Urban Lilly Album - A Gift

i made a 12x12 album for my mother of the '06 del rosario feast in our town where she was the hermana. i tried finishing this in time for christmas, but failed. fast forward to january, i was finally able to dish it out.

i was content with the fact that i was able to manage with white cardstock and the colorful urban lilly papers. oh, i'm so lovin' urban lilly a lot now.

technique-wise, i didn't do much except for cutting, cutting, & some more cutting *LOL*.

the closest english translation i can think of for the visayan word

'padul-ong' is 'to accompany'. the holy rosary image stayed

in our house for the whole year of '06.

the 'padul-ong' in january '06 sort of kicked-off the event.

a breakfast buffet at our garden awaited the participants

9 months later, or 1 day before the last sunday of october '06,
the holy rosary image was transferred from our house to the church,
and again, food was abundant *LOL*

(left LO) still part of vesper day; (right LO) the feast day!

the procession passed by our house

(left LO) procession; (right LO) the con-celebrated mass

still at the church

after the mass, it's dinner/party time!

this LO speaks much of our feelings - - - indeed grateful.

materials used:

cs - white bazzill & dcwv;

pp - UL everyday lilly collection (sushi dot, sushi & blush dot),

happy everything collection (beautiful & forever),

may ella collection (bliss);

chipboard alpha - heidi swapp lemonade & scrapworks;

paint - deco art metallic gold & li'l davis brownie mettalic shades

ink - colorbox chestnut roan;

rubs - mm simply stated;

flowers - prima;

others - mm snaps, colorbok brads, the happy hammer eyelets,

canson tracing paper, rikrak

At Home for Christmas & More

nothing beats in making my DH & i happy than being with our families. so when i learned that he bought for us pal promo tickets for the holidays, i was rather ecstatic. but a week before christmas, i found out that what we had were business class seats for the manila-tacloban route.

i consider myself a frequent flyer, but have never experienced business class, ever. on dec. 23, i realized that with the fare almost 4x the promo rate, comes many amenities like: no more queueing at the airport entrance & check-in counter, a business lounge to while away pre-boarding time with free internet access & buffet breakfast *LOL*.

i so love the mango crepe...yummmmy!

the feast didn't end at the business lounge, for aboard the plane

awaits a sumptuous breakfast.

i tell you, i am just used to the usual crackers *another LOL*.

after a 1-night stay in tacloban, we headed to home-sweet-home on dec. 24.

after celebrating 2 christmas parties: at my in-law's & ours, our family re-lived a christmas tradition: family portrait on christmas morning. ahhhh, i looked forward to this while i was young, i mean the girly young.

what is sad is that 9 family members are in far-away places. back home, we were a minority. and while we are used to dressing up to the nines for our christmas picture, we went laidback this time.

our backyard is so perfect for our christmas morning picture

on dec. 27, my DH & i, with my BIL & his family, & 2 SILs & their families started our un-planned travel to cebu via ormoc. our group of 7 adults & 4 kids were just enough the hired van from tacloban to ormoc (1.5 hours). in the nick of time, we boarded a huge boat, m/v heaven star. we occupied 2 cabins so that we can take a rest during the 4 hour-sail, but with 4 hyperactive kids, i wasn't able to shut my eye.

i was impressed with the physical facility of the boat. it's very unlike the boats in the '80s.

cool food court

no waves at all

what's so funny about our 1-day & 1-night stay in cebu is that, we weren't able to move around historic spots 'coz the kids' butts were glued at the malls *sigh*. the good part is that we were just enough in the huge family room of royal court business hotel adjacent to ayala mall. talk about bonding time at its best.

while lazying in our beds on our first morning in cebu, came the idea to move to bohol. so to bohol we go on board the speedy supercat (2 hrs.). i was surprised that pinoys were a minority on the supercat lift, a big number of travellers being foreigners. that speaks well of bohol's tourist promotion.

at the port of tagbiliran city, bohol. first impression: it's clean.

we were fetched at the port by a tourist van we hired while we were at the supercat boarding area of cebu pier.

the van was to tour us around bohol for 8 hours. from the port, our first destination was the majestic chocolate hills, and passed by the man-made forest and a private garden where we viewed tarsiers. from the tarsiers, we headed to a private house where my companions viewed a phyton in captivity. i said my companions 'coz i did not dare look. eeeew. we also dropped by the historic baclayon church and shopped at the aproniana souvenier store. we were too tired to go further, thus, the next stop was bohol tropics resort hotel for dinner.

we were not told that food service takes ages at bohol tropics. my DH & nephew couldn't hide their disgust. taste verdict: not good, either.

we at least hoped to stay at bohol tropics for the night. but there was no more room *sigh*, so we settled at the nearby hotel la roca, which is not as physically pleasing as bohol tropics.

after a much-needed sleep, i was again ready for a city tour.

by noon, we were at the pier back to cebu.

after 2 hours, we were in cebu. as we planned to take the boat back to

ormoc later in the night, we went straight to sm cebu to deposit our luggages.

a traveller's lounge is such a cool idea. huge hotel savings here.

by 10pm, we were headed to ormoc on board m/v heaven star, this time we took the suite room. and yes, all of us 9 squeezed in there. bonding time once again *LOL*.

my niece bea was too engrossed w/ her tarsier experience.

she climbed the pole all by herself!

to get myself to sleep, i took a peek at the only souvenir item i have of cebu: a cheap-y pocketbook i found at sm cebu booksale. now i can say i just bought a book in cebu *LOL*.

indeed one for the books

we reached ormoc by 2m of dec. 30. after a 1.5 hours road ride, we were at my SIL's house in tacloban. w/o being told, the kids continued their sleep, much to our relief. by noon, we headed back to home-sweet-home to welcome 2008 with our families.

during my sister's bday party on jan. 1, came the idea to visit our great-grandfather's island, around 5-minute boat ride from the town. the visit happened in the morning of jan. 2.

i so love the virgin green of the island....

....& the pristine waters facing the pacific.

3 male cousins took the challenge to find food, as if to relish how our

great-grandpa survived in his lonesone at the island. true enough,

barely 30 minute after, they came back w/ these:

by 3pm, my DH & i were on the road to tacloban. almost halfway to our destination, our tire blew. it could have been easy to replace the tire had the tire wrench been A-ok. but it wasn't and it was getting dark, and rain was starting to fall. fear struck. as if an answered prayer, the occupants of the only house nearby offered help to find a tire wrench in the next barrio. 2 hours after, our blewn tire was replaced. thanks heavens for kind strangers. lessons learned: check your tools & pray more.

who would have thought this huge tire would blow?

early morning of jan. 3, we were bound for manila, this time, to fly ordinary *LOL*

it was a 12-day breeze, and my only disappointment is that i wasn't able to finish the album i intended as christmas gift for my mother. now, i have yet to finish my 12 days of christmas mini album, and i have accumulated again holiday pictures to scrap. so help me God.

as i unfold our tree back in makati, my thoughts of the year that was

continued to play on my mind. i thank the Almighty for His many blessings,

and i continue to pray for His guidance.

A BLESSED NEW YEAR TO ALL!!!!!

Pleasant Surprise

that is how i felt when i checked what was in our mailbox yesterday - - - a card from ms. marian king.

i just couldn't describe the card she handmade in one word; rather, 2 words best suits it: equisitely elegant.
thank you ms. marian & happy holidays to you & your family, too.

Off to the Post Office

...to my 'baby' for this year's christmas card exchange among a group of scrapaholics!

i hope to send the message across

What To Do On a Holiday?

create.

i decided to do something productive on a friday, a holiday.

i remember my sister asked me to make christmas cards to be sold at her store. what, me? mass produce? not quite. i managed to make 22 cards using purely stash. the only things i bought were the envelopes & the protective plastics. i will do some more depending on the demand.

my sister wanted the simple ones, to my advantage :->

for sale here....

and here.
materials used: cs: white, green & red bazzill;
pps: pc slab, chatterbox, mem block 3 & 4, punch studio holiday kit;
ink: tsukineko brilliance black, cb chestnut roan, red & green inkadinkado;
stamps: inkadinkado;
misc: deco art twinkle glitter, ribbons, blings, eyelets;

tools: mm instant setter, coluzzle oval template

so basic, so easy!

7 Random Facts

...and an ABC about me?

i'm playing along with this tag from arnie.

instructions: each player starts with 7 random habits/facts about themselves. people who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. at the end of your blog, you need to choose 7 people to get tagged and list their names. don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog!

7 random facts about me:

1. i'm an OC.

2. i can stand in a place even w/o tv or internet connection. but please, leave me something to read. exception: anything academic.

3. i love grocery-shopping. it's so therapeutic for me.

4. i'm an ambidextrous.

5. i married at 30 y.o. , way, way early my plan to get hitched at 35! it's true, marriage comes like a thief in the night.

6. i earned 2 extremely opposite degrees.

7. i'm more comfortable wearing heels than flats.


A - Age: 36

B - Band Listening To Right Now: none

C - Career: loyal gov't. employee (w/ emphasis on the l)

D - Drink or Smoke: never smoked. used to drink on occasions. now, if cajoled, it has to be bailey's, tequila rose or a semi-sweet red wine

E - Easiest Friends To Talk To: my bestfriend liza p.

G - Gummy Bears or Gummy Worms: gummy bears

H - Have a Boyfriend: husband na

I - In love: hubbyyyyyy!

J - Junk Food You Like: fita w/ spicy tuna sandwich flavor

K - Kids: none

L - Longest Ride Ever: 24 hour drive from manila to samar. i didn't blink an eye or else hubby will drive crazy.

N - Names For Your Future Kids: dannita marialuz & daenna meekaella (oh i wish!)

O - One Wish You Have Now: approval of our immigrant petition (please dear Lord!)

P - Phobias: reptiles

Q - Favorite Quote: "no pain, no gain."

R - Reasons To Smile: family

S - Sleeping Hours: 11pm-6:30am (weekdays), 10pm-5:30am (weekends)

T - Time You Woke Up: 5:30am (it's a weekend today - - - jog, aero & taebo time)

U - Unknown Fact About You: i dont' look it, but i'm so, so easy to please (read: mababaw ang kaligayahan)

V - Vegetable You Hate: none 'coz i love veggies

W - Worst Habit: i buy on first impulse (and ends up being sorry)

X-rays You’ve Had: chest

Y - Yummy Foods: pasta & pizza; veggies

Z - Zodiac Sign: taurus


postcript: allow me to break the instruction to tag 7 others. it seems that everyone has already been tagged. so, whoever gets to read this & haven't been tagged yet, consider yourself tagged.

My First 6x6

part of the make and take in the may 2007 scrapfest was to create 6x6 LOs about oneself to comprise a SHE album.

i never got to try my hand on this until lately, albeit not of me, but of a person so dear to me - - - my super generous aunt.

my initial plan to make 6 LOs which i thought of putting together with a single ring binder, ballooned to 18 LOs in all which i put in a cutie 6x6 pioneer album. i just couldn't get my hands off my stash. yes, i just used a few left-over papers. indeed, in this craft, nothing is scrap.

here are a few:

materials used: cs - bazzill; pp - mem. block 2, mambi, urban lily, american crafts, chatterbox; eyelets - bazzill; brads - colorbok; ink - colorbox; stamps - inkadinkado; rub-ons - lasting impressions scrappy rubs; pen - sakura, ac white ultimate pen; misc - rikrak, vellum, cricut flower

[pardon the glare in the pix; my sister took the photos w/o removing the LOs from the protective sheets :> ]

It's a Bear-y Merry Christmas

....in our 2-man home.

cutie yuletide teddys dominate our tree this time.

a 2006 starbucks bearista sits on top billing.

he's just so cute, isn't he?

For Uncle

hubby and i anticipated the long weekend from the last week of october on to november, so that prior to that, we busied ourselves with our respective backlogs. who would not be, with a b-r-e-a-k waiting for us?

or so we thought.

the night before we flew to home-sweet-home came a shocking news: uncle gerry didn't survive a massive heart attack.

i remember as a toddler, i used to cry on the short but bumpy tacloban-manila plane ride. but on our flight home on oct. 26, i cried because i dreaded to see our once lively uncle, now gone.

my father was to speak in the necrological services in behalf of his 2 sisters. but days before, he didn't assure me that he'd be able to do the task. so i prepared my own eulogy to pitch in for him.

i was glad my father stood up to the podium when his name was called. for sure, that would have what uncle gerry wanted. in ending his eulogy, he said: "this is a joyful day because my brother is already in heaven". oh how brave of him to have said that of his younger brother.

while tatay was speaking, uncle's close-up photo was flashed

in the wide screen. this just breaks my heart.

hereunder is my prepared message. i bet i wouldn't have been able to finish reading it.

---------

good morning.

i am darlene, joseph's daughter, uncle gerry's favorite niece. that's what uncle gerry would say when i am at a hearing distance. i am sure, he also say the same thing to my siblings and cousins whenever uncle gerry is sure that they hear him.

that's our uncle gerry - - - very expressive and never fails to make us laugh.

i learned from my father that even as a young boy, uncle gerry was boisterous; he never runs out of story to tell. and even at times when he'd caught our grandfather's ire for his mischievous ways, he is sure to reason with all the jokes he has mastered. so all of you who know him can now imagine how he was in his youth.

that mischievous boy grew up to be a soft-hearted man and subservient brother. as they say, comedians are always the first ones to cry. that is true of uncle gerry. in a rare gathering among uncle gerry, my father, aunties lina & elen, and our family's tenants in the family farm early this year, uncle gerry in his message, couldn't help but cry when he thanked our family's loyal tenants all these years. that's the other side of uncle gerry that some of you may not have known. uncle knew when and to whom gratitude is due.

uncle is full of surprises. you see, we were scheduled to meet in manila next week where he asked me to have him scheduled for some facial cleaning in the hospital where i work. i never knew that he needed more than that. for the past days, i looked for the answers to the many whys on my mind. of late, i realized, he must have done his share that's why he had to leave us this soon.

i am thankful to have known him. i am grateful for the affection he has shown me and my siblings. sure i will miss his calls to me and my husband, most of the time, just to ask how we are. even while we are geographically far apart, i could feel uncle's concern. there was one time he called, pleading my husband & i to go home quick because he saw on tv that there's a fire in makati. you could just imagine how wide makati is, yet he insisted that we go home. that's uncle. you just have to follow him sometimes.

i will be forever thankful for his thoughtfulness. i have always known october to be a busy month for him, so that when i told him i was getting married in october, i said i'll never take a no for an answer. sure enough, he was at my wedding. i think he missed manning his staff at the civil service exam that month.

for all these uncle, thank you is not enough. i may not have been able to repay you in the best possible way, but rest assured that your memories will not be forgotten. if there's one important lesson from you i wish my siblings and my cousins will learn is this: it's true, tatay and uncle gerry never fought. they were loving siblings in the truest sense that i hope we will all emulate. i think the surest i will miss is hearing you call tatay 'gurang'. and because i hate goodbyes, i'd rather say: uncle gerry, until we meet again. we love you.

My Scrappinmoms Idol Ride - In Brief

i'm alive. i missed blogging, and yes, i haven't scrapped.

after the scrapfest over a month ago, time flew so fast 'coz of the many things i had to do. not even close to 1/8 of what i need to accomplish, i'm giving myself a break.

so i thought of posting the layouts i did for the scrapinmoms idol contest. honestly, i can't, even until now, believe i made it through the 8 rounds, all in all.

elimination round: scraplift your idol - this is the very first time i lifted a layout. oh my, it's so very liberating. i think i'll be doing a lot of scraplifting soon.

tiffany tillman's shonuff was my first choice.

this is my first time to use rouge de garance papers.

i hope i did justice to tiffany's layout.

round 1: stuck on cardstock - whwaaaaaat? cardstock only?

i figured this picture would do well against a plain background.

this is my first time to create flowers out of my cricut.

round 2: what's your color? sounds easy, right? but i actually had a hard time going monochromatic.

orange is not my favorite color.

but i just can't get off my eyes on this picture of my cutie pie niece, bea.
this is my first time to use a template, and yes, experiment on doodling.

round 3: alter it! - i thought we'd just be doing layouts. i was wrong. the scrappinmoms wanted to us to do more than that. at one point i thought i'd back out because....

this is my first time to alter an item.

and i parted with my favorite, soiled towel *sigh*.

good thing, i was relieved to have created a hanging magazine holder.

round 4: what's in a photo - when i read the mechanics that we have to use a photo of an inanimate object that is of significance to us, my only choice was my books. no less.

aside from this is my first time to use a picture of a non-living thing,

i also used fabric for the first time, as mandated by the moms.

round 5: no photos allowed - what the _ _ _ k? ephemera. we had to use ephemera. it seems that the moms were pushing us to the limits. but who am i to complain?

aside from this is my first ephemera layout, i actually cried while doing this, *another sigh*.

round 6: words from the heart - since we were to use at least 3 enlarged photos in a spread layout, i thought of using a simple sketch.

i think this is my first time to pour my heart out as if to say: life's happiness doesn't always depend on all fancy and beautiful. family matters most.

final round: done for 3, short hours on october 6, 2007.

this is my first layout on an acrylic sheet. since i forgot to bring my acrylic block for stamping, i did some stamping w/o it. ouch!

going though my layouts, i realized i have done so many firsts in my scrapping life. i learned so many lessons along the way, the most important of which is never to be afraid.

so, what do i look forward to now? to do more layouts and.....to eagerly await for the future scrapfest where i can enjoy, watch and cheer the top 12 of the 2nd scrappinmoms idol do the final round.

in parting (w/ the idol topic), i'd like to salute the scrappinmoms and give my two thumbs up to the first ever idol, cabbie & the runners-up au & tin - - - truly my idols!

You Make Me Smile!

this tag from diane made me smile.

so i'm giving back a smile to those who left a note on my box, and yes,

made me smile: airees, cabbie & ria.

~0~

(bjay & julie: the moment you 'launch' your blogs,

consider yourselves tagged, ok?)

~0~

oh, i'm also tagging my friend bea 'coz she always makes me smile.

Moving to the Final Round

never in my wild imagination did it ever occur to me that i'd reach the last and final round of scrappinmoms idol contest.

i've never been the adventurous and engaging type, yet i ventured to join on last minute. to have gone through the past seven, gruelling weeks was more than adventure in itself.

the night before deadline day of round 6, i couldn't take a decent picture of my spread layout. hubby had to adjust the droplight above our dining table to provide the correct lighting (as if we know what it is). after several fixing here and there, i submitted my entry.

but lo and behold! while the 14 entries were already uploaded, mine was nowhere. my immediate reaction was that i didn't beat the 1pm deadline (as were the deadlines in the previous rounds). since i'm not good at following instructions, i thought the deadline was moved earlier and i wasn't able to read it. i thought. i thought. i thought.

good thing, april was online and i mustered the courage to ask where my entry could have been. she also didn't notice that my entry wasn't uploaded yet. in a while, she ym'd me that pia was already fixing it (oh, ty dearies!).

that was around past 2pm, thursday, sept. 20.

i got to visit the site again close before midnight. another lo and behold! when i clicked the contestants' gallery, my pathetic ID picture was still there.

my initial reaction? oh, i'm not worthy. my co-contestants from the elimination round of 36 are all amazingly talented, and to have been streamlined to 12 and still keep up, is truly unbelievable. for that, i'm deeply humbled.

in two weeks, i'll be doing LIVE my last hurrah for idol amidst my IDOLS. oh i hope the srappinmoms reserves an ambulance to standby at max's come scrapfest day.

in retrospect, i ask myself: if i can turn back the time, will i join the mom's extra challenge contest? maybe not, considering the self-imposed extreme pressure i went through; or maybe yes, considering the many lessons i learned.....ok, i'm leaning towards the latter because i remembered again TIFFANY TILLMAN's comment on my making it to top 30 after i chose to lift her (blog entry on aug. 21 below). it's truly the best pat on the shoulder an idol can give to a fan. for all these, thank you, thank you srappinmoms!

another retrospect: if i can turn back the time, i'll surely submit a much better ID picture, good enough to last 'til the final round.

~0~

on a lighter note, i've just been to scrapbukan's 3rd anniv. / SE eb at luna gardens - - - in fulfillment of my oath to breath and relax at least before the scrapfest.

true of scrapbukan events, the affair was fun-perfect, what with the shopping goodies, food, games (of which our group didn't win but still worth it), loots & prizes....speaking of which, each one of us get to go home some papers & flower embellies. and i won a raffled brag bag! if she gets to read this: thanks so much for your generosity sahrie!

hmmmm...i'll keep this pretty bag within sight

so that it won't follow the fate of my michael's tote

w/c remained quiet in hiding for 1 year!

One Last Round

in 4 days, the 6th and last of the scrappinmoms idol rounds would have been posted for judging. i can almost hear the clock ticking real fast, and my mind can't figure what my entry will look like.

i didn't even expect that i'll make it to top 15. i guess it pays to follow what my heart dictates. i can't even say i have my style. my output really depends on my mood, the pictures, the papers....oh everything. i can''t even stick to a decent sketch.

of the last 5 rounds (+ elimination round), my ephemera entry hit me hard. writing the journal brought me to tears. it's never easy going back to a sad memory. i'm just overwhelmed now that i moved to the last round.

now, i need all the guts i can muster.

I'm Two!!!

i just found out today that this blog actually turned 2 y.o. on sept. 2. how fast time flies.

oh, here's hubby's look-a-like nephew LA, do the sign. peace everyone!

and please dear blog, bear with me.

Inventory

if there's one thing that a scrapbooker needs to do other than creating masterpieces, and yes, shopping, it would be to learn the art of inventory.

i am guilty of not doing this myself, i mean regularly. the first time i did, i found that, aside from several papers, i haven't used these yet:

my mm setter. why? my hammer comes in handy.

oh, don't get me wrong. this surely do an excellent job.

it's just that i kept it somewhere & totally forgot about it.

so this toy is now within reach so it can do me some action next time.

this cutie-pie tote. but hey, we have the license to collect shoes & bags, right?

~0~

pray God, husband doesn't read this, or else.....

Now on to Round 5

for the past 4 weeks that i've been struggling to survive the scrappinmoms' rounds, i had the hardest time taking a photo of my object for my round 4 layout - - - an inanimate object. my utter lack of luck continued to my taking a photo of the layout itself. there was an instance that i wanted to quit. good thing, a clear mind and guts prevailed because, yes, i moved to round 5.

now, i'm facing another concept so foreign to my mind: ephemera.

meanwhile, i'll have to enjoy the weekend first. not that i'm not enjoying my idol ride. it's just that i can't sleep 'til i have a definite concept in mind. don't ask now if i was able to sleep last night.

Passed Round 3 - - - Wheew!

i thought i'd see the end of the line while i was struggling to alter my favorite towel into a hanging magazine holder for the alter challenge of round 3. i guess, the scrappinmoms should re-name this contest to extra challenge instead!

my co-challengers are a creative bunch. my! i'm just amazed. creativity oozed to the max. i'm so proud to be among them, and honestly, i'm humbled. i feel like, do i really belong to this talented group of ladies?

oh well, after pricked and swollen fingers, my reward was a move to round 4. isn't it amazing? i'll be posting my round 4 entry after this. i can only hope for the best.

i'm pretending to be brave *sigh*.