[a Korean foodie haven: LEANN'S TEA HOUSE]

Our family will always be drawn to anything Korean, especially the cuisine. The ban chan or side dishes, the grilled meat or galbi & the spicy soups are our usual orders whenever the cravings come.

A couple of weeks ago, I got another shot at trying Korean fare at LEANN'S TEA HOUSE, this time with some new mommy blogger friends. I just couldn't pass up on this chance for another dining experience, even if it meant taking the taxi from a mall where I parked my car which was under the number-coding scheme that day. The love for Korean food just beckoned. :)

I arrived at the restaurant & caught some of the ladies already enjoying some barley tea time. I liked the simple dining area set-up on the second floor with the drop lanterns, dark-colored booth seats & Asian bric-a-brac providing the cozy ambience.

[CALLIGRAPHY 101]

I remember doing calligraphy during my high school days. I think we used the speedball pens then. And for some time now, I have been seeing FB & IG posts of Patricia's & Ging's works which somehow piqued my interest to try it. 

A few Saturdays ago, I got to join one of Ink Scribbler's workshops, thanks to Erlaine who shared the info.  :)

Erl & I came in just a few minutes before the workshop started & by then, almost all the participants were already there. 

We were assigned a table each & on top was our kit.

[a box of BRAZO CUPS]

Maggie's yummy brazo de mercedes cups became the other star in the surprise baby shower party we hosted for Aimee. ;) 

[good food & HIGH SCHOOL memories]

Being an SAHM has its perks & one of the many is having the luxury of meeting up with good friends over lunch & coffee or tea for three hours tops.

I did just that when I went to see three high school buddies on separate occasions.

The first one was with Gemma & Miriam. We had a chance meeting at Mary Grace Cafe in Serendra Piazza earlier but decided to spend the rest of the day catching up.

[BLOGGING our way to friendship]

We are a tight bunch of momma bloggers who simply found ourselves gravitating toward each other. Virtual strangers in the beginning, but all that has changed in so short a time. All the blog-hopping & dropping of comments sparked an on-line camaraderie among us which later extended to meet-ups that happily led to this 'sisterhood'. :)

Finally, after missing a few playdates, I got to be with them during the Mommy Fleur Day in Acacia Estates, Taguig

l-r: Fleur with Anika, me, Dew, Maqui,
Maggie, Sha, Em & Aimee

(an EATING SPREE with three at PAN DE AMERIKANA & PINK CHIFFON]

Two Thursdays ago,  I was with my best mommy buddies, Joy, Auji & Didit. Our last gastronomic outing a couple of months back took us to RUSTIC MORNINGS & QIZIA. I always look forward to seeing these ladies because we get to catch up on each others' lives while trying out restaurants & cafes. Fully aware of my blogging venture, they help me look for places to review while we share stories. ;)

Our day started early with breakfast taken at Pan de Amerikana. I had tapsilog (beef strips, fried rice & sunny side-up) with a cup of brewed coffee. Deliciously affordable at Php 95.00.

[KOREAN fried chicken the easy way]

I bought this from a recent trip to the supermarket.

[RUSTIC MORNINGS & QIZIA with good friends]

Neither time nor distance can affect friendships that span years, even as far back as college days. This  holds true of my bond with these three ladies, two of whom are my 'kumares', Joy & Auji. I always meet up  with them & their families for a simple gathering during the holidays. 

And so we got together one Monday morning, just one  of those spur-of-the-moment things.  We had to find a place that was within Marikina only because Joy had to attend to her son & prepare him for school. It was then that I remembered RUSTIC MORNINGS,  a quaint, country-style restaurant somewhere in Marikina, which another best friend recommended.

[doing the ALPHABET MEME]

Doing this slumbook thing reminds me so much of my GS/HS days. Thanks to Denise for tagging me.

Attached or single?
*Attached to J, for better or for worse.

[and ANIKA makes 3]

Was it only yesterday when it was just the two of us?

Our meeting & working together sometime in 2004 paved the way to a long-time friendship that has taken us through the highs & lows. My being 15 years her senior has probably something to do with it. Much of a boon rather than a bane. She is the younger sister I never had & I her 'ate'. Our age difference somehow brought out the best in us & contributed to this sisterhood. And now, someone has entered the picture, a welcome addition to the equation - ANIKA.

[LIAPOT turns 2]

Marsy's toddler daughter, LIA, just turned 2 years old. The girls & I were invited & got to join in the fun.

The young family of 3 posed for a posterity shot with the Jollibee characters.

[my SLICE of friendship with MOMMY FLEUR]

We agreed to just meet up after Anika's birthday bash last April 9. It's been awhile since we had girl talk. After 2 postponements, we finally did an early dinner/ tête-à-tête yesterday at SLICE, BHS Central.

[a green get-together]

One weekend before NYD, I got to see my 2 long-time college friends & almost-sisters AUJI & JOY. We had a 3-year break from our annual get-together because for some reasons, our schedules didn't jibe & I got sick one time. So, last month, when we had that chance, we finally met up. Our family hosted a merienda get-together here in the house. 

Both of them came with their families. They brought pizzas & a cake while I prepared some simple food to share.

Two kinds of pasta

[before she becomes uber famous]

For those who are "lurkers" of my blog, you know how my friendship with Mommy Fleur came to be.

Through the years, our relationship has evolved from being workmates, bestfriends & now as 'kumares', with me as godmother to her adorable tyke, Anika. 

While I was going through my photo files, I found these. They were taken eons ago, back when she was still single & I, many pounds lighter. ;) 

[the WIN]

I rarely join e-raffles. But when Ging of fortyweeks announced a California Pizza Kitchen gift certificate as her blog giveaway, I tried my luck. 

[the MOMMY BLOGGER friends I make - Aimee, Ging & Marsy]

Who says you cannot meet nice people online and feel like they have been your long-time friends? Well, despite the misgivings, I still did. ;)

It started with a single comment on a blog entry from each of them. Unlike my best friend's popular blog, mommyfleur, mine is simply read through. So when these ladies' comments came in on an almost regular (but not daily) basis, I started to follow their blogs  & dropped a word or two.

I haven't met them personally but the exchange of pleasantries online somehow paved the way for our budding "friendships".

Here are the 3 mommy bloggers I've met & made friends with & the things I love about their blogs:


*Aimee Diego of iamaimeediego

Her simple, well-written entries are what attracted me to her blog. And I envy her writing style.;) Churning out run-of-the-mill sentences is not her thing for her stories are told in a rather descriptive fashion. She writes on almost anything of interest to her. I especially like her features on the handmade dolls, the paper mache horses & other creative projects by local artisans. Aside from posts on food, good reads, weekend getaways, you are also let in on her life with her hubby & toddler-daughter, TALA.


*Ging Domingo-Santos of fortyweeks

I totally love her blog look & her artsy-craftsy Martha Stewart posts. An architect like me & a college mate (something which I just recently discovered), she's also into interiors & DIY projects. You will likewise get to travel with her vicariously through her vacation posts. Of course, like all mommy bloggers, there will be snippets of stories about her family, especially her baby ALLIE, which she shares with her readers.


*Mars Ardeza-Ilagan of planetmarsy

Her blog chronicles her life as a young wife & mom. I love her anecdotes about her cutie patootie of a daughter, 1 year old LIA. Her travel tips to places she had been to are also helpful. As a whole, her candid but well-expressed way of telling stories is what keeps me coming back to her blog.


Discover & enjoy reading their blogs, too. Just click on the links.

[raymond + minnie = ANDI]

the biscochos hold a special place in my heart. 

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i've known raymond & minnie since our market!market! days. back then, they were still a dating couple. they were part of the design team that i was regularly coordinating with. following up plans & details from them would sometimes mean engaging in small talks about things not work-related. through these mini bonding times, i got to know them & eventually endeared themselves to me.

raymond & minnie are both architects, a profession we shared. both innately good-natured, sweet & thoughtful, we gravitated towards each other like a family.  after the project was completed, they both took a career move & relocated themselves to dubai & later in hk. despite the years & the distance,  i still got updates on their lives together, with minnie even finding the time to see fleur & me (with matching gifts on hand) whenever she's in manila.

after years of working overseas, they got married here. unfortunately, because of a pre-set family reunion, their tagaytay wedding was something i sorely missed out on attending. 

after their wedding, it was off to hk again for the newly-hitched couple to start a family. after almost a year, minnie became a mother to li'l andi.

around november of the following year, andi celebrated her 1st birthday party. as soon as the cute alice-in-wonderland themed  invitation arrived,  i made sure we would attend this one.

fast forward to may of this year.

during our recent hk family sojourn, we got to visit the biscochos in their tung chung flat. there, we got to see andi for the first time. our gracious hosts treated us to lunch, with andi playing with kirsten & jill & entertaining us with her cute & smart antics. minnie was by then in her last few days of being a full-time mom as she was set to start in her new job as soon as the nanny arrives. i saw for myself their closeness as a family specially minnie & andi's bond. i'm sure, minnie didn't regret going into a hiatus for a year to take care of andi herself. i still remember i advised her to take the leave, nix the second thoughts of resigning from her job & grab the opportunity to be a hands-on mom. 

 see here how adorable ANDI stole our hearts...

thanks to raymond, minnie & andi for the time spent in your home. here's to many years of friendship...

photo sources: minnie's fb account for the family pictures

[my best friend's wedding - a year after]

My best friend & her hubby are celebrating their 1st wedding anniversary on the 19th of this month. Being the matron of honor, I was tasked, nay, "forced" to give a speech, as what was expected of members of the entourage, especially those close to the couple. Speaking before an audience is not one of my "most-loved-things-to-do" but because she was like a sister to me, I gave in to her request.

So on your anniversary, Fleur & Alvin, I am posting, verbatim, what I said that night in Bellevue Hotel almost a year ago...

Just a few hours ago, Fleur, my soul sister & best friend of 6 years officially became Mrs Alvin Sombrero. as she was saying her vows to the man standing before her, I felt happy for she has finally found her match, her ‘hit’ after years of many ‘misses’.

I met fleur at the workplace in 2003. Fresh out of college & after passing the board exams, she applied at MDC & became my technical assistant. At first, she came on to me as “ maarte, sosyal & mukhang di tatagal sa trabaho. But looks proved to be deceiving. As the days passed, she turned out to be the opposite. Although di naman nabawasan ang kaartehan nya, she became a lot more than that. She was a valuable employee-efficient, hardworking & reliable. Our relationship went beyond work. We became each other’s rah-rah girl, shopping buddy & sometimes, salon or spa companion. And being her best friend for the last 6 years, I was witness to her chaotic, crazy lovelife. Her 2 previous relationships, of which I was privy to, were, to put it mildly, ‘unpredictable’. Although, she had her happy moments with them, there would be days that she would come to me crying because she just had a spat with her boyfriend. It became an ‘on-&-off’ thing that I got used to it. Knowing her to be emo & impulsive kapag in love, I considered it normal. But when the fights became serious and fits of depression set in, I was forced to tell her to just drop the relationship and find someone better. Stubborn and oblivious to my advice, she just stayed on. Until Alvin S came along. Fleur introduced him to me twice. Call it ‘best friend instinct’, but the second time I met him, I knew he was worth the chance for Fleur. After dilly-dallying and a major fight with an immediate ex, she finally budged and let Alvin S back to her life. Since then, life became a breeze for her, the smiles became constant & the tears came few and far between.I saw her become giddy like a schoolgirl again. And when she became engaged, there was no stopping her at happiness.

Who would have thought that after being separated by time & distance, she would end up with her first boyfriend? Its like “a bestfriend’s wedding”, with the happy twist. The bida girl ends up with the bida boy. I remember telling fleur back then that despite the pain of a failed relationship, she has no choice but to embrace it and allow GOD to let the right person come into her life. And much to my relief, she listened. And today, as they say it, the rest is history.

As I end this, I want to tell you, Alvin & Fleur that Julius & I hope & pray nothing but happiness for you. Remember though that marriage, like life, is not a mere destination nor a simple walk in the park. You have to constantly work on it. Love each other unconditionally, warts & all, but never fail to support & nurture each other. Because if you become better persons, you also become better partners & parents to your kids. And tomorrow, when you start your life as husband & wife, enjoy the journey together. Congratulations & best wishes.