The Thanksgiving celebration was a blast.  I never expected to have an overflowing of energy coming from my end.  Despite the lack of sleep after arriving at 3am EST and waking up at 7am when Rorie and Christian arrived from their overnight drive.  Since then, I never stop moving around from doing groceries to cooking with TS and serving dinner.

When you are with the people you love and enjoy being with, you can never feel being tired nor bored.  I just love the day and I was in great mood and I should say shape when it comes to prepping for the big feast.  We had more than enough food to eat and I’m thankful for that.  I am also thankful for the love that surrounds me especially the love of my family and most especially the love and support of TS.  I am thankful for the company of friends and online buddies.  I am thankful for good health, fine shelter and safe trip.

I am thankful for all of you who never failed to visit my site and drop comments.  I am thankful for the life that was given to me and I know I will continue to be thankful for the journey ahead.

It has been awhile since I last wrote a letter to Santa Claus.  And I thought writing a letter these days would be outdated.  Instead, I decided to have an Open Video for Santa Claus.  If I were still a kid, I would be wishing for a pony and some other good stuff.  I am a big fan of Disney animations and being able get a toy Palace or a Winnie the Pooh stuff animal would be like experiencing the disney magic myself.

If you need for a place to shop for your kids’ Christmas presents, Mega Brands is a place for you to shop with a lot of things to choose from.  Check it out and it will awaken the child in you!

We have been planning for this occasion that we will spend Thanksgiving with my side of the family while we spend Christmas on Travis’ side.  The original plan of this Thanksgiving celebration was for us to fly in to Atlanta and my sister- Rosarie and her husband-Christian will drop us in Jacksonville to take thing things that we have left including our baby – Cougar.  From Jacksonville, we would then rent a bigger vehicle like an SUV to have everything fit.

After careful consideration of the prices and the busy airports, we have decided to cancel flying and rent an SUV from here in Minnesota and take it to Jax.  On rough estimation, it will cost us at least $500 for the rental and the gas for the entire period of our trip to the South.  But then TS came up with another idea.  He told me that we can actually fit everything in our car (Mitsubishi Galant) with the exception of the cheap folding tables which for him is not worth the $300+ rental.  His idea actually makes sense and it won’t be a problem since we just had the vehicle and the car parts checked.  So, I did not hesitate on embracing his idea.

Changing plans has been a part of our lives.  I don’t seem to have a problem with it as long as the change will bring more benefits to us.  In this case for instance, it can save us the rental cost.  It was not only this time that we had changing plans.  And because of such recurrence, I have learned to become more flexible.  I like to plan things but if there are changes necessary, I don’t mind it.

My ideal Holiday Season is to spend it with my family.  Unfortunately for me, I live at least 1,187 miles away from my sisters and even much more miles from my home in Cebu.  Since it is not convenient for us to be travelling that much for Christmas and New Year, we decided that our Thanksgiving trip will have to make up for those special occasion.

I have already packed my Christmas presents for my siblings.  I always like to see the look on their face when they know that I got something for them.  I was thinking of getting them gift baskets but since I was able to find good deals on some particular stuff, I decided to buy it instead.

Christmas has always been the time of the year that serves as the gift-giving occasion.  But since I won’t be spending Christmas with my siblings, I have decided to do gift-giving on Thanksgiving instead.  Actually, it doesn’t have to be on a particular occasion that one has to give.  If I only have the means, I would be giving them whenever I want.  But since we are still saving, special occasions like these will have to do.  I hope they will like it!

The Holiday Season is a late-year season that surrounds the Christmas holiday as well as other holidays on the November/December timeframe. Traditionally, the Holiday season includes Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.  However, it has now extended to the later part of Autumn with Thanksgiving commencing it.  It is this season that we tend go back to our roots and be reunited with our family and its tradition.

During New Year, it is a tradition to trun our attention to the world countdown which is held in a dazzling place filled with digital signage, billboards, lights and bustling energy – Time Square.  Some would in fact go there to witness the event live.  With star-studded musical performances, balloons, pom-poms, confetti, a colorful pyrotechnic display and the warm company of close friends, it’s a different way to celebrate New Year in New York.

Whether you are going to New York or staying at home with your family, the Holiday Season is the season of traditions and sharing the happiness with our loved ones.  Happy Holidays!

Have you ever wonder how your baby would look like? I do! And since TS and I are so not ready to have kids yet, I relied on online baby maker to give me an idea of how our baby will look like. If it turns out to be cute, then I might be inspired to produce one. If not, then I would not dare try. Tristan Josh turned out to be a chubby little fella. It must be a product of his mom’s appetite. With those satellite ears, he’s just like his Uncle Linus and his cousin – Kendrick! Now, where are his dad’s features?

Tell me what do you think of the baby in the picture.  I would appreciate honesty.  Negative feedbacks are welcome.  Don’t worry, I won’t take offense besides it’s just a virtual baby not our real one.

If you also would like to see your potential baby, then try it out yourself!

Do you still remember the tragedy that happened 8 years ago in the dumpsite of Payatas, Manila famously known as the Smokey Mountains?  It shocked us when we heard about a massive 50ft wall of solid wastes slid down over hundreds of shanties and undermined number of people.  Many lives were taken and many who are left behind still lives in terror of what happened.

Payatas is a mirror of extreme poverty since most of these people who live near the dumpsite share the same story.  They came from the provinces to the capital city with the hope to better their lives.  Even children at a tender age of 4 years joined in the hunt for food.  They look for scrap metals and plastics so they can sell them in exchange for some change to attempt to help feed their family.  Some children however are determined to go to school even with an empty stomach.

I have been waiting for a snowfall since the last time we had which was last month.  When I get up every morning, I’d usually open the blinds to check for it but I ended up disappointed.  This morning, I didn’t bother checking for it and it was TS who told me there’s snow in the ground.

Little did I know that the snow has been falling discreetly last night when everyone is asleep.  Just like Santa sneaking to bring you presents.  When I looked out the window, I was surprised to see not just snow but ice on the lake.  It has been very cold for the past couple days and last night that made the lake freeze.  It was different sight for me since I’ve never seen anything like it.  There are still portions that didn’t freeze yet but it is getting there.

I’d like to share to you another beauty and magnificence of nature.  However, I haven’t taken a picture yet.  I will be posting the picture as soon as I get it.  For now, let your mind wander…

The stores are getting busier each day.  It is not uncommon to see malls packed with holiday shoppers.  The holiday season shopping is slowly starting after many stores have laid out their holiday deals and some items on sale.

I am starting to think whether I should do my Christmas shopping in the store or online.  I have already purchased some online of which I was able to get a good deals.  I don’t want to join many shoppers on long queue for checkout.  Since many websites nowadays offer free shipping, then I should probably do some of my shopping online!

Before TS bought me my Blackberry Pearl, I have been looking for my unlocked cell phones so I can just purchase a prepaid sim card with my choice of carrier and be connected.  After hours of search and contemplating where I put it, I start to remember that I no longer have it here with me.  I sent my old phones back to the Philippines last year so my family could use it thinking that I would not have any use of it here since I have my VOIP at home.

Travis then decided to buy me my first phone.  I am planning to have it unlocked so that when I travel abroad like in the Netherlands or back to the Philippines, I can use it with a local number.