Parenting Archive

My thoughts on parenthood, and what it's like to be a mom in the Philippines.

Home Town is ❤

Long weekend.. and the weather says it’s summer! A great time to hit the beach (or a resort) and spend it with family..

and while I was searching for a good travel deals online, I realized, why not my hometown? There’s a really nice resort there, and it’s a good time to visit my grandmother…

Friday afternoon and we’re heading north!

SCTEX is the fastest route, but opted for Maharlika Highway, because of this:

Baliwag stop over for Balot and Hotdog! It’s been a while.. it’s been 2 years since our last visit.

The next day, we prepared for a day of fun, fun, fun. Swimming day at Hunter Valley!

Sunday, we went to visit my grandmother at Talavera. The kids had fun running around and we went home with a few additional plants for my garden!

Of course Talavera visit is not complete without Pastillas (will have this on a separate post):

We went home with a full stomach and heavy but happy heart! The ride back home was long and hubby’s back was aching, had to watch a few massage training videos, to treat my hubby. I was tired from that weekend too.. but seeing the kids with a happy smile, that weekend was worth it.. bitin nga lang!

Scout Investiture and United Nations Parade

and the stage mom award, goes to…

Me!

Oh gosh! me?!? I didn’t expect this.. and all I did last week was be there with my son.. er or maybe not! hahaha

Last Wednesday was his scout Investiture.. and of course, I have to be there, for photo ops ano pa and for the alampay ceremony..the test was.. attend the said ceremony with two toddlers in hand (OK I almost lost my patience back there haha)

After the ceremony, I had to rush to Quiapo to look for United Nations costume.. lagare kung lagare! My son is Mr Japan, so I had to look for Japan costumes. One of the yaya said, I can buy cheaper United Nations costume at Quiapo.. so there.. good thing it was still early, no traffic yet. I got his Japan costume for only 500 PhP (or 450 ata argh I can’t remember!) OK I’ll make another post for that.. kase while I was there, the mommy blogger in me took place and I interviewd the staff on the prices of United Nations costumes they offer 🙂 After Quiapo, I went straight to Divisoria for the upcoming parties (first born’s and only girl’s birthdays). And I found another cheap store that sells party favors (OK anther post on that one.. hala ang dami ko ng utang na post! waaah)

Thursday.. and it was not just United Nations Parade.. their Halloween Party comes after.. as well as first born’s “school party”

My Emperor! buti may long wig ako that serves as his hair dress (ang mahalia jacksn ng hair dress sa Quiapo!).

United Nations 2012 Mr and Ms Japan! After the short parade, I have to rush back home to cook spaghetti for the party.. and my boy went from Emperor to a Japanese Vampire! hahaha

And because Kuya loves his little brother so much.. he turned Chico into a vampire too! hahaha

at ang aking kangaragan ay hndi natapos jan.. may Halloween Party/Birthday Party pa sa bahay noong Saturday!
bow.

2 Weekends in Tagaytay and Batangas

for a big family like mine, it was really hard to look for travel deals that will suit our needs.. more often, deals would offer accommodation for 2 (and 2 kids free) and not for 4 kids and 2 adults.. my option would always be a accomodation for 4 (plus 2 kids free), yan saktong sakto sa amin ang mga ganyang deal.. so when Ensogo offered an overnight stay at Chateau Royale good for 4, I did not hesitate and bought not just one but 2 vouchers. That’s overnight stay + dinner and breakfast for 4 for 3000+ Php, swak na swak! And we can choose a room with two queen sized beds..para sa amin talaga ung deal na un! What’s the best part is, Chateau Royale has a playground, a swimming pool and horseback riding (plus rock climbing!).. if you ask me, it’s a perfect resort for a family with kidsss (stress on the s haha)

Cinnamon bites + blueberry cheesecake from Bag of Beans

First weekend we went there, we had breakfast at Bag of Beans (wala na silang cinnamon roll ahuhu) then straight to the resort.. maulan nun pero keri lang.. (may baon akong sandamakmak na vitamin c at paracetamol just in case haha)..

The kids had so much fun.. err but not so much for me.. pagoda coldwave lotion ako to the point na nilagnat ako pag uwi namin dito.. it was our first time to travel without my mom or my sisters. Just imagine how stressful and tiring it was for me.. pero masaya naman kids kaya OK na rin.

Our second time to the resort, my 3rd boy requested for my ate to be with us (ay ako din naman gusto ko kasama sya haha) and the weekend trip also served as my first born’s birthday celebration (although his birthday falls on the 24th)..

too much of Bag of Beans so we decided to eat brunch somewhere else.. good thing a blogger mentioned about Molave Market that serves the freshest bulalo.. it’s waay cheaper compare to known bulaluhan in Batangas.. but still a little pricey considering the location..carinderia type with a not so carinderia kin of price 🙂 but yes, the beef is fresh!

But before having our lunch at Molave Market, we dropped by at Residence Inn for some animals sight seeing..unfortunately, by the time we were to feed the tiger and the lion, it rained so hard.. but we had a blast watching the show at the inn:

off to Chateau Royale after lunch.. the sun is showing a bit that weekend, the kids were able to enjoy the pool unlike the first time we were there… pero not for my younger kids.. hehe gininaw agad!

the next morning, me and the older boys strolled around the fog (with their cozy jacket.. the one I bought at Walmart.. in fairness cozy talaga!)

our second time was better than our first (though the food was better the last time we were there).. hindi masyadong maulan eh, so the kids had more fun at ako naman nagkaroon ng “me” time because ate was there.. I even tried rock climbing 🙂

We had lunch at Claw Daddy (Nuvali) on our way home (that’s another story)..

That’s two weekends of fun, fun and fun! at gusto nila ulit bumalik sa Chateau Royale with my mom and my other sisters and my nephews.. aba suki! In fairness, though the resort is not that classy, I’m quite happy with the service and our accommodation.