Visiting L.A.

It was just a month ago when we drove from Portland Oregon to San Francisco and it was one of the best vacation our family have hadso far . Last week dh got an assignment from their branch office in Beverly Hills .Perfect timing for us to spend Spring break and the chance to see another one of the great cities in California.

Long drive for sure....about 16 hours but we stop over in Sacramento and then drove another 6 hours to LA the next day.

Because this is not exactly a "family vacation"( sabit lang kami lols ) I don't have any pictures to show yet. DH had to go to work and come back to the hotel in time for dinner. We brought enough toys, movies and books to keep them busy and entertained while inside a hotel room. The good thing is , since the company pays for the accommodation and food, they got us a really nice hotel in the heart of Beverly Hills ( a lot better than the one we stayed in San Francisco).There's plenty of cable channel and free high speed internet.The kids don't really understand why we had to go back to California but they are too amused about the nice room and large flat screen TV so they are not complaining ( yet!).


Since we got here Sunday night,we had the chance to drive around town and every evening when DH gets back from the office to find restaurant to get food.
Not wanting to look too obvious with my admiration and amazement to this famous city, I try not to make many comments about the modern buildings that some are familiar coz I've seen them on TV ( The Kodak theater,Universal Studio,famous store and restaurants) but deep inside ( sa totoo lang) I was like " oh my gosh!!I can't believe I'm in Beverly Hills" ( that's the voice of the little girl from QC who once only dreamed about actually seeing such world famous city).

Thank god that we don't actually have to pay for this trip because it is really expensive here. I am not ready to spend 50$ for dinner unless its my birthday ( kuripot daw!! ).While driving around to find reasonably priced restaurant ( ung mura lang po) which is hard I guess if you are in the center of LA, I've noticed that most people are very hip and fashionable. I can't help but notice my own outfit and feel a little insecure. Not that I was wearing a piece of sack but really , I would feel uncomfortable if I had to stand to somebody who dressed up like Parish Hilton or Lindsey Lohan while getting coffee at Starbucks.

The next couple of days will be much of the same but we might have to do something fun on the weekend.

Have a happy Spring break to ya'll

The I5 highway. We drove almost 1000 miles in this highway from Portland to LA. I wonder how long it took to build this really really long high way that goes all the way north to Canadian border in Blane Washinton down south to Mexican border in San Ysidro

We had sushi for dinner the other night .I didn't like the combination of cream cheese with fresh salmon.We also got tempura which was really good with its light & crispy batter and the beef teriyaki also didn't disappoint.

What's In Your Library

This is a tag from Miss Gilda.

I love to read.I'd read anything that would interest me.In fact, if I don't have to watch my kids and do chores I'd be spending my time reading books, magazine or informative websites .We don’t have a dedicated room for books or any room that you can actually call a “library”. I left all my books ( mostly about music ) at home in the Philippines and my husband has a few books of his own that are mostly about computer and technology. Having two active school aged kids , our home is mostly dominated with children’s books and their school project.Having said that I don’t really have a library to boast, I’d still like to share some of my favorite reads for others to get an idea what my interest are. Although I generally prefer getting information online, I do however keep some favorite books and magazines. You’ll notice too that I am not very much into romantic books or fictions. I more into facts and a self help type of a reader

We try to expose our kids early on with books .My 1st grader is on level 11 in reading which is equivalent to a 3rd grader.Our youngest is also demonstrating great enthusiasm

When kids are taught to appreciate books at a very young age parents wont have to force them to flip pages

Space is always a challenge when you live in an apartment so old books are temporarily stored in boxes

What Does Mel Likes To Read??

Some cookbooks. I'd be collecting more when I get the chance and money lols

1st book is a great guide for parents with young kids and the 2nd one is I read for laugh

These are some books that I found at Thrift shop and the 3rd one was from my MIL which I also love.

Currently I'm reading this book.Its for parents to teach their children the value of money

After trying Atkins Diet (which didn't work for me)I'm now trying to learn more about becoming a vegetarian so this is one of the magazines in my bedside table.

Miss Gilda have invited our mutual friends to join in and share what's in their library. Those who'd like to join, feel free to grab.

Happy reading!!

On School,Politics,Fitness and AmericanIdol

Parent-Teacher Conference Meeting.

One day you'll get a pink or yellow paper from school
with the date and which you can choose the time according to your own schedule. You'll spend 20-30 mins talking to your child's teacher talking about the primarily about your child's progress at school ,social skills ( if she/he have problem interacting ) weaknesses and strength and what goals to proceed to for your kids to be ahead if not at par with other students.

This , I think , is very important for parents have a chance to know to here first hand from the teacher on how your child is doing at school. As much as we want to monitor our kids at all time , we can't be there at school with them to actually see how they function or interact with other children or if they have some struggle with their lessons of if they need extra help. Fortunately , Princess is doing well at school according to her teacher. She is way above average in reading,writing although her teacher says Princess seems to get intimidated when it come to problem solving in math and doesn't like it if she have to explain how she came up with the answer.

I don't know how things are done at our school in the Philippines now a days but I do remember that during my days , teachers doesn't set up a meeting to talk to parents. I hope they are doing this now coz I believe this is important in getting more involved with the education of our children.


Shinjo did well with his recent evaluation at school too. He'd met and exceeded his goals and new ones were set up for him by his teacher. I can't express my admiration for this teachers who just are so loving ,caring and very focus and dedicated with their job. Just imagine having to deal with a bunch of 3-4 years old??
But never did I see in their faces any discontent or negative words even when the kids were not in their best behavior. I think it takes a person to have a genuine good heart to be a pre-school teacher.

Fell Asleep With His A-B-C

Sign of Aging???

Remember the long writer's strike???
For a while there was no new episodes of my favorite shows on TV and I just got tired of watching reruns after reruns of shows I've already seen. Even late night shows weren't as funny as they used to.
So with my thirts for something to watch while I fold the pile of laundry or while ironing heavy jeans and delicate shirts I started watching MSNBC and CNN and all of a sudden I just morphed into a political junkie!!!
This shows like Hardball With Cris Mathews,Countdown With Keith Olberman,Larry King Live and such....I never paid attention to this shows before but now I even record them if I couldn't watch them live.

Politics just caught my attention and now I just can't watch anything else anymore.
Is this a sign of aging??
Now that the writers are back to work , there are new episodes now but I can't keep my eyes in any shows any more. I am so eager to hear what happen to the recent primaries , who's ahead in the election... (BTW , I am for Obama).

It feels like I'm seeting in a classroom and I'm this wide eyed girl learinng new things.



My Weight Loss Update!! :(

Here I go again ,same old , same old..
I didn't gain any weight but I didn't lose any either.
It's like I'm stuck!!!
I need a kick in the head to get me going again.


Just for laugh.

Take a look at this contestant from Bulgaria's own version of American Idol.

All I can say is..."Is this poor woman has nobody to tell her she can google the correct lyrics for this song"?


Tata For Now!!!

Four

Tag from Mamagirl. Thank po :)

4Jobs I Have Had:

- Proffesional singer( asia)
- Restaurant Owner(phils)- Computer Shop Owner(phils)
- Food service staff ( US /na demote yata ?)

4 Movies Watched Over and Over:

- Sleepless In Seattle
- Ocean's 11
- Harry Potter Series
- Bourne Series

4 Places I have Lived:

- South korea ( 3 years )
- Shenzen China ( 2 yrs)
- HongKong (3 year)
- US (4)

4 Shows I Watch:

- HouseMD
- Heroes ( I hope they get back to filming since the writer came back)
- MSNBC ( Hardball W/ Chris M & COuntdown W/ Keith O)
- CNN

4 Places I Have Been To :

- Malaysia ( 1 yr)
- Thailand ( short visit)
- Singapore ( 6 months)
- Guangzhou ( short visit)

4 People Who E-mail Me:

- my brother and sister
- HUsband
- old friends
- forums

4 Favorite Things To Eat:

- Spicy food
- Fresh fruits and green salad
- Fresh seafood
- Toasted bagel with smother or cream cheese & hot cup of coffee

4 Places I Would Rather Be Living:

- No place like home and home is where your heart is.

4 Things I Look Forward To This Year:

- reaching my weight goal
- Learnig how to saw with a machine
- house Completion
- Taking photograpy class in the summer


Passing this to Geri,Rhebs,Gilda,Sandy,Lanie,Darling,Tess,Bless,Francesca,Vanessa,Anna,Julianna,Lutchi,MalditangPinay

Wordless Wednesday

A Scary Place .Take The Kids Here When They Are Misbehaving. Picture taken from San Francisco

Join Wordless Wednesday

He's Four Now!!!

Our little boy just turned 4 last weekend.
We had a small party for him at his school with his friends and teachers.
Its amazing how our kids grow before our very eyes. He loves going to school so much and adjusted extremely well with their daily routines. Being around his pears helped him so much with his social skills , his speech and comprehensions , and improved his level of play.

I feel a little selfishness because soon he wont be so little any more.

Shinjo Celebrated His 4th Birthday Party At School

Dad Treated Us For Dinner At Chuckie Cheeses'

Shinjo Waiting For His BDay Cake At Home

Yummy Ice Cream Cake From Grandma

A Gift From Grandma. Tinkie Winkie Of the Teletubbies. He Called It His "BestFriend"