While waiting for JV All Events official photos to arrive, I just have to post Sophie’s first trick or treat. We celebrated Sophie’s 2nd birthday in Jollibee a day before her actual birthday. Since we have nothing to do on her birthday, I signed her up for a Pumpkin Patch in Gymboree. I dressed her as Queen Elsa, complete with shoes and tiara. No scary costume for her coz she gets scared easily.
Sophie as Snow Queen Elsa
Before going out for trick or treat, the teachers prepared different activities for the kids like storytelling, making Frankenstein art, gymplay and prepared small snacks for the kids. bubbles time!mr frankensteinsmall snack before trick or treating
The trick or treat was tiring, as we went all the way up to the fifth floor. I know Sophie got tired too, but everytime someone drops something in her pumpkin, her face lights up. Her pumpkin was loaded when we finished, and she was so happy with all the candies she received.
happy birthday girl!
We treated her after for a nice birthday dinner in Chili’s for a job well done. Happy birthday Sophie! ❤️
How time flies, Sophie is turning 2 in a month, just like that. I love seeing her photos done in a studio, so since she was a baby she has always photoshoots.
Sharing with you some of Sophie’s pre-birthday shots. This was done in Take Your Pic ATC. It has a very small studio because its more of a photobooth than an ordinary studio. They have affordable packages and I got the 2,000 package which includes 8×10 photo with frame, 4 5R prints and 15 digital files in CD.
Take Your Pic Alabang Town Center – 02.218.7689 IG: takeyourpicstudio
I love makeup and skincare products. I have discovered my love for makeup in 2010, and skincare since I started having facials in Luz back in the day (late 90s). Over the years I have tried different brands (from drugstore brands to high ends), so somehow I had the idea of the better and reasonable ones to purchase.
Anyways, the only brand that I haven’t tried is Shu Uemura. I constantly overlook this brand in malls and Duty Frees. Maybe because I’m more interested in Shiseido and SKII, given they’re all Japanese brands. SKII has an amazing (and very expensive) skincare products, and I love Shiseido and Maquillage’s powder foundations.
I was just browsing thru IG when I chanced upon the scheduled Beauty Class of Shu Uemura for those who will purchase 6k of their products. I became interested to join because even though I am a makeup junkie, I never had any teachings from a professional. So I went to ATC and bought some stuff so I could qualify. I bought a complete line of Tsuya skincare, and man, this line is impressive! I know my goal is to just qualify for the Beauty Class but I stumbled into something more. I have discovered the amazing products of Shu Uemura. (and no, I didn’t get paid to say this)
Even though Shu’s products are expensive, I am sincere to say they’re worth it. I highly recommend the Ultim8 cleansing oil. Shu is famous for its cleansing oils but the Ultim8 is the creme ala creme. And the Tsuya line (lotion, essence, emulsion, night cream) is pure heaven! I’m just using them for a week and I love them on my face! Really, what a surprise find. ❤️
The Beauty Class is just a bonus. I know my basic makeup but I learned more techniques from Shu Master Cats Del Rosario. Thanks to her and the rest of the Shu Beauty Team ATC for beautifying me and the other participant, Ms. Jackie.
Here are some of the highlights of my well spent afternoon.
selfie before the beauty class I did half of my face! ❤️ 1st look / day to day look2nd look / evening lookBeauty Class 101 Teammandatory mirror selfie
I can’t seem to contain my excitement. In just a week’s time, I will be saying hello to Big Ben! Tabs and I wanted to treat ourselves for our anniversary this year. We were thrilled when we got approved for visa. Who knows, US next year, maybe? 😉
We were just thinking of trying to apply for a UK Visa a few months back. The process seemed fairly easy, with no interviews. The only part that took me a tad long was the online application. I had to accomplish 3 applications (mine, tabs and sophie’s). We had to compute all the financials, our expenses here at home and what we have to spend in UK. Plus, it needed our previous passports informations. Good thing we were able to keep them.
Since its still fresh in my memory, below is the list of the requirements and the process we went through. (Standard Tourist Visa for Filipinos living in the PH)
1. Before starting on the online application, gather the information needed. This includes present and previous passports, previous travels, hotel/flight/trains/tour details and costs (no need to book yet), living costs here and in UK.
2. Apply online. Be ready with credit card details and cost. I was charged $136/person for the visa application (approx 6,316 at the time). The infant has same rate with adults, yes. After accomplishing the application, schedule an appointment date and time. For family application like us, I booked the same date and time. Print the online application and appointment letter.
3. Make sure that all supporting documents are ready before making an appointment. These are the documents that I submitted for the 3 of us.
Ren (businesswoman)
• Mayor’s Permit • DTI • BIR COR • Business ITR • Bank Statement and Certificate • Marriage Certificate • Present and previous passports • Printed online application with appropriate ID Photo (check here for exact measurement)
RJ (employee)
• COE • ITR • Bank Statement and Certificate • Present and previous passports • Printed online application with appropriate ID Photo
Sophie (infant)
• Birth Certificate • Printed online application with appropriate ID Photo
All documents must be submitted in original and photocopies. There are instances that originals are not returned when no photocopy is provided. No need to submit the same docs if you’re travelling as a family (eg. Marriage cert).
Tip I got somewhere:
The money in your bank must be greater than your overall UK trip.
4. Come to the appointment at *VFS Global at least 20 minutes earlier. Parking space is limited and valet is available if full. No charge for valet parking, just tip the driver.
5. Sort the documents beforehand. All originals and copies of docs for one person are checklisted at the counter. It saves time if docs are properly sorted.
6. All applicants must come to the appointment in person, even children and infants. This is for the picture taking and biometrics purposes (picture taking only for infants).
7. If you want to be notified of your application thru text message, pay an additional Php150 per person. I made a mistake of applying for sms notification for Tabs and I (Php300), since we didn’t really need them. We are always online and email notifications are provided for free. If you’re not always online, then sms notification is helpful.
8. You may opt to have your documents returned by courier, though I’m not exactly sure with the charge, around 300/person. We opted to return personally to claim the docs, as that time we kept our UK planning a secret and wouldn’t want anyone in the house snooping on docs mailed by UK embassy.
Just like any embassy in the world, all docs submitted must be true and authentic. They keep a record of all the docs and it could cause a problem (if not now maybe in the future) if fake docs are submitted.
In exactly 10 days, we received a text notifying us of the decision made and that our docs were for retrieval already. We were given multiple entry in 6 months. I think this is the standard visa they give to tourists.
I think we got approved because of our numerous travels in Asia, and with Japan visa valid for 5 years. The docs we passed all had originals and photocopies. But they were all returned to us, with them not keeping even the photocopies.
After our visa approval thats the time we finalized our flight and hotel bookings and tours tickets. UK be ready, we’re coming for ya! 😉
We know its too early, but at Sophie’s young age of 20 months, we want her to experience going to a playschool. In our house, she’s the only baby, and her playmates are mostly us and her yayas. Its still different to mingle with kids her age too, and to gain confidence with her activities while learning and having fun at the same time.
When she was just 10 months, I tried her in a trial class in Kinder Musik BGC. It was ok but there were so many kids. I think they were more than a dozen in a class and the space was so small. Plus we were so busy that time with all the wedding preparations. Now I think is the best time for her to join a playschool. She can understand almost everything now, though she doesn’t talk much yet.
Sophie and I on her trial class
I plan on enrolling her to the different classes of Gymboree in Greenbelt 5. They have a nice spacious area for playing. For now I enrolled her in Play and Learn Level 4 (16-24 months). The first time she was a bit hesitant to try the slides and other activities, but she got more relaxed the second time and even tried to mingle with some of her classmates. Whats nice about Gymboree is the kids gymplay for the day is free when enrolled in a class. So the kids can stay before or after class if they still want to play. Sophie’s becoming confident on her succeeding classesshe doesn’t like going through a tunnel like this thoughgoing up the slide by herselfsliding cautiously 😉Teacher Jem hands out a shape for Sophie to toss
Sophie mingling with a classmate
She loves to dance whenever she hears an upbeat song, so probably next would be her Music class.
Here is Sophie dancing to the Gymbo song.
For more information, visit or call:
Gymboree Greenbelt 5, Greenbelt 5, Basement Level, Ayala Center, Makati
Today marked a first in the history of my existence. I joined a 5k run! 👏🏼 Never thought it was possible, since I despise running or any sporty activity of sorts. It was difficult not having any practice or exercise for the past 3 years or so. It was more of a walking than running, since my goal is to just finish, whatever means it maybe. 😁 But its difficult just the same. I finished in an hour and I was satisfied with myself, I was tired and sweaty but I did not regret it. 💪🏼
I hope I can join more runs in the future. Thumbs up to my sister’s friend Cy for staying behind to accompany me throughout the run.
I came across these coloring sheets called Color Me Doodle in Instagram and decided to try it out. I was never fond of coloring or any artsy stuff in my childhood years, but somehow now I’m beginning to (talk about late bloomer). Anyways, these 10 sheets are designed for adults and will really bring out the creativity of colors in you. A lot would say that coloring relieves stress, but personally, I just enjoy doing it. Also, it was fun picking out color pens in a bookstore and after a couple of sets (Maped and Stabilo), I settled for Faber Castell with its variety of colors (60 colors) for just 699 (I think).
Some of the sheets that I finished coloring (my favorite is the cat). I guess I have a flair for coloring, after all. 😁
Color Me Doodle (for shipping only); contact Mark Dean Lim – colormedoodle@gmail.com / @colormedoodle
I know I have expressed my love for BSB several times in this blog, and waaay more in the past, and going to one of their concerts is an ultimate goal of a fangirl like me. I may not be as diehard as I was in highschool, or I may not have their latest album, or I may not even afford their meet & greet, BSB will always hold a special place in my heart and memory that nothing and no one can ever take away.
Soo, drama aside, the only thing that stressed me out in this concert is the will call process. As excited as I was to be able to grab good seats, I purchased the vip tickets on their website during presale. It was stated there that I will be charged but the tickets will be picked up at the event box office. I was to receive an email on how to claim the tickets 4 days before the concert. 2 days before the event I still haven’t got any email, and I only got a reply when I emailed them one day before, a generic reply with no specific place to claim the tickets. I was desperate because I was charged $353 for 2 tickets already. Anyways, good thing I updated myself with the PH fanclub so I was able to get info that there’s a window in the Arena ticket sales that were for will calls. It was my first time to experience the will call setup, since its not common in PH. Turned out that those who received emails 4 days before the concert were the upgrades, meaning they have meet & greet / soundcheck. The platinum upgrade is $599 where fans go up the stage, excluding the concert ticket itself. It was amazing how fans would go lengths to be closer to their idols.
Well, I still got premium seats, 4 rows from the stage. Maybe I was too close, that my neck ache from looking up the whole time. But who am I to complain, of course. It was not every year that I get to see these boys, still outdoing themselves with their performances. They sang most of their hits from the past, and maybe 4 songs from their new album that I regret that I haven’t listen to yet. It was not yet in Spotify.
In 2012 NKOTBSB concert, they were just 4. Now Kevin has rejoined once more. They were getting old, lines show from their faces, their moves lessen a bit (except Nick who was crazy as always), and their voices more mature and different like Brian’s (who I think wasn’t too well). But whatever it was, it never mattered. They were the best boyband to ever grace this generation, they are brothers and family, and they make good music from 20 years to who knows how long, for us to enjoy and make witness for the years to come. Its like paying homage to a legacy today. ®
Every Holy Week the Agcaoilis make it a point to travel to a different country. For this year we travelled to Hanoi, Vietnam; just 6 days after wrapping up our Holy Land tour. Sophie is surely fast becoming a jetsetter, having travelled to 11 countries in just her 17 months of existence.
Well, I wasn’t really keen on doing this tour. Maybe because South East Asian countries never really interest me. One, because I find PH far more interesting than the nearby countries in terms of natural wonders, and two, because of the hot weather. I tire easily and lose interest when its too hot while touring. And this was what happened in Hanoi when we had our city tour. It was just too hot, that even Sophie was sweating like crazy it looked like she just came from shower everytime we walk.
Anyway, what I find interesting in Hanoi were the foods. I was not normally adventurous when it comes to international cuisine, and having just finished our Holy Land tour where I realized how much I hated (as in totally) Mediterranean food, I wasn’t ready for another food adventure. So, it came as a surprise that I like it. Well, some of it at least. Vietnamese food weren’t so bad after all, maybe remove the cilantro (they put tons of it) and they taste good, even for a picky eater like me.
Some of the foods we had during our 4 day stay.
street fruitsI think the one that looked like mango was the only edible here. The other two, esp. the red one that looked like sineguelas, were absolute no-no. It was too sour. These were sprinkled with sugar and chili and cost 50k vnd or approx. 100 php.
We also had our lunch at the supposed most famous restaurant in Hanoi.
Hanoi’s most famousWe walked from Hotel de L’opera (where we stayed) to here which was like 2 km under the scorching heat. The place looked like a small filthy carinderia which goes up to fifth floor. It was packed with foreigners and locals alike, and we finally settled to 4th flr. They only served 2 kinds of foods from which they are famous of, the grilled pork with rice noodles and crab spring rolls.
grilled pork crab rolls rice noodlesIt was delicious of course, like my mother in law says, “mura na, madumi pa” (cheap and filthy). She was so grossed out by the place that even though the food tasted great, she only ate a little. Funny thing was, it blacked out the moment we started eating. It was so hot and dirty and packed with people and even though its the most famous here I’m never eating here again. Ever.
By dinner time we just ate inside the hotel’s Vietnamese restaurant, Satine. We wanted to be sure the quality of the foods we’re eating, I guess. I must commend their spring rolls, they tasted great. The others were blah. I wished that I ordered for a clubhouse instead.
breakfast chicken phoWe stayed in Hotel de L’opera for 3 nights, and good thing that they have an acceptable array of foods during breakfast, continental buffet. Sophie somehow loved their chicken congee, which is a good thing. I was thinking that she wouldn’t eat Vietnamese food and I brought several cup noodles along with us.
On our city tour the next day, we were brought to a nice European style restaurant during lunch called La Tonkin. We were served with Vietnamese food again, but all were good. Again, Sophie had her chicken congee which tasted so good that I ate over half of it.
Now this is the more interesting part. There was an ice cream shop near the hotel called Kem Trang Tien since 1958. We think its very famous because we passed by a couple of times and it was packed with people and motorcycles going in and out of the area. So after the tour we walked and gave it a try. It was located in a small complex, with 3 stores selling the ice cream and parking lot for the motocycles. We were all excited to try because all people inside were happily chitchatting and eating their ice cream. It has only one flavor (vanilla) in sugar cone.
Kem Trang Tien famous vanilla ice creamHow I wish that the ice cream tasted as good as it looked. It was awful. I didn’t know the exact ingredients for an ice cream but this one clearly lacked sufficient milk and loaded with sugar. It also has a bitter aftertaste, even the sugar cone. I guess I was waiting for the taste to get better, but it didn’t, so after eating some, I unceremoniously threw it away. Really, what a waste of effort and excitement. The locals have an out-of-this-world standard of a good ice cream. I would prefer our dirty ice cream any time of the day.
Some of the foods at Bhaya Cruises
shrimp roll and breaded squid chicken and mushroom egg soup mango salad grilled shrimp with tartar sauce opera cake fresh oysters and shrimps sea bass curry light breakfast 😉 seafood pasta and fried squidOn our last night, we went to the famous Halong Bay. We boarded the Bhaya Cruises for our overnight cruise. In fairness, almost all foods were great, the taste somewhat caters to the foreigners, which was all the better for me.
famous beef phoI’m not a fan of noodles, and I couldn’t really say whether I like their Pho or not. I think its acceptable enough. Maybe remove some of the cilantro, or better yet, nothing at all, then it’ll be okay. Here, pho’s are everywhere, even on breakfast. Cilantros are everywhere on their food, too. On our four days here, one food that stood out is their spring rolls. They make really good ones. So in my short experience of Vietnam, Vietnamese food is all about spring rolls and not pho.
leerenah 
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