Sep 5, 2011
Manny
Our yellow Lab, Manny. The present I got last xmas. He's now almost one year old and have an energy of 10 dogs. He loves to run in the grassy area in the park and chase balls. He is super friendly and very good with kids. We just love him so much.
Transition
So...it's been a little over a year since I last posted here and guess what? We are now actually living in Los Gatos! Who knew? Just two weeks ago we packed our bags, drove nearly 600 miles south and moved in our new place here in the Silicon Valley. It was not all that plain & simple though. There were soooo much that happened first . It was stressful, it was exhausting, it was frustrating at times but we did managed to find and get most of what's on our priority list such as location , school, proximity, price & safety. We found a cute little apartment in a quiet neighborhood and close to excellent schools. It's also very close to work and . So far, I'm liking it but I can't help but think about our beautiful house in Portland Oregon.
Transition is never easy but I feel like it is an exciting time. I know there are many great opportunity that San Jose has to offer and I feel very positive that we will have an awesome life in the southern San Francisco Bay area.
Transition is never easy but I feel like it is an exciting time. I know there are many great opportunity that San Jose has to offer and I feel very positive that we will have an awesome life in the southern San Francisco Bay area.
Jul 12, 2010
A Week In Los Gatos
Los Gatos is a cute little town south of San Francisco. The hotel where we stayed was surrounded by chic boutique and restaurants. Busy even on weekdays and people walking everywhere. The roads are well planned and clearly marked and motorists are polite and considerate to pedestrians and other drivers trying to park off of the street. It is nice to stay here on vacation and perhaps even to live permanently but houses are very expensive. We looked around to see how much an average 3 bedroom house cost and it goes from 400k and higher depending on areas. I started to miss our own house in Portland. We won’t be able to afford the same size of house in LG.
We left Portland on Wednesday (7/7) at about 2pm. We planned to leave early but as usual, we were only good at planning but couldn’t follow through. It was a nice drive. The weather was perfect and not very much traffic. I always enjoy driving to different cities and looking at the scenic views. Kids did good too. Didn’t complain or whine about being bored. 12 hours later , at about 2am, we arrive at the hotel. The kids went to bed almost immediately while me and Grant stayed up a couple more hours. It’s weird to be wide awake after a long exhausting day.
Thursday, Grant went to work. I forgot to mention that this trip is actually not a vacation. Grant had to go to a training at their office here in LG. While Grant went to work, me and the kids slept in and spent the whole day just relaxing at the hotel.
Friday , Grant took us to meet the family of his friend. They’re Filipinos but they’ve lived here in California since they were little that they are basically more American. We went out to dinner at a nice Japanese restaurant. Maila ,Robert and their son, Jacob were very nice people. I feel like I could hang out with them and not feel out of place.
Saturday, we drove around town. We were supposed to take the kids to the beach but it was chilly and windy so we just ate our lunch at the beach and left. Back at the hotel, at around 4pm, the sun was out and it was warm enough to go for a dip in the pool. It was perfect timing too because there was nobody using the pool. At around 8pm, Grant took us to San Francisco look for a Chinese restaurant that his friend recommended. It was not easy finding a parking spot on a Saturday night. We had to circle the block a few times before we found a place to park close to the restaurant. The one hour drive from the hotel and the 20 minutes or so of circling & waiting to park was all worth it because the food was good. Just like how they made it in Hong Kong. Also, I always love driving around San Francisco.
Sunday, was a lazy day but at least I did my work out. Grant went out to play basketball with Robert for a few hours. He was exhausted and took a long nap. We ate lunch/early dinner at around 6pm and then we went back to the pool to let the kids play. We went to bed early because Grant has to go to work the next day.
Monday….it’s noon as I am typing this. I need to find a laundry mat. There’s one 4 miles away. Also, later tonight we will go out to have dinner with Maila, Robert & Jacob again. That should be fun.
More later………..
Town Center Of Los Gatos
Los Gatos Means "The Cats" in Spanish
We left Portland on Wednesday (7/7) at about 2pm. We planned to leave early but as usual, we were only good at planning but couldn’t follow through. It was a nice drive. The weather was perfect and not very much traffic. I always enjoy driving to different cities and looking at the scenic views. Kids did good too. Didn’t complain or whine about being bored. 12 hours later , at about 2am, we arrive at the hotel. The kids went to bed almost immediately while me and Grant stayed up a couple more hours. It’s weird to be wide awake after a long exhausting day.
Shinjo was out!
Thursday, Grant went to work. I forgot to mention that this trip is actually not a vacation. Grant had to go to a training at their office here in LG. While Grant went to work, me and the kids slept in and spent the whole day just relaxing at the hotel.
Friday , Grant took us to meet the family of his friend. They’re Filipinos but they’ve lived here in California since they were little that they are basically more American. We went out to dinner at a nice Japanese restaurant. Maila ,Robert and their son, Jacob were very nice people. I feel like I could hang out with them and not feel out of place.
Mizu Sushi Bar and Grill at Winchester Blvd,SJ
Saturday, we drove around town. We were supposed to take the kids to the beach but it was chilly and windy so we just ate our lunch at the beach and left. Back at the hotel, at around 4pm, the sun was out and it was warm enough to go for a dip in the pool. It was perfect timing too because there was nobody using the pool. At around 8pm, Grant took us to San Francisco look for a Chinese restaurant that his friend recommended. It was not easy finding a parking spot on a Saturday night. We had to circle the block a few times before we found a place to park close to the restaurant. The one hour drive from the hotel and the 20 minutes or so of circling & waiting to park was all worth it because the food was good. Just like how they made it in Hong Kong. Also, I always love driving around San Francisco.
Lunch at the Beach.Sta Cruz
Seabright Beach Sta.Cruz
Hanging out by the pool
Cannonball!
Jacuzzi
Driving Around San Francisco. Passed by AT&T Ball Park
Pier 1. San Francisco
Authentic Chinese Dinner at Hing Lung Restaurant
Broadway San Francisco.
Sunday, was a lazy day but at least I did my work out. Grant went out to play basketball with Robert for a few hours. He was exhausted and took a long nap. We ate lunch/early dinner at around 6pm and then we went back to the pool to let the kids play. We went to bed early because Grant has to go to work the next day.
Monday….it’s noon as I am typing this. I need to find a laundry mat. There’s one 4 miles away. Also, later tonight we will go out to have dinner with Maila, Robert & Jacob again. That should be fun.
More later………..
Jul 9, 2010
Busy 2010
Where have I been?
It's July already and I'm just now updating my blog!
There's so much stuff to talk about and I don't know where to begin.
Let's do a month-to-month update shall we? I’m just gonna write little tidbits of stuff that had happened and we’ll skip the not-so-important events.
January:
First week, college begins. I was so nervous because I didn’t know what to expect. Nearly 8 years the last time I’ve been a student and the first experience for me to be in college here in America. I enrolled at Portland Community College to get the prerequisites for the Nursing degree program. I was gonna sign up for 3 classes but Grant told me that I should take one class just to test the water. I’m glad I listened to him because even though it’s basically a high school level class there was plenty of home works. I would have been overwhelmed if I had pile of assignments to do on top of my already hectic regular days. I took Introduction to Algebra. Some of the lessons were familiar so I didn’t really struggle as I thought I would. Our instructor was very good and kept the 1 hour and a half class interesting.
Princess and Shinjo were doing just fine at their school too. Shino was transferred to a new school. Farther away but it was ok. The program suits him better.
February:
Shinjo turned 6. Can you believe it? I look at him and I still see this cute little baby that cry so hard when he’s hungry and chew on every toy like a puppy. I made a Blue’s Clues themed birthday cake for him and grandma joined us for dinner celebration.
March:
My first term ended and I was so happy with my grade. It’s a small achievement but it sets a good start for my academic pursuit. Winter term ended and spring term begins. This time I signed up for two classes, Math and Writing. Our Math teacher was ok. Not as good as the previous. Writing instructor was a very interesting person. At first look, you’d think that her class was easy because she encourage you to think on your own. She taught us how to write in details and specifics. I knew that it was going to be a challenge for me because of the language issues but I wanted to prove that I could do it on my own so I didn’t ask for any help from Grant. First essay, I got a really low grade. I was disappointed to say the least. Well..ok…I bawled like a baby! So I decided to swallow my pride and ask Grant for help with my writing homework.
Also, my MIL and I celebrated when the Health Care Reform Bill passed after almost a year of fight among the politicians. We both agree that the POTUS brought the worst out of his opponents and it shocking to witness how vile some people have gotten because they weren’t happy about the pres.
Princess learned to ride the bike. She was so excited and we were so proud of her. It didn’t take long before she was going up & down the hill. Grant bought a trailer/half-bike for Shinjo. It’s called a “wheehoo” and we had to drive to Astoria to get it because it’s rare and only one store carry it in all Oregon. Grant also bought his own bike and it has become our regular family fun activity to go to downtown river banks to ride the bike. Me, I didn’t have a bike. I don’t even know how to ride one. So, I jogged. I jogged behind Princess and we’d go around and across the river. The farthest I did was about 5.5 miles and it felt great!
April:
We celebrated Grant’s birthday. Like we always do, we get dinner take out and watch a movie. Mom got him an ice-cream cake. Nothing much happened this month. We were all busy with our own little world. Grant was forever busy with work. Our dining room is now officially his work station and no one dared to touch anything on his table.
May:
Somebody turned 35. I got a nice present from my mother-in-law and Grant. Spring term was almost over. I worked very hard to get good grades on both classes and Grant did a great job helping me with my writing homework. I wrote the essays and he proof read them for me. I have to say, I learned a lot from this writing class. I regretted neglecting my blog because it’s a good practice for vocabulary and thought process.
June:
Spring term ended and I got two awesome final grades!!! Princess and Shinjo did great in their school too. Princess turned 9 and we start with the long summer vacation. Everybody were headed somewhere to spend time with family. The weather finally improved after long months of rain.
Princes and Shinjo With Jiara at Jamison Fountain Park
Summer fun at the Blue Lake
July:
First week and here we are in San Jose California in this nice little hotel. There’s a heat wave going on around the entire west coast but it’s ok because we have cool AC in our room. It was a 12 hour drive but it was not as bad as when we drove to LA a couple of years ago or that long god awful drive from NY to Dallas Texas in a freezing winter. One thing you’ll notice in Cali is if you are in a nice area, then everything is nice. You rarely see a beat up car and the people that you see walking down the streets are trendy and pretty. Of course there are places here too, just like everywhere else that is run down and looks shady but we stay away from those areas. We’ll be here for a week and then drive back to Portland on Wednesday , then right after we had some goodnight sleep, we will be flying to New York and stay with Grant’s friend in New Jersey for a week. Whew..I’m exhausted already just by thinking about it.
There's no pics for now but I'll update very soon and there'll be loads of photos for sure.
It's July already and I'm just now updating my blog!
There's so much stuff to talk about and I don't know where to begin.
Let's do a month-to-month update shall we? I’m just gonna write little tidbits of stuff that had happened and we’ll skip the not-so-important events.
January:
First week, college begins. I was so nervous because I didn’t know what to expect. Nearly 8 years the last time I’ve been a student and the first experience for me to be in college here in America. I enrolled at Portland Community College to get the prerequisites for the Nursing degree program. I was gonna sign up for 3 classes but Grant told me that I should take one class just to test the water. I’m glad I listened to him because even though it’s basically a high school level class there was plenty of home works. I would have been overwhelmed if I had pile of assignments to do on top of my already hectic regular days. I took Introduction to Algebra. Some of the lessons were familiar so I didn’t really struggle as I thought I would. Our instructor was very good and kept the 1 hour and a half class interesting.
Princess and Shinjo were doing just fine at their school too. Shino was transferred to a new school. Farther away but it was ok. The program suits him better.
View From School Building at PCC
Visited The Famous Multnomah Falls
February:
Shinjo turned 6. Can you believe it? I look at him and I still see this cute little baby that cry so hard when he’s hungry and chew on every toy like a puppy. I made a Blue’s Clues themed birthday cake for him and grandma joined us for dinner celebration.
Happy 6th!
Beautiful Sunny Day At The Coast In February
March:
My first term ended and I was so happy with my grade. It’s a small achievement but it sets a good start for my academic pursuit. Winter term ended and spring term begins. This time I signed up for two classes, Math and Writing. Our Math teacher was ok. Not as good as the previous. Writing instructor was a very interesting person. At first look, you’d think that her class was easy because she encourage you to think on your own. She taught us how to write in details and specifics. I knew that it was going to be a challenge for me because of the language issues but I wanted to prove that I could do it on my own so I didn’t ask for any help from Grant. First essay, I got a really low grade. I was disappointed to say the least. Well..ok…I bawled like a baby! So I decided to swallow my pride and ask Grant for help with my writing homework.
Also, my MIL and I celebrated when the Health Care Reform Bill passed after almost a year of fight among the politicians. We both agree that the POTUS brought the worst out of his opponents and it shocking to witness how vile some people have gotten because they weren’t happy about the pres.
Princess learned to ride the bike. She was so excited and we were so proud of her. It didn’t take long before she was going up & down the hill. Grant bought a trailer/half-bike for Shinjo. It’s called a “wheehoo” and we had to drive to Astoria to get it because it’s rare and only one store carry it in all Oregon. Grant also bought his own bike and it has become our regular family fun activity to go to downtown river banks to ride the bike. Me, I didn’t have a bike. I don’t even know how to ride one. So, I jogged. I jogged behind Princess and we’d go around and across the river. The farthest I did was about 5.5 miles and it felt great!
Shinjo On The Whehoo
She Can Ride.
April:
We celebrated Grant’s birthday. Like we always do, we get dinner take out and watch a movie. Mom got him an ice-cream cake. Nothing much happened this month. We were all busy with our own little world. Grant was forever busy with work. Our dining room is now officially his work station and no one dared to touch anything on his table.
Shinjo loves school so much he gets upset when I come pick him up.
May:
Somebody turned 35. I got a nice present from my mother-in-law and Grant. Spring term was almost over. I worked very hard to get good grades on both classes and Grant did a great job helping me with my writing homework. I wrote the essays and he proof read them for me. I have to say, I learned a lot from this writing class. I regretted neglecting my blog because it’s a good practice for vocabulary and thought process.
Visited Oaks Park
June:
Spring term ended and I got two awesome final grades!!! Princess and Shinjo did great in their school too. Princess turned 9 and we start with the long summer vacation. Everybody were headed somewhere to spend time with family. The weather finally improved after long months of rain.
July:
First week and here we are in San Jose California in this nice little hotel. There’s a heat wave going on around the entire west coast but it’s ok because we have cool AC in our room. It was a 12 hour drive but it was not as bad as when we drove to LA a couple of years ago or that long god awful drive from NY to Dallas Texas in a freezing winter. One thing you’ll notice in Cali is if you are in a nice area, then everything is nice. You rarely see a beat up car and the people that you see walking down the streets are trendy and pretty. Of course there are places here too, just like everywhere else that is run down and looks shady but we stay away from those areas. We’ll be here for a week and then drive back to Portland on Wednesday , then right after we had some goodnight sleep, we will be flying to New York and stay with Grant’s friend in New Jersey for a week. Whew..I’m exhausted already just by thinking about it.
There's no pics for now but I'll update very soon and there'll be loads of photos for sure.
Dec 28, 2009
2009 Is Almost Over
And I can't wait for 2010 to start!
This year has been great but there were also a lot of major problem that popped out of nowhere. We've been terribly sick, car trouble,the typhoon Ondoy that almost gave me a nervous breakdown because I couldn't contact my family in the Philippines , and oh , there where many more.
There were also a lot of good stuff and I think I have mentioned it in my previous blog so I'm not gonna reharsh them.
January 2010...I become a student!
Yey, and I am sooooo excited I can't contain it!
My first class is Algebra and as I recall in high school I was pretty good at this. Physics was my worst or probably because the teacher talked so quitely, I could't hear most of her lectures ( excuses lols).
I'm also trying to get English Comp121 but most classes are full and I ams till on the waiting list. My decision to enroll in college came last minute and so most classes that I could take are full :(.
I'll make sure I'll sign up early in the Spring.
For sure I'm gonna be more active with my blog because Ill have plenty to write about and it's a great way to practice my writing skill.
I want "A's" for my grades !
Kids did great this Christmas. I think they got most of the stuff they wanted.Princess is still waiting for her Nintendo DS games. We are waiting for the store's 50% deal..lols..
Here are some of the pics from the morning of Christmas.
Lastly, I had my first attempt in making Sushi!
And not just the simple rice & fish rolls. It has shrimp tempura,veggies,hot sauce,fresh tuna,avocado,crab meat etch etch.
The roll was big enough you only need 3 bites & you're full.
I was so proud of myself I had to brag about it on facebook :)
And as evidence, here are some photos of my culinary work of art!
This year has been great but there were also a lot of major problem that popped out of nowhere. We've been terribly sick, car trouble,the typhoon Ondoy that almost gave me a nervous breakdown because I couldn't contact my family in the Philippines , and oh , there where many more.
There were also a lot of good stuff and I think I have mentioned it in my previous blog so I'm not gonna reharsh them.
January 2010...I become a student!
Yey, and I am sooooo excited I can't contain it!
My first class is Algebra and as I recall in high school I was pretty good at this. Physics was my worst or probably because the teacher talked so quitely, I could't hear most of her lectures ( excuses lols).
I'm also trying to get English Comp121 but most classes are full and I ams till on the waiting list. My decision to enroll in college came last minute and so most classes that I could take are full :(.
I'll make sure I'll sign up early in the Spring.
For sure I'm gonna be more active with my blog because Ill have plenty to write about and it's a great way to practice my writing skill.
I want "A's" for my grades !
Kids did great this Christmas. I think they got most of the stuff they wanted.Princess is still waiting for her Nintendo DS games. We are waiting for the store's 50% deal..lols..
Here are some of the pics from the morning of Christmas.
She Opened Up A Box Full Of Tissue lols
She actually got more stuff animals.Her favorites are webkinz & LPSO
She also got a scooter, some books from grandma,and other toys that
I remember the names anymore.
See how happy she was?
Shinjo got a bunch of cool stuff too.
He also loves stuffed animals esp. Bear in a big blue house.
He also got trucks & legos and some other stuff.
This is Shinjo's coz he likes to pretend he's cooking just like mommy.
I got a beautiful Afghan from MIL
and my favorite skin care products from Grant.
But the best gift of all was..........
It's perfect!! My tevee viewing pleasure will be even more
awesome!!
Lastly, I had my first attempt in making Sushi!
And not just the simple rice & fish rolls. It has shrimp tempura,veggies,hot sauce,fresh tuna,avocado,crab meat etch etch.
The roll was big enough you only need 3 bites & you're full.
I was so proud of myself I had to brag about it on facebook :)
And as evidence, here are some photos of my culinary work of art!
Sashimi!! Tuna,Salmon & Mackerel.
Spicy Sushi Roll!
Believe me, it taste as good as it looks!
Dec 22, 2009
In Retrospect
Oh what a year!
The optimist in me says ( as usual) " It could be worse!".
Seriously...the swing of luck were just so extreme that it leaves me
felling dizzy if I think hard about what transpired to me & my family this year. How would I grade my 2009? Hmmm...maybe 6....or 6.5
Still if I compare it to others who are also in real tough luck..I'd say we are still better off. Recessions, unemployment, sickness....you name it.It's in the news everyday. We are still doing ok. A little tight but no ones gonna die if we don't get to go on a vacation this year..or if we don't get to upgrade our TV into a 50" flatscreen HDTV...so what?!!
I'm thankful that I have my car replaced and I really like it. A small compact SUV is just perfect for me and the kids. Princess is doing great at school. Her reading skills is just awesome ( dinosaurs & science stuff) her math skills are ok although I think it's more of her confidence level but I know that she understands the concept of math procedures and solving problems. Shinjo is also doing just fine.Still a handful,that's for sure. He's starting in on a new class in January and I just met their teachers and I think it's gonna be great for him. I'm very excited because it's gonna be longer hours for him which means longer free time for mommy.
I'm planning to take classes in starting next month. It's been a while since I left school but I think this will be the perfect time for me to get a degree. I was nervous when I took the admission test but I think I did pretty well. I am very excited because it's been my lifelong dream of graduating and finishing school :).
I predict that it's gonna be very busy next year in our household.
Grant is always busy at work anyway so that's nothing new but me,Princess & Shinjo are going to have a hectic year and it's gonna be fun & exhausting.
Some cute pics to share.
Have a Merry Christmas & A Wonderful New Year for one & All.
The optimist in me says ( as usual) " It could be worse!".
Seriously...the swing of luck were just so extreme that it leaves me
felling dizzy if I think hard about what transpired to me & my family this year. How would I grade my 2009? Hmmm...maybe 6....or 6.5
Still if I compare it to others who are also in real tough luck..I'd say we are still better off. Recessions, unemployment, sickness....you name it.It's in the news everyday. We are still doing ok. A little tight but no ones gonna die if we don't get to go on a vacation this year..or if we don't get to upgrade our TV into a 50" flatscreen HDTV...so what?!!
I'm thankful that I have my car replaced and I really like it. A small compact SUV is just perfect for me and the kids. Princess is doing great at school. Her reading skills is just awesome ( dinosaurs & science stuff) her math skills are ok although I think it's more of her confidence level but I know that she understands the concept of math procedures and solving problems. Shinjo is also doing just fine.Still a handful,that's for sure. He's starting in on a new class in January and I just met their teachers and I think it's gonna be great for him. I'm very excited because it's gonna be longer hours for him which means longer free time for mommy.
I'm planning to take classes in starting next month. It's been a while since I left school but I think this will be the perfect time for me to get a degree. I was nervous when I took the admission test but I think I did pretty well. I am very excited because it's been my lifelong dream of graduating and finishing school :).
I predict that it's gonna be very busy next year in our household.
Grant is always busy at work anyway so that's nothing new but me,Princess & Shinjo are going to have a hectic year and it's gonna be fun & exhausting.
Some cute pics to share.
Xmas 2009
They've Both Been Good This Year So Santa Has Lots Of Presents For Them.
At The Pioneer Square ,PDX 2009
Grandma Made Her Costume
Halloween 2009
My Little Wizard
Halloween 2009
Have a Merry Christmas & A Wonderful New Year for one & All.
