One Word, One Year: 2019

After a week and so of trying to balance homeschooling, taking care of a toddler and managing the household while being down with flu, I realized how my one word last year still has its effect on me. Well, it doesn't really apply to my general mood (malalaos ang mga nagro-road rage sa akin haha) but it was when I'm calm that Sophia better understands a Math problem, Sammy loves it when I'm calm and being calm is the best way to keep a hardworking helper. So yes, choosing a word to work on your life definitely gives good results. Hence, still doing it this year.

I've been choosing one word every new year for five years already, except in 2015 when my goal then was to rebrand (from a hot pink Bebengisms to a quieter, cleaner Royal Domesticity) and my process has never changed. I still pray before I finally decide on what to put here. One Word, One Year may just be a blogging trend but for me, it's all spiritual. I always seek for what the Lord sees in my heart. I got stuck for a few days thinking of what word to choose but after I prayed, I knew what it's going to be. 

In 2014, I chose faith.

In 2016, I chose purpose.

In 2017, I chose humility.

In 2018, I chose calm.

And for 2019, I choose GRATITUDE.

Moving Forward

Well, well, well. What do we have here? In the past three years, my first post of every new year was all about looking back the past year. It's not entirely a bad thing but this year, I decided to celebrate our now and maybe get more excited for the days to come. So...

This is TMI but my girls and I haven't taken a bath yet and the sink's still full of dirty dishes from our brunch earlier. Also, as of this writing, our househelp hasn't come home yet from her New Year's leave. I'm kind of expecting the worst already; I just don't want to wash the dishes yet. After all the festivities, from four Christmas parties in the camp to cooking two batches of seafood paella and lechon belly here at home, my skin and bones are yearning for this blog. Like I said in a previous post, I will be blogging for me. So dirty plates, you can wait.

Took this photo inside the camp using my husband's office camera.

Upon checking the Blogger dashboard, there are posts saved on my drafts from 2012, the year I started blogging mainstream (I had an online journal no one has ever read), that I still haven't published till now. Yes, 7 years later, it's still there. What happened, you ask? Simple—procrastination. That giant evil blob of a word has led me to many of my failures, blogging and life in general. It's tough to avoid it but this year, I am seriously hoping to never invite it to my parties. Hence, typing away now like a hired thesis typist. 

I have a few solid plans for this lovely space but basically, I just want you all to know that you'd be reading a lot of my ruminations from now on. As in, like writing in my LiveJournal in 2003! I enjoy sharing hacks, tips and new products for families to try but writing my random ramblings is what I love doing the most here. Kinda sounds selfish, I know but that's my truth. I wish you won't get tired of reading it, though. 

OK. My allotted minutes for the blog are over! I can hear the girls' laughter from the room, don't want to miss the fun. Next post will be about grocery shopping then my one word for 2019. Laters! ♥

Three Important Things to Remember When Preparing for a Children's Party

So we just celebrated Sammy's dedication to the Lord and first birthday two Sundays ago. It wasn't a perfect party but all the people I've spoken with after told me the same thing—our Pinoy 90s party was naturally fun! I felt so relieved when I knew that our friends and family were happy. You see, a first birthday party isn't really for the celebrant. Aside from the parents hosting it, it is actually for the guests. That is why whenever we hold parties, we make sure to invite those that matter to us. R and I aren't the kind of people who invite the "guest of honor" type, who usually ends up to be the star of the event. We love having the people we love to be with. 

It's not that I'm already a pro in parties but I just realized now that budget, location and food may be the basic things to think about but there are three more important things a mom (or dad or anyone) should remember when preparing for a children's party. And because sharing is caring, here it is. This is just a quick read, no worries. Just think of the 3Cs!

Life Lately: Blogging for His Glory

Things were pretty intense in the Rayala household the past few weeks that iced cold coffee, doughnuts and Netflix weren't enough to calm me. 

It started with Sophia's first Portfolio Review, a quarterly assessment for homeschooling families that's basically the basis of what a student learned at home with her parent-teacher. So you see, it felt like thesis-making in college all over again. Except that I had to collect Math worksheets as proof that she can already do mental addition, subtraction and multiplication of 2 to 3 digits. Also, since Sophia's greatest academic strength is drawing, I wanted to showcase that in all of her subjects, if possible. Can you feel the pressure? Can you feel the force in my nape that slowly gravitates into every nerve in my brain whenever I tried not to yell at a slow-paced Sophia? Can you feel my heart pounding each time I have nervously laid Sammy Bear to sleep, wishing she'd wake up a little later?

Speaking of our baby love, she has majorly contributed to whatever is the total amount of my tiredness. I love her to bits and her laugh flies me to the moon but my back is just dying whenever we're out. Buhatan forever dot com. 

Our First Halloween Event

When we got invited to Cocoon Boutique Hotel and Hive Hotel's first joint Halloween event, we made sure to make it a bit special since it was our first to attend as a family. Yup, the word our in the title was for our family and the two amazeballs hotels in Quezon City. You have to check them out; both are eco-friendly hotels. Anyway – R, Sophia and I thought of our costumes well since we didn't want to spend too much money on it. After all, we would only use it for a few hours. So, I thought of something that I can easily DIY. Thank goodness for Pinterest, we came as the The Breakfast Club — what Sophia called us when I showed her the pegs. 

It was a success if we will based it on my readers' reactions on social media. But we thought it could be a lot cuter if the sunny side up egg has actually walked or at least stood for photos, no? Heehee.

Garlic Butter Shrimp

Sophia was around five years old when I finally decided to regularly serve her shrimp dishes. Yes, she started late. I didn't force her to eat those she wasn't comfortable to have yet. Then till now, I strongly believe that mealtimes should be fun. Even if I have a solid table rule (i.e., eat whatever I serve), I still made sure crying wasn't part of it. I came to a point when I had to unleash my inner theater actress, allowed her to "starve" for 5 minutes and made the broccoli speak just to make her understand that I will never feed her gross food. Guess what, it was effective! She's now a certified foodie. In fact, she now knows how to eat shrimp with head on. As in, the real shiznit – sucking it to really get its flavor. So proud of her, she's really her mother's daughter.

Okay, enough. That's already silly mom-bragging right there, haha. I'm sure you came here for the recipe so let's talk about that.

Filipino Kiddie Spaghetti

I was raised in a home that enjoyed rice and ulam meals every single day. Rice and tinola, rice and sinigang, rice and fried fish, rice and tocino and even rice and macaroni soup. I think I speak for most Filipino families — rice is life. But now that I've been feeding my not-so-little foodie for a decade already, I sometimes question why rice always has to be present in our meals. No, I actually do not question, I rebel against the norms. When Sophia was younger, I created a habit of feeding her healthy dishes that I know she'd like. I didn't force her to eat those that I just started to eat when I was a bit older. Mealtimes should be fun, a fact I stick to up to this day. I guess, that's why she just had a quick time in the picky-eating phase.

One of the delish dishes that I frequently served her — spaghetti! When I had to scrimp on budget, I used canned corned beef. When I was slowly introducing seafood to her, I used tuna. When I wanted it healthier, I used real tomatoes instead of ready-made sauces. Sophia ate and liked them all. She would say after every meal, "I wish this is my baon, Nay!" Haha. But still, nothing beats the classic Pinoy spaghetti. The one with sweet sauce, ground pork, hotdogs and grated cheese. It's her most favorite! So it's safe to say that I have memorized cooking it as much as her ultimate fave,  adobo.

Do you want to know how I make mine? Here's my recipe!