My Yellow Rose

Tuesday 5 June 2012

It's the last day of the holiday (yes it's still a non-working day because of the Queen's jubilee). But unfortunately it was not a good day for us. Our gas meter was faulty and because of this our boiler switched off. And even after the engineer fixed the gas meter, he was unable to switch on our ancient boiler. So it means we are out of hot water and house heating until we are able to get someone to switch it on for us.

Since it's a holiday, there's absolutely no one that could come to fix it for us. We're lucky that it's not one of the colder months, otherwise we'd be in trouble. We simply have to layer up when we sleep and boil water in big pans when we go to the shower. We're just hoping that we get someone to fix it for us soon.

And to make it worse, in the evening the cupboard under the sink collapsed! It was due to a leaking pipe that was hidden behind a plywood so were not aware of the leak. The water weaken the laminate wood and made it too heavy that the bottom layer collapsed! Stress to the max!

When I saw Papa E he was in the brink of tears coz we are faced with two problems in one day! But I think we were able to calm and reassure each other that we can sort this out. We are hoping that it's not too big of a job and it's something that we could sort out ourselves. Fingers crossed!

I took this photo in the afternoon and I posted it here coz I want to cheer myself up. I know that yellow is for friendship (thanks Sey of 14th Street for the info) but the colour cheers me up a bit and clears my head and stop me from worrying and panicking too much.... 

Loving Instagram

Sunday 3 June 2012 I'm addicted to Instagram! I'm finding myself browsing so many amazing photos around the world, it's almost mind blowing sometimes. I know I may sound a tad too excited and exaggerated but I really do love it! It's so simple. Take a photo and post it. It could be of anything you want, you may or may not write a description of your photos and what's more exciting for me is the freedom to be able to view so much talent and creativity.  Some photographers even share their methods/ techniques and which editing app they've used. And this is what I find so cool. Right from the point that I fell pregnant I have lost all interest in photography. I wouldn't say that I was good at it but I love looking at photos. But Instagram inspired me take my own photos and to share them, as well as to view those beautiful photos out there and more importanty to learn from the experts.  It's a lot like Twitter, I think. But you post your photos instead of your thoughts. I hope it stays simple, straight forward and add free!

Shipwreck

 Thursday 10 May 2012

I took this photo when Poj and I went for a walk. We always see this shipwreck when the tide is low and I often wondered what this ship looked like in it's full glory. I wish that Papa E was with us when we went for a walk and that it wasn't raining to enable me to go closer to it to take a more detailed shot. Not that you can expect too much detail using a camera phone!

I love seeing this as it reminds me of the first shipwreck that I've seen many years ago when we went snorkeling in the beautiful and clear waters of Coron. The difference is that you have to be in the water to see the one in Coron, whilst you have to wait for the low tide to see the one here in Southampton. Medyo weird no?

It's Bath Time!

Monday 5 March 2012

It was a cold yet sunny today but unfortunately I had a lot of chores to finish that's why I was unable to take Poj out. He was ok about it though, he had fun running around in the garden whilst I hang the washing. 

I am happy coz I've accomplished a lot today and still had a chance to play, read & have study time with Poj. It's a good thing that I took this photo, my only photo of the day =)

Poj loves his bubble baths and you can just about work out that he's holding a rubber Thomas the tank engine in the photo. Opo, kahit sa bath si Thomas pa rin ang kasama nya! 

Late Christmas Gift

Monday 27 February 2012

I blogged about our friend's birthday party yesterday. And it's amazing that we came bearing one gift for the celebrant and went home carrying gifts from our other friends. And one of those gifts is this beauty. (took the pic while it's still in it's wrapper, excited much =)

Our friend Mercy said this was her late Christmas gift to us coz she was unable to make it to our Christmas party. She is so sweet, don't you think?

I love orchids coz it reminds me of home and my parents. We sell orchids for our business. So you can imagine our house being surrounded by Phalaenopsis similar to this. Although I have to say I am not gifted with a green thumb like my parents so a whole lot of effort is needed to ensure my orchid is kept healthy and alive - wish me luck!

Thanks Mercy for our beautiful gift =)

Unexpected Letter

22 February 2012

We got home a little late than usual today. We picked up some meds from the chemist and grabbed dinner on our way home. I wasn't expecting any letters so was surprised when a letter was addressed to me. 

The letter was from the House of Commons. The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the UK. It is a democratic body consisting of 650 members who are known as MPs or Members of Parliament (similar to our Congressmen at home). 

No, I was not in trouble or anything - though that could be ones first thought when you receive a letter from the government, haha! - Not that you've done something wrong, tamang duda lang coz we don't get these kinds of letters back home! 

Our MP for Southampton holds advice surgeries every month. I thought it is usually by appointment, what I didn't realize is that they also send out random invites like this where you could bring someone and drop in on the said time and date with any query or issue you may have with his work or about your area. 

I have not decided if I would go or what I would ask if I do decide to. I'm not really very interested in politics but I guess it's great that they have sessions like these where you raise your concerns. 

Manggang Hilaw

Sunday 19 February 2012

I grew up in Pangasinan and my Dad worked in a company that processed fruits so we always have fruits in the house. And during the mango season he would all  always bring big baskets or kaing of green mangoes and ripe ones as well. 

That's why I love this fruit and I'm so glad that we could get good ones here too. And when Papa E was in the Asian store he remembered to buy me some bagoong to go with it. Hmmm, hilaw na mangga at bagoong, perfect combination =)

Sweet Little Cupcake

Saturday 18 February 2012

The lady on the right of the picture from my previous post is one of my work colleagues who usually bakes beautiful and tasty cupcakes as her sideline. She inspires me to bake cupcakes coz I usually struggle to make them look as beautiful. She has very kindly baked one for each of us yesterday.

I am surprised that I was able to take a photo before I ate the whole thing! I had a busy day so I took mine home and enjoyed it with a lovely cup of coffee. Seriously it was like a little piece of heaven =)
Thanks Ms ELH

Night Out With The Girls

 Friday 17 February 2012

One of our colleagues is moving to another department and we all went out for a meal to say goodbye and to wish her good luck with her new job. We went to a Chinese restaurant named Kachina and had the "order all you can Chinese." We all enjoyed the starter which we ordered two rounds of as well as the duck. But after these we were too full that we were ready for our dessert.
No one took pics and everybody was much too hungry that we all just tucked in. We had a lot of laughs and stories and it felt that we were there for ages.

The pic above is just a quarter of us that's there tonight, I wish they've put us in one table so that I could squeeze them all in one shot.

We had a lovely night though - a great way to end a long week!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Shattered!

Wednesday 15 February 2012

I took 2 days off a couple of weeks ago when little Poj was unwell. The first day was granted as carer's leave and the second day was meant to be taken out from my annual leave. But since I only had 4 hours of annual leave left I have to pay back the 3.5 hours that I owe. 

There is no pressure to pay back the said hours straight away but I just wanted to get it over with. I usually work 7.5 hours a day but today I worked for 9 hours! We were up early coz I have to prepare our breakfast and baon plus get ourselves ready for work & Poj for nursery, malayo din kasi ang house namin sa hospital. (Reminder to self - I have to do this all again tomorrow!)

So it was a very loooong and tiring day for all of us. My boys are now in bed but yours truly is still waiting for Mr Sleep to come pay me a visit. 

Hayz, I must be getting old! I used to work 16hours straight during my UST days but now I feel shattered only after working 9! At ang pinagbuntunan ng pagod? Ang box of chocolate na bigay ni Papa E! haha =)

Lovely Cup of Tea

Sunday 12 February 2012

It was another chilled out Sunday (literally, hehe). 

We went to church in the morning. It is now part of Poj's routine that he already knows where we are going every Sunday. He even knows the way that as soon as he sees familiar buildings he'll say we're going to church Ina =)

We were suppose to go to town to buy a gift for our Godson's 1st birthday. We wanted to take advantage of ELC's half term toy sale (ELC stands for Early Learning Centre, they are popular for their educational toys and books).  But being a Sunday, all shops open for business no earlier than 11am. And even when the shops are closed, you still have to pay parking fees if you stay there to wait for the shops to open - otherwise you get fined £30 when caught! Mean, I know.

So home we went. But not until after grabbing what we need for our Valentine's dinner from M&S Food. We then had a nice cup of tea from Marks & Spencer café. Hmmm, I love weekend =)

Bagong Tasa

Saturday 11 February 2012

Poj has been due his haircut in weeks. But it has been too cold and we've been really lazy that we've put it off. But his fringe was getting longer and was starting to poke his eyes. It was definitely time for a visit to His & Kids hair shop.


We told him why we are there and he sat on the chair without making a fuzz. The nice lady cracked on with the task at hand. She was surprised at how well behaved and cooperative Poj was. Little Poj was as good as gold and was done in no time. 


He again loved the well done sticker that was given to him after his haircut & she also gave him a lolly before we left. Well done, Poj! 


 A photo after his haircut is here =)

Do You Drink?

Friday 10 February 2012

I don't drink much, I usually just have a glass of wine when we go out for a meal with friends or a couple of cocktails when we go out for drinks - which is not very often. 

But today while food shopping, I saw this Sidekick vodka mix drink with toffee flavour. I couldn't help but smile coz I remembered some of my friends in the Philippines (a million years ago) when they went gaga over the flavoured lambanog. Meron pa ba nun ngayon? 

Anyway, I thought I could bring this to my friend's house the next time we get together. Apparently it comes in 10 flavours (Choco orange, Cookies & cream, Strawberries & cream to name a few).  I'm not even sure if I'm going to like it coz I'm not a big fan of Baileys. I've read good reviews though, which said it was sweet and tasty but can be too sweet that you could end up drinking more than you planned to.

Kayo, do you drink?

Arroz caldo Ala Papa E

Monday 6 February 2012

One of the things I'm thankful for is that I have a loving husband who loves to cook.  His food makes me less homesick because he tries his best to prepare us good Filipino dishes.  He loves reading blog posts especially foodblogs and would usually give them a go.   And he also takes requests coz he complains that he's running out of ideas. 

And because the temp has plummeted here in the UK, I wanted to eat something simple but warm. So I requested Arroz caldo (Filipino congee).  His version this time has chicken, egg and Chinese fish balls, garnished with spring onion, roasted garlic and a splash of lemon. Y.U.M.M.Y!

Normally when he cooks this, he would also prepare fried tofu and/or spring rolls o lumpiang togue. Yung parang complete order na sa karinderia ni Manang. But on this occasion we didn't, we were worried that it'll be stone cold when it reach the dining table - sayang lang. 

Kayo, what do you love to eat during the cold season?

Improvised Cupcake

Sunday 5 February 2012

A friend (the same one who gave me my new Cath apron) gave me a silicon piping set last Christmas. I've not used it yet coz I don't make cupcakes very often.

But I wanted to try the new piping set - coz if it's successful, I would bring them some on our next get together. So after making the cake which was very tasty, bias? lol. (Click here for the recipe). That was enough to encourage me to make the icing. And just as I twisted one end to ensure there's no air - i tore a whole on one side with my thumb! Grrr. I don't know what I did, but hey ho, the bag is now useless so it went straight to the bin. 

I had to improvise in the end coz I don't want the icing to go to waste. It came out alright, not how I imagined it - but my boys said it's ok. I used coloured sprinkles and smarties chocolates as decorations. Still not convince & would try again when I get my new piping bag. What do you think?

Happy Chopsticks

Saturday 4 February 2012

Anyone who's visited my sites more than twice would know these 2 things about us: one - that we love food, and the other - that Asian (Chinese & Japanese) food are our favourite. We love eating with chopsticks, so it's not surprising that Poj wants to eat using chopsticks too. He does try using ours with great difficulty because of his tiny hands. 
That's why he was so happy when he saw this kiddie chopsticks at the Chinese grocery store this morning. He was too excited that he held it in his hands on on our trip home, and even fell asleep on his car seat while holding it. 

It was still a tad long for his hands but since it soft, he finds it a lot easier to use. I'd say it is a lot better for kids than the ones we've seen in the other shops. This would do for now until he gets bored with it and tries ours again, lol =)

Friday dinner

Friday 3 February 2012

Friday is usually our "take away" night. We are generally tired (and/or lazy) that we resort to either Chinese, Japanese, Indian or Fish and chips.  But Papa E arrived early today. And since little Poj is still a little unwell, he decided to lovingly fix us this delightful dish.

The Chicken noodle soup was absolutely perfect for the cold night. Yes, the temperature here in Europe has dropped considerably this week. That's why somehow I am a little glad that nursery didn't agree to have Poj today. We've spent the day bonding and we spent most of the afternoon wrapped up in our duvet. =)

TGIF! Have a lovely weekend everyone! 

Carer's leave

Thursday 2 February 2012

I was surprised when my bleep went off and it was an outside call. The person on the other line was Poj's nursery manager. She told me that he was poorly and we need to pick him up ASAP. 

They got hold of me at 11am. I haven't done much work yet so I was really guilty that I have to leave my work-partner on her own. But like she said, these things can't be helped.

We are lucky that our managers are very supportive and understanding when it comes to these circumstances. It was really easy for me to tell them that I have to go and they don't make you feel bad about leaving. We have 14 days of carer's leave in a rolling year (at the manager's discretion, of course). But I am hoping that Poj is better tomorrow so that he could go to nursery. As much as I love being with him, I also don't want him to miss out on all the fun and learning he gets at nursery. 

Me & My New Apron

Wednesday 1 February 2012

It's the first day of February! I am so chuffed that I am able to keep up with my project 365. Whenever I ran out of ideas, I just go back to the reason why I've started this. To post a picture of one of the things I've done each day, remembering to not over-think things.

So today is an ordinary day, but I was in the mood to whip up something easy for tomorrow's tea break. I was quite excited to use my new Cath Kidston apron that a friend gave me for Christmas. Ayan, mas professional looking, people may think that I know what I'm doing, lol.

Look how serious I am here, kina-career ang pagbebake, hehe!

Posted!

Tuesday 31 January 2012

Yippee! Poj was discharged from the care of the allergy clinic today!!!

He had an allergic reaction to eggs when he first had it in a soup when he was six months old. He had a skin prick test to prove it and has been under the care of the allergy clinic at the general hospital. Today, he was asked to come back to have another one done and I was so pleased that the prick test came out negative =)

After his appointment, we went to the post office to post my pressies to the 3 winners of my anniversary contest. They said it would take at least 3 days for it to arrive in Spain and 5 days in the Philippines (plus a few days for the local post office to deliver to their respective homes). 

I'm excited to hear what they think of my pressies, hope they like it =)