I made Prime Rib Roast Beef, it was my first attempt since I liked what we had last 2009. Everybody raved for it and asked how did I do it. I can’t take all the credits though since my Aunt guided me on how to do it. Well I find it quite easy marinate the Prime Rib overnight with crushed garlic, salt, pepper and rosemary. Pre heat the oven 450 deg then lower it to 400 deg ( types of oven varies) roast it for 3.5 hrs but cover it with foil. Prime Rib costs $15+ per kg I bought 3.2 kg for this occasion since were about 8-10 people.

We had Kare kare from Pips, Ube Macapuno Cake and Brazo de Mercedes of Goldilocks from my Sis, Roasted Chicken from Guests, and I made Macaroni Salad and Mashed Potatoes in addition with the Prime Rib. Oh my what a gastronomic delight we had!

Share ko lang, ang hirap maging bride abroad ang mahal ng wedding gown pati ang alteration almost half ng price ng gown mo! Kung ako masusunod that time wag na lang but my mom insisted you can see from the picture below how hands on she was.
Pero masaya ako that time kasi my MIL from NY was with us during my final fitting. Sarap no my 2 best mothers in my life was with me

Thank you Canada for everything this 2009. We look forward for a very happy, healthy, wealthy and wise 2010.

J requested this shot, even it took him to kneel 15 minutes. Proof daw yan na nagpropose sya yay!

In God’s time, sometime, somehow, somewhere, someday .mmmmm what else?

I want other people to suffer with me too just by looking at these too die for greek platter

Roast lamb with greek salad, rice pilaf, vege briani

Lamb chops medium rare .

When we went to New York last summer I saw this …..

Just imagine it made my day to know one of my fave movie was in the works.
And after a couple of months here is the movie trailer yay!

Savary Island Pie Company makes the best fruit/meat pies in Vancouver. They are located in West Vancouver and we waited 20 minutes outside just to buy one. With a whopping $25- $27 per one whole pie, people like us drive all the way just to have it for the holidays.

Been here for 3 yrs but finally I was able to put up my own christmas tree. I always rely on my Mom’s beautiful gold themed Christmas tree. I decided silver theme would be ok and I thought I bought enough decorations but suddenly we bought a 7.5 ft tree, oh well anyway I will make up for next year’s.

Santa came early to deliver this gift for meeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Some of the stuff we bought in Tulalip Washington, all for christmas gifts. Lucky people no?

When I heard the buzz about paranormal activity I was dedma. I’m not a fond of scary movie , I think I’m way past that stage in my life. Since my father passed away Im not scared of ghost stories anymore. If I heard, smell, see anything weird or unsual I would say hello?! or ignored it. Before turning off lights before going to sleep terrified me and even going to washroom in the middle of the night .

So it was Halloween night and it was our movie date too. I tried to convince J to watch MJ Movie but he told me he preferred scary movie this time. It was fun going to the mall and saw a lot of people dressed up for halloween. So we bought tickets and went inside, I got scared a bit when the guy beside me wore a vampire costume well if he look like Edward Cullen probably I would enjoyed it.

I couldn’t believed I was scared sh*t, even J who let his eye’s closed during the last minutes of the movie. This movie is way better than Blairwitch Project, the camera made me feel dizzy though. J told me he might not get good sleep after watching it since most of the scenes were filmed inside the bedroom. Stupid me to believed my sister it was true to life and the people in the movie were the real ones. Thanks to google and confirmed it was not true and we even watched the interviews of Katie and Micah. Otherwise it would have been an sleepless and frightful night for us.

With all the hulabaloo of Mar and Korina wedding, made me remember my own too. It was really nice to get married to someone you love most and tested through time. My wedding was somehow what I had dream and others were just perks.

1. Small wedding - Coming from a big family where every party was chaotic but fun. I hoped that I would have a fairly small and organize wedding. A simple but yet elegant reception and a very private one. The yacht wedding was a blessing in disguise to have, it was a very elegant, private, all in one venue for ceremony and reception, and we sailed around Vancouver!

Though of course we had regrets that most of our love ones was not there to celebrate with us, but I guess in life you cant have everything. Especially in wedding where you have to compromise things that you want and must have.

2. My wedding gown - I had a designer in mind that will make my wedding gown just in case we get married back home. A long veil train and ton’s of bling embroidered into the wedding gown. Maybe you can feel my disappointment when I had an off the rack wedding gown. Since my budget for my wedding gown will not buy me the wedding gown of my dreams here but with the help of my mom and family I found the gown that made me look an elegant, stunning bride I wanted to be.

3. Flowers - Flowers were not the top of my wedding list but it’s one of the most important part of the wedding. Imagine a bride without her bouquet? Boy! I was glad I’ve met this floral designer in time for my wedding. My reception venue gave me a nerve wracking quotation for flowers and it didn’t include my bouquet and my entourage flowers. I don’t want to go into details but I’ve got the flower’s I love a 100x more without spending a fortune.

Just a tip! Choose flowers that will look good on pictures. White flowers were off my list as I’ve noticed that it didn’t look nice. So I chose yellow and a bit of greens together as per my florist suggested. Calla lilies,stargazer lilies,roses, orchids were used for every guest table, ceremony, corsages, bride’s and bridesmaid bouquet, flower girl basket and throw away bouquet.

4. Giveaways - Two months of wedding preparation didnt give me enough time to think of a nice and not so expensive giveaway. Do it yourself giveaway did not interest me, for me its just another stressful job. So I thought about a giveaway that would not go into waste and not be taken for granted . Something they can eat and enjoy during or after the wedding like chocolates! Chocolate could be an additional dessert to your wedding too! Thomas Haas is one of the top chocolate maker in Vancouver, he only have one branch but very famous for his pastry,dessert, coffee and chocolates. His chocolates are famous for event giveaways .The packaging for chocolates were elegant and expensive looking. And guess what? Out of 50+ boxes of chocolates that I ordered nothing was left behind for us Good thing my photographer took a picture of it for me as my remembrance.

5. Food and Booze- Since we’re in Canada might as well be Canadian. Since my guest list were fairly small the event planner told me might as well to have a “sit down lunch” meaning food will be serve to the guest. I dreamed about an eat all you can reception lol! with pinoy food and tons of dessert but since we have to think about other guest too whose not Filipino. Anyway I was not able to eat well during the reception. I felt overwhelmed, while J had ate all the food below. The appetizer that I looked forward to didn’t reach me as well. I was thankful for our wonderful server who at least never forgot to give me a glass of champagne once in a while.

6. Make up- I’m a fan of “no make up look” and glad I’ve me Yuki through internet. She made me looked an “enhanced me” not the “different me”. Ever since I wanted a look on my wedding that people or even my future grandchildren would recognize my wedding picture that it was me and not a Hollywood look a like.

Whew! what a long post hahaha. Another tip again is to ENJOY your wedding and don’t look back about the flaws that had happened. Move on as they say and enjoy life. I’m thankful that I was able to have a wedding surrounded by the people I love.

Hello Twilight Peeps! Konting tulog na lang mapapanood na natin ang New Moon. I couldn’t contain my excitement any longer. Everyday I have a “New Moon time” meaning I have to watch the movie trailers or read any updates about the movie. One time during family dinner I announced to my family I will watch it at least twice in the cinema. And J was sure that he’s not included in my plan definitely it will be with my sister and cousin. I need some twilight love while watching it!

Got this youtube from foreverbellaswan big thanks for combining the 3 trailers.

It was a sad time last week for our family. One of our beloved Auntie whose a cancer patient for 10 long years finally rest in peace. I wondered prior to the day she died I cant sleep that much. I blamed it to J who snores so loud but I thought I’ve been with him for so long that it didn’t bother me at all. Or maybe because I’m getting older? So when I learned she died maybe that’s the reason.

So even though I’m thousands of miles away, I tried my best to help. Me and my Aunt had a heart to heart talk a few years ago. Since I bought a few memorial lots in a private cemetery for our family primarily for my father and my grandparents(still alive). I know it may sound stupid but we both know since she got cancer, she might die from it. She felt relieved when I told her we will bury her remains beside my father. So that every Nov 1 our family will not be divided from one cemetery to another.

One of the best thing my father thought me was “prepare for the worst, hope for the best”. We filipinos ignore the “Death talk” kasi it’s bad daw. My father’s only wish was that his remains will be in a private cemetery. When he was a kid my lola asked him to visit his baby brother’s tomb in a public cemetery to light a candle and he was shocked when he saw that his brothers tomb was gone. Nobody informed them that somebody will pull it out, he went home crying.

Actually even my father was alive pa, we bought the memorial lot. By the time he died it’s one less worry for me. Memorial lots are getting expensive every year and you have to think the additional cost of funeral casket, funeral service, food etc. Just imagine the emotional grieve of your family and the financial grieve too. Some relies with “abuloy” which is not enough for a decent funeral.

So after my father died I got myself insured enough to cover a decent funeral and for some miscellaneous expenses. Life insurance in the philippines are expensive imagine I paid Php 3,500 quarterly for Php 100,000 coverage + some money benefits mabigat din sa bulsa no?n Canada for a term life insurance for me $10 a month lang for $100,000. So shop around what’s best for you and your budget, believe me it’s worth it.

So back to my Auntie, I learned she has SSS and she could get funeral benefits for Php 20,000 and probably some monthly allowance for the kids and spouse. In SSS I think you should at least contribute for minimum 3 yrs to get benefits for the family. Oh before I forget once you have a private memorial lot in addition you have to pay a “hukay fee” pag may ililibing sa lot mo. With our case we paid Php 14,500 now but with my father Php 10,000 as of year 2003 see the cost difference? Ang mahal no? Nakakaawa nalang everytime na meron namamatay na hindi prepared. Hindi mo naman sila masisisi kasi they dont have money to spare para mapaghandaan ang ganitong kalagayan. Buhay Pilipinas nga naman, all we can do from here is to pray and to blog these things so we can learn from it.

“J teary eyed during my bridal walk”

To my dearest ex boyfriend now husband,

Happy BF/GF Anniversary! Salamat sa pagiging sobrang mabait at maunawain na asawa.
Salamat din sa napakagandang regalo mong ibinigay para sa ating dalawa. At yun ay ang pag quit mo ng sigarilyo. For me that’s the biggest thing ever, it means more good healthy life years for us together. I do hope more travel, food adventures ahead for us. Sana matuloy ang ating European adventure (wishful thinking). The most happiest and important moment in my life was I’ve met and married you.

Since we had a sunny yet cold Sunday, J and I decided to go to Steveston Village in Richmond. A 40min drive from our place. Steveston Village is Vancouver so called “mini fisherman’s wharf ala SFO”.

Things to do in Steveston According from their website:

Ang dami no? We arrived there around 9am, blame it to J who woke up early. And beg me to go out and have breakfast outside take note. At first I noticed that they still have those small old houses/store but very well maintained. Their Fisherman’s Wharf amaze me, its way different from Quay’s around Vancouver. Boats by the dock sell fresh frozen fish( huh fresh ba yun?). Well at least hindi commercialized .

I miss Tanay Dike where every morning you can buy fresh, live tilapia,bangus, hipon, galunggong. J freaked out and traumatized when he saw fresh, live fish killed and cleaned up in front of him. Specially tilapia who looked like his flower horn. He sworn never to eat tilapia again.

Anyway back to Steveston, I wish I know how to cook foreign fish. Foreign kasi like salmon, sole,
octopus, sardines, urchins to name a few eh pang fried, sinigang, paksiw lang alam ko.
Which J dont like at all *sigh* ang hirap pag “meatarian” ang asawa mo. The only thing I bought was the BC Spot Prawns. It was funny I asked if it was cooked because its orange already. Eh asian ako eh sanay ako sa Tiger Prawn na kulay gray na pag luto lang nagiging orange hehehe.

Then we went to Steveston Restaurant which according to them they have the best fish and chips. Kahit weird and early morning we ordered 2 coho fish and chips, then 2 pancake,bacon and eggs. The verdict? The best pancake ever! hahaha sobrang laki ng pancake no? kung di lang carbs yan inubos ko lahat hahaha.The fish and chips was good too, J told me hindi sya malansa. My husband is becoming a food critic. Our server was very attentive and told us that their serving is good for 2. Our coffee was always refilled, I think I had 3 cups which the side effect was Im up till 12 midnight.

J had a blast watching the pelican, swans around. He love birds, we stayed long just to get a glimpse of his bald eagle which never showed up. He was jealous of the people who went on a trip for whale watching. Which by the way will cost you $120 to $175 per person for a couple of hours. I love the area of Steveston very relaxing, very SFO type nga. Nice people, good food,fresh seafood, fresh air, very accessible and easy to find. So come and visit na!

Goodbye Summer! Hello Autumn! For me autumn season is sad, short daytime, cold weather slowly creeping in, falling leaves, rains and more rains. But when its sunny and Sunday, we try to make sure we go out and catch some needed vitamin D.

So we went to English Bay and we found this new street art called A-maze-ing Laughter by Yue MinJun from China. Just by looking at those Bronze Statues, it will perk up your day. The kid inside me was out that day. I had fun goofing around with them. I’ll post some of the decent pictures here:-)

Then we went to hunt down some open restaurant which serves breakfast. J’s kinda picky when it comes to restaurant. Since its Sunday the only day in a week where we could spoiled ourselves with good restaurant food, I obliged. We ended up with Knight and Day Restaurant it was kinda new, I could tell by the look of the decor/carpet inside. We were seated right away and ordered coffee first. Knight and Day offers good breakfast menu. J ordered breakfast meal consist of 3 pancakes, 2 eggs, ham, bacon and sausage. While I got the 2 poached eggs and ham on an english muffin with the yummy/calorific hollandaise sauce and potatoes.

Wow that breakfast date was one of a kind. Food was yummy, the serving was huge, the price was reasonable,the service was good! J and I praised ourselves that we picked a good restaurant that time. Usually when the food and service was bad, J would tell me “nah blacklisted”.

Before our Sunday ends, we went to Ikea. Believe it or not we went there only for the Almond Cake that I was craving for the long time. I was overjoyed when I saw that they sell them in boxes. I thought it was per slice only which is $1 + in their cafeteria. I bought 2 boxes that I hope will last for at least 2 weeks hahaha.

I cried, got worried sick when I watched last saturday night video’s from the Philippines. I was in panic when I cant get through to my family. Knowing our place in Rizal “bahain” since we live close by the lakeshore. Thanks to my SIL was able to contact them and they are all safe. But the flood got inside our place. Hanggang tuhod daw, worried primarily to my grandparents who chose to live on the ground floor of their house. Walang business, walang pera, walang kuryente.

I get depress more whenever me ganitong calamity. You cant do anything but to pray and send some money. Then I saw this video posted in facebook. I couldn’t believe my beloved Tanay now. The bridge I used to pass by whenever I go to our market , damage. And the coop building damage beyond repair. So much mess! I hope all the Tanayan’s will get together and unite to help build Tanay again.

7.58 pm- finally I was able to call my family. They told me the flood is still above the knee deep inside the house. Some of my relatives are in evacuation center since there are no electricity and they cant use their own toilets. My aunt told me they need water, food supply especially for the kids. The relief goods are not enough and are not properly distributed to the victims. In short me corruption pa din … grrrrr!

As of today 35 people dead in the municipality of Tanay. Most of their remains are in Tanay Public High School. My Grandparents resist to leave their house no matter what. My only fear if the flood did not subside soon, dengue and other stagnant water disease will affect them.