check this out…

Yes it is a toy.  Abby’s!  It looks so ridiculously real, don’t you think!  Promise!  It’s a belated birthday gift from her Ninang Pinky and Tito Keith.  The Chinois kids, Abby’s cousins, Luigi, Rafa and Marga, gave Abby the book “First Book of Sushi”.

Abby and her belated birthday loots

Care for some sushi?

I love this toy bento box.  It’s so child friendly.  The chopsticks and the sushi/maki pieces have velcro on them.

Look ma, one chopstick only!  Hahaha!

I didn’t realize it was sooo easy to make a tamago sushi…

And check out the nori (sea weed)!

September is beginning to feel like Japanese culture appreciation month here at out home.  First, Abby got a Hello Kitty showcase (last week).  And now, these!  Hee hee.  I’m not complaining.  Gifts no matter the price and size, are signs of abundance. To our Kingdom-based family, thank you again for these wonderful gifts!  Mmmwah!

oOo

The Bento box toy and the sushi book are not the only belated birthday presents Abby received.  MrsPartyGirl’s unica hija, Ninna, also sent Abby a Nintendo DS Game.  I now have to share my DS with Abby.  I don’t mind, believe me.

Ninna, Abby sends you her thanks! Mmmwah!

oOo

Aba, I received a belated birthday present, too!  A few weeks after my birthday, my friend, Nell, sent me a beautiful token of friendship cum birthday gift…

It’s a heartwarming book about friendship.  I hope Nell isn’t suggesting that, if the two of us were to stand side-by-side, we’ll look like the elephants on the book cover.

Birthday card from Nell.  Very creative, ‘no?

Warn birthday wishes from San Francisco

To Nell, thank you, Friend!

oOo

I wish you all a wonderful weekend!  Cheers!

I’m coming up for air!  Inhale.  Exhale.  Inhale.  Exhale.  I needed that.  It’s been crazy around here since Friday.  This is my breathing time.  It’s a good kind of crazy by the way, at least, for the most part. 

One day, for us, was never enough to celebrate special occasions.  Take Abby’s birthday, for example.  She turned four last Sunday, but we started celebrating, albeit informally, as early as Saturday.  Then there was the whole day of Sunday.  Abby continued to celebrate her birthday in school yesterday, and today.  It’s a little complicated.  She belongs to a class where all of the kids attend school for only half of the day.  The thing is, some kids, like Abby, go to school from Monday to Friday.  A few only attend classes on M-W-F and some, T-TH.  I thought it only fair to bring cupcakes for the T-TH group, too!  That left me tired and sleep deprived.  Not complaining!

You probably think we’re done.  Well, not just yet.  Abby will have a small party for her classmates and our close friends (more like family really) this coming Saturday.  And guess where we’ll be on Sunday.  Did I hear somebody say Sea World?  You got that right!  It’s August.  We haven’t been to Sea World this month yet.  Shamu must miss us already.  Hee hee.  We’re really going there purposely to see the Backyardigans.  We missed Dora a few months ago and we’re determined not to miss the Backyardigans this time!

As soon as I can will myself to think and type cohesively, I’ll fill you in on Abby’s week-long birthday celebration.  Come to think of it, it was only a 3-day celebration last year!  Oh well.  We’re crazy like that.  For now, I leave you with some food from Abby’s birthday dinner. ;)  Enjoy!

Crisypy Noodles with Shrimp for long life (bought from First Chinese BBQ)

Roast (Whole) Duck…cardiac delight, anyone?  Yumm! (Also from First Chinese BBQ)

Baked Chicken Drumsticks (by my dear friend, Bet)

 

No-bake Oreo Cheesecake (by Abby’s Ate Winona - Bet’s 12 yr. old niece)

And to complete the spread, a birthday cake from H-E-B.  I know, it’s small.  But don’t worry, we’ll have a bigger one for Saturday. :) 

Drinks?  Tubig na lang, ha.  Sodas are bad for you and juice, unless freshly-squeezed, has a lot of sugar, too. 

I’ll be back faster than you can say Litratong Pinoy.  Hee hee.  Cheers y’all!