It's always nice when you get an extra day off to spend with your family!
November 30th is Bonifacio day. It honors the birth of Andres Bonifacio, a Filipino nationalist and revolutionary who led a movement that sought the independence of the Philippines from Spanish colonial rule and started the Philippine Revolution in the late 1890s. He is one of the most recognized of the national heroes here. Now you can say that you have learned something today-probably!
We had such a fun, nice day. I made bacon and eggs for breakfast (thank you, Parker for showing me to bake it in the oven so it's not so messy and doesn't burn or stay limp because I didn't cook it long enough).
We listened to Christmas music-starting with David Carnes (pianist at Mt. Vernon Baptist in Atlanta) and then moving on to Alvin and the Chipmunks-a genetic love of mine from my dad. Greg can't stand them and threatens to break the cds but the kids and I love them! They were dancing around the den with my jingle bell decorations and singing.
We decorated our fake Christmas trees-the large one we bought here and the small one we brought from home. Sadly the live one we ordered is in sad shape. It smells pretty good-though not as good as the frasier firs we usually buy. It is dropping needles so badly that it would be a stick if we tried to decorate it so we are just enjoying it's smell and won't order one next year. I have a whole other post that I plan to do about our tree and ornaments. As always it was fun to watch the kids get excited about their ornaments and seeing how the tree turns out when largely decorated by children.
We found a place to go bowling and had a great time. The bowling alley was at (you guessed it) a mall! Though not one that we've been to before and not super nice but they have a nice bowling alley-clean, family oriented and nice people who ran the place. We have played our wii bowling game and took the boys bowling once "for real" This was the first time Ashley had actually participated. It was super funny to watch her say "I do it myself" and pick up her 6 pound ball and carry up to drop at the end of the lane. Then she would stand (for quite a while because it was rolling so slowly) jump and dance around while watching to see how many pins she knocked down. Greg was the winner of both games with Ryan, Scott, and the team of Ashley and Mommy all scoring close totals.
We finished the day with cuddles on the sofa while watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas-the animated one. What a fun day off and the weekend is just around the corner!
Thanksgiving 2017
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
A confession and more of Ryan is funny!
I realized after posting about how funny it is that Ryan likes his stuffed animals just so on a certain side of his pillow, sorted by category of animal that he may have gotten a little of that from me.
One of the strangest things to me about having a house helper (other than the whole-stranger living in your house thing) is that things don't necessarily stay where I left them. Oftentimes this is good-with dirty dishes, unmade beds, dirty clothes, etc. However I laughed at myself when I left a pair of Greg's pants over the back of a chair in the den. They were not folded and one pocket was pulled inside out. Dali didn't know that I was leaving them there because I had planned to take them somewhere to have the pocket replaced because it had torn. When I came home that afternoon, the pants were neatly folded in the chair and I had to laugh at myself.
Today was a holiday here and so we all enjoyed the day off. Greg and I were sleeping in and the kids were playing in the den-Scott playing wii and Ashley and Ryan were watching him with their pillows, blankets, and stuffed animals (all arranged just so, I'm sure). Dali was in the kitchen and realized that Ashley was upset and checked on her-her blanket was missing. Ashley came into the kitchen looking and looked all over the den and was sure that she had just had it. Dali looked at Ryan and said that something about his face gave him away-she asked him if he had Ashley's blanket and he did! He had hidden it from her under a pillow. When I asked Ryan if he had played a trick on Ashley a huge grin took over his whole face and he nodded with a very pleased expression on his face! It was so funny. He so gets this from Greg who loves playing jokes on the kids!
One of the strangest things to me about having a house helper (other than the whole-stranger living in your house thing) is that things don't necessarily stay where I left them. Oftentimes this is good-with dirty dishes, unmade beds, dirty clothes, etc. However I laughed at myself when I left a pair of Greg's pants over the back of a chair in the den. They were not folded and one pocket was pulled inside out. Dali didn't know that I was leaving them there because I had planned to take them somewhere to have the pocket replaced because it had torn. When I came home that afternoon, the pants were neatly folded in the chair and I had to laugh at myself.
Today was a holiday here and so we all enjoyed the day off. Greg and I were sleeping in and the kids were playing in the den-Scott playing wii and Ashley and Ryan were watching him with their pillows, blankets, and stuffed animals (all arranged just so, I'm sure). Dali was in the kitchen and realized that Ashley was upset and checked on her-her blanket was missing. Ashley came into the kitchen looking and looked all over the den and was sure that she had just had it. Dali looked at Ryan and said that something about his face gave him away-she asked him if he had Ashley's blanket and he did! He had hidden it from her under a pillow. When I asked Ryan if he had played a trick on Ashley a huge grin took over his whole face and he nodded with a very pleased expression on his face! It was so funny. He so gets this from Greg who loves playing jokes on the kids!
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Ryan is Funny!
Ryan told me a few nights ago at bedtime that he didn't like having to fix his stuffed animals every night. Our helper makes the beds like we were in a hotel and doesn't realize that the boys have a way they like their stuffed animals. Scott has half the bed full of animals and is not particular about where they each go. Ryan has his most favorite animal "doggy" and a few other favorites and likes them each in their own special "correct" place on his bed.
I asked Ryan how he fixed he animals, and he explained that on one side of his pillow he puts his turtles and on the other side are his "land animals"-dogs and bears. That just cracked me up that he separates the animals by where they live.
Ryan is also funny about what he likes to eat. I was asking Greg what he wanted for dinner last night-lasagna, chicken, or a scrambled egg sandwich. Before Greg had a chance to say anything-Ryan pipes up and immediately says "I want eggs in a pile!" I asked him to repeat his request and he said "I want scrambled eggs but in a pile not in a sandwich." He makes me laugh and he really enjoyed his "eggs in a pile." I doubt that description would make it on any restaurant menu.
I asked Ryan how he fixed he animals, and he explained that on one side of his pillow he puts his turtles and on the other side are his "land animals"-dogs and bears. That just cracked me up that he separates the animals by where they live.
Ryan is also funny about what he likes to eat. I was asking Greg what he wanted for dinner last night-lasagna, chicken, or a scrambled egg sandwich. Before Greg had a chance to say anything-Ryan pipes up and immediately says "I want eggs in a pile!" I asked him to repeat his request and he said "I want scrambled eggs but in a pile not in a sandwich." He makes me laugh and he really enjoyed his "eggs in a pile." I doubt that description would make it on any restaurant menu.
Happy Thanksgiving
Hope that you had a Happy Turkey Day! We enjoyed dinner with about 30 American friends at someone's home-potluck dinner with carrots, green beans, broccoli casserole, stuffing, turkey, ham, cranberry sauce, rolls, and great desserts. It was fun but not the same as being at home with all the family-we missed you.
Greg's sisters and families gathered for the Thanksgiving meal at his mom's this year and we had a great time seeing all the cousins on skype this morning (Saturday for us) and Friday night for them.
I have already gotten a great email report from Aunt Lynda that my dad's family Thanksgiving family reunion was wonderful as always. My grandmother had 9 brothers and sisters and they and their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren have been getting together for Thanksgiving for my whole life and many years before that.
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!
Greg's sisters and families gathered for the Thanksgiving meal at his mom's this year and we had a great time seeing all the cousins on skype this morning (Saturday for us) and Friday night for them.
I have already gotten a great email report from Aunt Lynda that my dad's family Thanksgiving family reunion was wonderful as always. My grandmother had 9 brothers and sisters and they and their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren have been getting together for Thanksgiving for my whole life and many years before that.
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Mall of Asia
Ashley and I went to the Mall of Asia for the first time last Tuesday. It was a VERY nice mall-one of the largest in the world. We all went there for the afternoon after seeing the Nutcracker ballet. You can tell a tremendous difference in the crowds at the mall on Tuesday and Sunday afternoon. It is like malls around our house-much more crowded on weekends.
Your view driving up to the mall
I thought this looked like where Santa would be-but there was no Santa there-we took some pictures anyway-Greg said that he saw Santa on Sunday but that the line was horrendous so we didn't see him.
The indoor skating rink
Where Ashley and I had lunch-a crepe with meat, cheese, and pizza sauce before having
strawberry ice cream-which cost 55 pesos (a little over a $1) but the sprinkles she saw right at her eye level behind the counter and wanted cost 20 pesos extra (about 50 cents)
We didn't eat here but I had to take a picture-we had a Swensons's ice cream parlor in Greenville that was a frequent hang out during our days at Furman but it has been closed for quite a while now and I found another!
more mall decorations
These pictures were all taken on Sunday-this was a stand selling authentic Japanese octopus balls-NOT where we ate lunch or dinner on Sunday!
The Courtyard between buildings of the mall
The Science Discovery Center-fun but a little disappointing-small and we paid the same for these tickets as our ballet tickets.
The side of this escalator was clear-even I thought it was really cool to get to see how it looked on the inside!
Scott in a flight simulator-I told him that he would have made his passengers sick the way he flew!
The talking fish-video-you could even ask it questions and it would respond
Greg and the kids looking at a display of robots
More shots inside the mall
people watching the ice skaters from upstairs
Sunset on Manila Bay
decorations above the mall's main entrance as we were leaving that night
Ashley by the fountains outside on our Tuesday visit
The globe out front is lit up at night-pretty!
The Nutcracker in November
I just have to say that it was cool that we could pay about $8 per ticket for the 5 of us to see the Nutcracker and sit on the 8th row. Now Ryan and Scott thought the box seats were awfully cool (we did go upstairs to see one after the performance) but we had a great view! Ashley got restless by the end of the 2 hour show but was entranced by the scenery and costumes in the beginning. She says that her favorites were the flowers-because their costumes were pink. Scott and Ryan enjoyed it and behaved well-interested in other things like how they changed scenery and how the sleigh "flew" to carry them to the land of sweets. It was neat to see snow, even if it was fake and the boys noticed they swept it up mostly at intermission. Greg and I laughed that though it happened at the "wrong" time the Christmas tree here "grew" more than the one in the Nutcracker we saw in Greenville-a much smaller theater than Atlanta's Fox Theater.
Sadly they took my camera away-I wasn't as sneaky as other people-I saw someone video the whole ballet. I just wanted to take pictures of the kids' reactions. However I got it back at the end and so here are some pictures of the kids with the dancers. We have read many versions of the Nutcracker-recently and in the past so we had lots of fun comparing them all to what we saw. The mice came down off the stage and came up to our row-Ryan and Ashley waved and talked to them. They did have really neat costumes. Scott was the one who really wanted to have his picture made with the mouse king. Enjoy the pictures and read the next post about what we did with the afternoon after the performance.
Inside the Philippine Cultural Center
The toy soldiers, Russian dancers in front, Herr Drosselmeyer in black top hat, and the mouse king is next to him
Scott and Ryan with the mouse king-they thought it was cool that you could look in his costume mouth and see his real face.
More pictures with the dancers
The following pictures were taken outside the Cultural Center
She just has to copy her big brothers, whether it is smart or not!
Sadly they took my camera away-I wasn't as sneaky as other people-I saw someone video the whole ballet. I just wanted to take pictures of the kids' reactions. However I got it back at the end and so here are some pictures of the kids with the dancers. We have read many versions of the Nutcracker-recently and in the past so we had lots of fun comparing them all to what we saw. The mice came down off the stage and came up to our row-Ryan and Ashley waved and talked to them. They did have really neat costumes. Scott was the one who really wanted to have his picture made with the mouse king. Enjoy the pictures and read the next post about what we did with the afternoon after the performance.
Monday, November 21, 2011
What we have been up to lately
We continue to learn to live with adjustments here-
-Ryan said one morning recently "I want a biscuit like I liked in America for breakfast!" I told him that I would like one too but can't buy them here. What he is referring to is what my mom called "whackys" because they are canned biscuits that you "whack" on the counter to open the can after peeling off the label. Something to look forward to having this summer when we visit.
-Greg and I went to dinner at the home of our friends-Jaime and Fran-They moved here from Chile about a month ago. We were joined by two other Fluor employees from Chile. We had a delicious meal and a good time together visiting and talking about settling in in Manila. It was funny though, every once in a while, the 4 of them would be talking in Spanish and Greg and I would look at each other and start chatting about our day. That's another thing I take for granted in America-assuming everyone speaks English. I really admire their efforts to converse in English well and smoothly.
-We still run into language barriers even if speaking English to a Filipino sometimes-I was calling the studio where Ashley is going to be taking ballet to ask if she needed a skirt or just a plain leotard-I tried to identify myself as Ashley's mom and that she would be coming to class for the first time on Tuesday. The lady just kept telling me she would see me on Tuesday. I asked the question about 5 times and never got an answer to what I was really asking-AAAHHHHH! I don't know if it was purely a communication thing or also a cell phone reception issue. Oh well-we have bought something and will show up on Tuesday and see if it is the same as what everyone else has on???
-We gave the kids an early Christmas present-a small plastic slide for by the pool-an idea totally stolen from a friend we visited here. You can see that all the kids LOVE it!
-Ryan said one morning recently "I want a biscuit like I liked in America for breakfast!" I told him that I would like one too but can't buy them here. What he is referring to is what my mom called "whackys" because they are canned biscuits that you "whack" on the counter to open the can after peeling off the label. Something to look forward to having this summer when we visit.
-Greg and I went to dinner at the home of our friends-Jaime and Fran-They moved here from Chile about a month ago. We were joined by two other Fluor employees from Chile. We had a delicious meal and a good time together visiting and talking about settling in in Manila. It was funny though, every once in a while, the 4 of them would be talking in Spanish and Greg and I would look at each other and start chatting about our day. That's another thing I take for granted in America-assuming everyone speaks English. I really admire their efforts to converse in English well and smoothly.
-We still run into language barriers even if speaking English to a Filipino sometimes-I was calling the studio where Ashley is going to be taking ballet to ask if she needed a skirt or just a plain leotard-I tried to identify myself as Ashley's mom and that she would be coming to class for the first time on Tuesday. The lady just kept telling me she would see me on Tuesday. I asked the question about 5 times and never got an answer to what I was really asking-AAAHHHHH! I don't know if it was purely a communication thing or also a cell phone reception issue. Oh well-we have bought something and will show up on Tuesday and see if it is the same as what everyone else has on???
-We gave the kids an early Christmas present-a small plastic slide for by the pool-an idea totally stolen from a friend we visited here. You can see that all the kids LOVE it!
Sunday, November 20, 2011
What are the Christmas colors?
As I have mentioned many times-Ashley's favorite color is pink! I wanted to find her a new dress for Christmas (since I had given away all the ones that had been shared with us because it was too hot to wear them here) and after some looking found something that I really liked. It took some talking though to convince her that red and green are the Christmas colors-not pink! At first she said that she didn't like the dress but changed her tune after a while.
I was in the store debating about the red or the navy dress and was thinking of both of my parents-It was a sailor dress style and very similar to a dress I remember having as a child. I knew that my mother would have chosen the navy blue one and Daddy would have chosen the red because that was his favorite color. Since it was Christmas I chose the red. Here she is with her brothers in their Christmas shirts-am not used to buying short sleeved ones of these either-on the day we went to see the Nutcracker ballet-November 20th-yeah just a little early-but it's only 34 more days until Christmas! Is your shopping finished? Mine is almost-boy I miss Wal-Mart and Target!
I was in the store debating about the red or the navy dress and was thinking of both of my parents-It was a sailor dress style and very similar to a dress I remember having as a child. I knew that my mother would have chosen the navy blue one and Daddy would have chosen the red because that was his favorite color. Since it was Christmas I chose the red. Here she is with her brothers in their Christmas shirts-am not used to buying short sleeved ones of these either-on the day we went to see the Nutcracker ballet-November 20th-yeah just a little early-but it's only 34 more days until Christmas! Is your shopping finished? Mine is almost-boy I miss Wal-Mart and Target!
Along the lines of being thankful
Lately we have participated or are collecting for 2 charity drives that have really struck me-
1. The boys school is collecting paper to recycle and will donate the new paper made to a local public school nearby
2. I saw a request for donations of pencils for another areas local schools-I went through and gave away some of the many that we brought with us and bought some more at the grocery store-I could get about 16 for what would equal about $1
Are there any of us who wonder if our kids will have paper/pencils to do their schoolwork with? It breaks my heart to think that there are parents who do. I know that there were many opportunities at home that I missed out on to share and give to others but have been blessed by these opportunities and am making a greater effort to keep my eyes and heart open for ways to share with others.
Along with this there are some things that I have vowed to never complain about again:
-school supply shopping-no matter how picky the list or how many stores I have to visit
-loading the dishwasher-because I will be thankful to have that appliance to do the washing
-looking for a parking place-because I will have the freedom to drive myself and have healthy legs to walk, whether the space is close or far away
-weather-because I miss the change of seasons and will appreciate them more when we come home-I love the year 'round swimming but I miss the fall leaves, picking apples and other traditional fall things, and it is just WEIRD that it is this close to Christmas and still hot!
1. The boys school is collecting paper to recycle and will donate the new paper made to a local public school nearby
2. I saw a request for donations of pencils for another areas local schools-I went through and gave away some of the many that we brought with us and bought some more at the grocery store-I could get about 16 for what would equal about $1
Are there any of us who wonder if our kids will have paper/pencils to do their schoolwork with? It breaks my heart to think that there are parents who do. I know that there were many opportunities at home that I missed out on to share and give to others but have been blessed by these opportunities and am making a greater effort to keep my eyes and heart open for ways to share with others.
Along with this there are some things that I have vowed to never complain about again:
-school supply shopping-no matter how picky the list or how many stores I have to visit
-loading the dishwasher-because I will be thankful to have that appliance to do the washing
-looking for a parking place-because I will have the freedom to drive myself and have healthy legs to walk, whether the space is close or far away
-weather-because I miss the change of seasons and will appreciate them more when we come home-I love the year 'round swimming but I miss the fall leaves, picking apples and other traditional fall things, and it is just WEIRD that it is this close to Christmas and still hot!
What my kids are Thankful for
A few days ago we were talking about Thanksgiving coming up and why it wasn't celebrated here in the Philippines. We have read some books about Thanksgiving and are having a traditional dinner that night-after a regular school/work day here with some American friends. I asked the kids to each name 5 things they were thankful for and alternated between laughing and being touched by what they said.
Scott-
family time
sun
plants
animals-that keep away pests
God
education
Ryan said
shelter-he likes our house here
God
Mommy and Daddy
birthdays and celebrating with family
having a brother and sister to play with
gravity-I guess he is worried about floating off into space somehow
Then there is Ashley-
her pink pillow and "Grrrrr"-her favorite stuffed animal bear that Greg bought her in the hospital gift shop
princesses
cookies-what child wouldn't agree with this one?
pigs-do you notice that most of Ashley's things are pink? not surprising at all!
cows-she was eating off of her favorite cow plate while we were having this talk-Maybe we should all learn from her to be thankful for the moment you are in right now! No matter what it is!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Scott-
family time
sun
plants
animals-that keep away pests
God
education
Ryan said
shelter-he likes our house here
God
Mommy and Daddy
birthdays and celebrating with family
having a brother and sister to play with
gravity-I guess he is worried about floating off into space somehow
Then there is Ashley-
her pink pillow and "Grrrrr"-her favorite stuffed animal bear that Greg bought her in the hospital gift shop
princesses
cookies-what child wouldn't agree with this one?
pigs-do you notice that most of Ashley's things are pink? not surprising at all!
cows-she was eating off of her favorite cow plate while we were having this talk-Maybe we should all learn from her to be thankful for the moment you are in right now! No matter what it is!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Monday, November 14, 2011
Avilon Zoo Trip
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