Camping in the UAE Desert

Winter is here in Dubai! Don’t you just love the weather now? Cold weather means winter, which means Christmas and New Year...Hurray! I just love this season. Everyone (err, almost everyone) is so nice and friendly, and everything is just so…Christmassy ☺

Cold weather also means camping. Well, here in the Middle East, it is. The weather is simply perfect for a night outdoors and underneath the clear skies and stars with friends and family. Which is why, when the weather changed and the temperature went down early this month, we planned an overnight camping with our KFC family.

Seasons Greetings!

Padama sa Padala Giveaway Winners!

Ok, I’m going to make this short and sweet because I know you’re all excited to find out who won.

First of all, to everyone who participated in my first sponsored giveaway (by LBC, no less!), THANK YOU! I’m completely overwhelmed that there were more than 100 entries!

And now, on to the 5 winners who either liked, shared, followed, tweeted, and/or commented…  a Rafflecopter giveaway

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Malen Rubin 

Gail Dizon 

Gemma Emilia 

Ana Cortez 

Jennie Dalangin 

I’ll be sending a message to each of you on how to claim your prize, so keep a watch on your inboxes.

Have a blessed Christmas!

My 2015 Wish List

Just 5 days until Christmas! Time sure is flying fast. Has everyone completed their shopping? Hands up to the procrastinators this year, and let’s high five ☺

Hubby and I were way behind on our preparations (actually, we still are), but fortunately we had some free time yesterday to buy presents for most of the kids we know. Now all we need to do is wrap them. Unfortunately, though, this will probably have to wait until Thursday (the day before Christmas) because that’s the only free time we will have. Yikes!  This happens to us every year, and the following year, we still don’t learn our lesson to shop early. Oh well. We like the feeling of the Christmas rush, I guess ☺

Giveaway: Padama sa Padala

When the Christmas season starts (and for Filipinos, that means as early as September!), OFWs know it’s the time to save and buy all sorts of things to fill the balikbayan boxes. After all, if they can’t go home for the holidays, what better way to make up for their absence than a huge box filled with clothes, shoes, bags, chocolates, and grocery items for their families to enjoy.

The small carton is a symbol of the Filipino expat’s sacrifices…of hard work, adjusting to a different culture, and most especially, living away from their loved ones. Every tiny space of the box is filled with love and longing, so it’s always a joy to know that the recipients are excited and truly appreciate the surprises they find inside.

The Parking Ticket

Last Saturday, we needed to buy something from Warba so Hubby parked the car while I headed to the machine to get a ticket.
I happened to pass by a car, and seeing its ticket, I thought "Sana dumating ang owner at ibigay sa amin ang ticket nya." (I hope the owner arrives soon and he'll give us his ticket)
Just as I was about to press the button on the machine for the ticket to come out, I heard someone call out "Excuse me?" Yes, it was the owner of the same vehicle and he was giving me the ticket!
I could hardly believe my luck!
I kept saying "Thank you" over and over to the kind kabayan. There was more than 30 minutes left so we still had plenty of time to do what we needed to do.
Coincidence or a quick answer from above to a very simple request? I'd like to think it was the latter ☺