dubai miracle garden

When I came across an article in the Gulf News website last Thursday about the new garden in Dubai, I was relieved...because that meant we didn’t have to go all the way to Al Ain anymore just to visit the garden there. Previously, we had planned to go to Al Ain Paradise just for Mama, but now that Dubai has its own version, it saved us the time and gas. So, off we all went to the Dubai Miracle Garden last Saturday. As it said on the map on their website, it’s located at the back of the Dubai Land Offices; we just had to follow the arrows leading to Arjan and the next thing we knew, we saw an arrow pointing to the Garden.

i met the president!

The CEO and President of our company, that is...the big boss from our head office in Japan. It was his first time to visit us, so naturally all of us (from our General Manager to the Office Boy) were excited and anxious to make a good impression.

Knowing that he had a packed schedule (he was only in Dubai for a little over a day), we didn’t think he would have time to go around the office after their meeting. However, my colleagues and I were of course silently hoping we could at least catch a glimpse of him just so that we could say we saw our company President up close. And fortunately, he did! He went around the entire office to greet and shake hands with each one of us! Of course, being employees of a Japanese company, we’ve been taught that it’s important to bow as a sign of respect, and that’s what all of us did.  That's not all though.

i don't hate chinese food anymore

I hate Chinese food! Okay, that sounded too strong. Let's just say I don’t like Chinese food. If you take me to a Chinese restaurant, most probably I’ll just eat siomai, siopao, and/or Peking duck wraps...with occasional bites of noodles. If none of those are available on the menu, I’ll end up forcing myself to eat whatever the rest are eating and not enjoy the meal, which would be a total waste of time and money. So if I can help it, I avoid Chinese restaurants as much as I can.  But last Friday, I couldn't avoid it...which thankfully ended up to be a good thing.

cana weekend

As I mentioned in my previous post, this year’s National Conference took place last Friday.  And like the past NatCons, so many couples attended from all over the UAE. The ballroom of Crowne Plaza Deira was practically packed and overflowing!

You can probably guess from the title of this post that the theme this year was based on the wedding at Cana...nothing special for most, but it just so happened to be the same gospel we chose for our wedding almost 5 years ago!

magnificat weekend

This year's UAE CFC National Conference will take place tomorrow, and once again, Hubby and I will be among the participants.  I had made a post about last year's conference which was published in CFC Middle East's blog, but I would like to share it here as well...it's a longer version, though.  Anyway, I'm sure that all of the registered participants (me included) are looking forward to what the conference will have in store for us tomorrow.

name and religion

After conducting a telephone interview with a candidate whose name was "Islam," I asked my manager "Is he muslim?"  to which my manager just let out a loud snort and couldn't stop laughing...and I realized why.
Ang labo ko talaga!  Di ko man lang naisip na yung asawa ko nga, "Christian" yung pangalan, tapos Kristiyano sya.  Toinks!
Buti na lang tapos nang gawin ng amo ko yung evaluation ko...di na siguro yun maaapektuhan dahil sa blooper ko 'no? =)

i can...sign!

Every month we have an activity in Kids for Christ. This month's theme was Respect: More the Same than Different, and one of the things we did for the Juniors was teach them a song using sign language.  Allow me to share the final outcome of what the kids learned yesterday. 

Big thanks to Ate Che-Che and Ate Gina of SFC for teaching all of us something new!

kilig

Sometimes the simplest things, no matter how cheap or cheesy, can always put a smile on your face...especially if they’re totally unexpected and come from the heart.

saw this on FB shortly after I had my lunch
nakakakilig di ba? =)

Happy Valentine's Day!

my first ever moist chocolate cupcake from scratch

I actually did it! My first attempt at baking cupcakes from scratch and it was a success! Yahooo!!! Since last year (or was it 2 years ago?), when I started using the instant mixes to make cupcakes, muffins and brownies, I promised myself that I would learn how to bake from scratch. And then, as time passed and I found out our friends could bake really nice cakes and even made them for parties, I became even more determined. I don’t plan on competing with them, I just want to be able to bake.

3 on 3

In one day, I got all these!

Last Sunday, the 3rd of February, I received a message in my e-mail saying that I won the “Footprints in Dubai” book. Weeks ago, I had entered a contest of a site that I’m a member of and that was the prize.

Then a few hours later, the Sales Manager handling our account in The Galleria dropped by our office to give me the complimentary dinner voucher.

And in the evening , I won the Dhs25 gift card through Carrefour’s scratch and win contest.

out with the old, in with the new (part 3)

No, we didn’t buy something this time, but we did have to shell out a lot of money (and still have to because the entire process hasn’t been completed yet). After I gave birth last September, Ate Marycel told us that she wasn’t going to renew her contract anymore and she would only be with us until her contract ended. When we asked why, she simply said that her sons and husband were asking her to go back to the Philippines. For that reason, we didn’t ask her to stay simply because family is always the first priority; they need her more than we need her.

it started with the cake

image source

Caila wants to celebrate her 4th birthday at school. The plan was simple: I would bake cupcakes for her classmates, we’ll buy a small cake for the candle-blowing, McDonald’s nuggets for the kids to have something else to eat, flavoured milk or juice for their drinks, and a few stuff for lootbags. All Caila had to do was let us know what theme she wanted. Of course, that was my and Hubby’s plan.

bonding

Life’s simple pleasures of spending time with people who once used to be strangers, but are now very good friends.

Pinoy Mafia Christmas Party

Gutierrez Home

23 December 2012

Family, food, games, prizes, and exchanging gifts