Letters for Ava

I like to think of myself as a Martha Stewart lady. :D

I love DIY stuff - sewing, crafting, cooking, baking, you name it. Everything in Martha's website, I'd love to try someday. That's why I know for a fact that I won't get bored nor become a bum should I decide to stop working one day. Lol. Just imagine all the projects I can make! :)

We all know that parties are always the best events where we can go ga-ga over DIY stuff. All the more if it's your little darling's first birthday party. :)

Here's one of the many DIY stuff I've been working on for Little A's simple birthday party celebration.

Letter Paper Mâchés

I already did these huge letter paper mâchés for our wedding but that was before when I still have the time and energy to do every single thing. :D Now, I am excited for the crafting revolution that is happening in the Philippines. Resources are still a bit limited but they're slowly building up, one craft store to another. And then of course we have these online stores offering a wide variety of crafting supplies. Just like ARTees Collection where I got these kraft letter paper mâchés. Definitely saved me from a lot of paper cuts. ;)

So here's how easily I did this project:

Fambam Hits: la Creperie San Juan

Our little fambam of three enjoys spending the  weekend bonding over food. Yes, even our 10-month-old little miss A is already a foodie. :D

So for our Sunday's foodie adventure, we went on a quick drive to San Juan to visit a quaint little place called La Creperie. 

The entrance to La Creperie

I love all things pretty and dainty, and this place has just the right amount of both. It's perfect for a simple family lunch to a romantic dinner date for two.

"All we need id Love, and Paris." | Second Level of La Creperie

Their second level, which can comfortably fit 20-30 people, can also accomodate intimate gatherings with families and friends.

Ezio Turned One

Oh wow, less than a month since my blog went online and I'm already delayed with my posts. Ha! :P But always better than nothing, eh? :D

We braved the looming wrath of Typhoon Maring before it hit the metro a couple of weeks ago to attend Ezio's first birthday party. :) Ezio is the first born of EF and Shiela, our friends from college. Didn't realize that we've known each other for more than 10 years already. From our inuman whatevers, here we are now, attending each other's weddings, baby christenings and now birthday parties. Ayayay, how time flies.

Sharing some photos from the party. :)

Fambam Hits: Mom and Tina's

Mr. T and I have been foodies ever since, food is our guilty pleasure. It slowed down because of pregnancy restrictions but we were still hunting for hole in the wall places every now and then. I remember during our 7th month when big meaty burgers were my cravings, we drove to Taft after a storm just to get a taste of Zark's Burger.

Me and my fatty face posing with the Jawbreaker

Fast-forward to today, now that we have A, it became more fun. Since she already eats, she can now enjoy our little fambam's bonding over food, which usually happens during weekends. :)

Why my Husband is my Husband

Everyone, this is my husband, Mr. T. And this is one of our regular conversations when we're both in the office.

I was having my random babbles (as seen on my twitter feed) and I thought of sending it to him so he'll get the message. He got it alright.

You see, he doesn't give me crappy replies and promises me the moon and the stars. Maybe that's one of the reasons why our relationship works. We let each other dream but we also make each other realize that we both have to work hard for our dreams. And when I say both of us, that means equal sharing with all our responsibilities. Both of us doing what we do best and helping each other in areas where we don't do well. He doesn't let me just sit around and order things to be done nor wait for people to do things for me. And the humour and language in our relationship! Lol. It's the kind that will embarrass our children in their teenage years. And yes, that probably is one of our goals as parents.

Conversations like this usually end up on a high note.

So yeah, we peestpamp like rockstars! Hahah!

100 Days of BLW

Baby Led Weaning (BLW) is defined as:

Quite simply, means letting your child feed themselves from the very start of weaning.
* re ‘wean’. This is meant in the Brit sense, not the American. In the UK, ‘weaning’ means ‘adding complementary foods’, whereas in the States it means ‘giving up breastfeeding’.

I learned about BLW during one of the breastfeeding meetups we attended earlier this year. A was just around three months then. Then I started reading about it and introduced it to Mr. T as well. After reading articles, watching videos and more, I was finally ready and confident enough to do it. Yes, I had to build my confidence level and had to learn the difference between choking and gagging.

And as A turned six months on May 1 of this year, we started our BLW journey.

Our little foodie in training. Her first solid food - avocado. No, she didn't eat cake. Lol.

In the Kitchen: Crispy Kulitis

If I have to choose which of the wife duties I love the most, I will pick cooking in a heartbeat. Just about anything that has something to do with preparing and making meals for my little fambam, I enjoy a lot. Probably because the hubee is such a foodie and the little miss A is looking like becoming one as well. Happy tummies equals a happy family. :)

While I have my typical go-to recipes, every once in a while, I would try and cook something new just to give our palates something different. Or sometimes, the folks will bring some fresh goodies all the way from Nueva Ecija - longganisa, fish but veggies most of the time. Just recently I learned how to eat Kulitis (Chinese Spinach) leaves so my dad would bring me some everytime they're in Manila for a visit.

The only way I know how to cook it is to sauteé with garlic, onion, tomato and mackerel or sardines. And since my dad brought heaps of these greens last weekend, I think someone will eventually complain if I cook it that way over and over again. So I thought maybe I can make a Crispy Kulitis just like the Crispy Kangkong. :)

And here's what I came up with.

Ingredients:

50 pieces of Kulitis leaves

(Choose the big ones, wash then lay flat on a plate)

For the batter:

1 cup All Purpose Flour

1 cup Ice Cold Water

1 Egg

1 cup Cooking Oil

How to cook:

1. Start by heating the pan with the cooking oil.
2. Combine the flour, water and egg then beat until the lumps of flour are gone.
3. Hold the stem of the kulitis and brush both sides of the leaf in the batter until completely covered.
4. Cook until it turns slightly brown.
5. Remove from pan and transfer to a strainer lined with a tissue or coffee filter to absorb oil.
6. Serve and enjoy. :)

I made two dips:

1. Mayonaisse, dried oregano, dried basil, salt and pepper.
2. Soy sauce, lemon, garlic powder and sesame oil.

Recipe adapted from Crispy Spinach Recipe by Panlasang Pinoy