My 40th Birthday and Baby Gender Reveal at Jollibee Burjuman

Ever since I attended a birthday party at Jollibee in the Philippines many (many, many) years ago, I knew I wanted to have one as well. No, not for my future kids (because I was still single then), but for me. I didn’t care if others might think it would be “too childish” or “not appropriate” because I was way past being a child. I wanted to have a birthday at Jollibee. So you can imagine my delight when they opened the franchise here and put up branches that could hold parties.

Staycation at Radisson Blu Hotel, Dubai Deira Creek

Back in February, I received an invitation from Radisson Blu Hotel, Dubai Deira Creek to their Family Fun Day. It was an event to celebrate their newly renovated rooms, and the day was filled with lots of singing, zumba dancing, delicious food, games, and other fun activities with prizes given out. One of them was a muffin decorating contest where kids of all ages showed their artistic skills.  Our girls eagerly joined and to our surprise, the muffins by Sophie and her partner (the two youngest participants) were the ones that caught Chef Uwe Micheel’s eye and were declared the winners. Throughout the event, people were taking pictures and actively sharing them on their social media accounts. Naturally, I joined the bandwagon, and lo and behold, my photo of the kids having fun on the bed was chosen as the Best Instagram Post. That’s 2 winnings in 1 night! Wow!

Caila's 9th Birthday with Lego, Sprinkles, Sports, and Cream

Just like all her past birthdays, Caila had to have a theme when she turned 9 this year. And since she and her little sister had been spending their free time playing with Lego sets that their Oma and Opa gave last year, it was practically a no-brainer that she would choose that to be her theme. The good thing about it was we only had to spend on the giveaways and the family dinner to celebrate because she agreed not to have a party again. Whew! ☺

Happy Emojis for Sophie's 5th Birthday

Ever since we received the news that Sophie was accepted in her big sister’s school, I immediately knew she would celebrate her next birthday there. And after speaking to her teacher during the Parents Orientation to make sure it was ok to have it on the date of her actual birthday, I set to work in planning and preparing.

Mama's 75th Birthday (Part 4): Her Actual Birthday

Before anything else...HAPPY 76TH BIRTHDAY, MAMA! You're the best mother we could have ever asked for and we will always be thankful for the blessing that is you. We love you sobra, too much, super, to the max!

This post is already long overdue (one year, to be exact), so I had to blog about it today...otherwise I'd never hear the end of it from my family. So, here goes...

Caila's Trolls Themed 8th Birthday

Since my sister treated Caila (and the rest of us) to a luxurious weekend stay at the InterContinental Dubai Marina as a gift for her 8th birthday, I knew I couldn't top that... material-wise, at least.  Thankfully, my eldest daughter had already told me how she wanted to spend her actual birthday and it didn't include a big party so we didn't have to dig too deep into our pockets this time. Whew! 

However, it did include giving away goody bags to her close friends and classmates at school.  It would have been an easy task (just buy treats and put them in bags, right?), but since she was so used to having a theme every year for her birthday, she insisted that there be a theme as well this year...yes, even though it would just be for the lootbags. This time it was Trolls. 

A PJ Masks Birthday Party at Popeye's, Karama

We had originally planned for Sophie to have her 4th birthday at school. A simple one with a cake, cupcakes, and lootbags like her sister…nothing too fancy, just something to celebrate her special day. But because of the school’s rules, we opted to give her a party elsewhere instead.

And since it was almost last minute when we had to change our plans, naturally, all the popular fast food restaurants that had party halls were already booked for the date we were eyeing. It’s a good thing when I called Popeye’s in Karama, they were available on the date and time we wanted, so Hubby and I rushed over after work and paid Dhs200 as deposit to book them.

A My Little Pony Party at Chuck E. Cheese's

Right after she had turned 6 years old, Caila was already looking forward to her 7th birthday. She must have enjoyed her Play-doh themed birthday so much, she couldn’t wait to start planning for her next party. Which is why, as early as May last year, our eldest daughter told me that she wanted a My Little Pony themed birthday party when she turned 7. Yes, that was just 3 months after she turned 6! Talk about excited! ☺  Of course we didn’t start preparing for the party that soon, though. That would have been too early!

After scouting around for fast food restaurants that had party halls, we attended a birthday at Chuck E. Cheese’s, Oud Metha…and as soon as the party was over, Caila told us that that’s where she wanted to celebrate her next birthday. I admit it is a great place. It has a wide variety of machines that kids and kids-at-heart can enjoy; and the best thing is, you only need 1 coin per game! However, I was hesitant to have the party there; mainly because the packages were just too expensive! Hubby and I tried to look for other options, but in the end, we gave in. After all, it was her 7th birthday...a special age to be celebrated (at least, that’s what almost everyone we know tells us)…so we blindly booked the hall in January and started preparations.

Letter to Sophie for Her 3rd Birthday

Dear Sophie,

I know this is a bit late, but I couldn’t let any more time pass to share what happened on your birthday this year.

First off though, (belated) Happy Birthday! You’re 3 already! Wow! At this age, you’re already showing signs of becoming a future entertainer by singing, dancing, and talking non-stop. You also like to dress up, pose and ask me to take your picture. Your cute and funny ways are definitely one of the reasons why we find you adorable.

You’re growing independently so fast, anak. Most of the time, you want to do things by yourself: get food, eat, wear clothes, putting the seatbelt on, clean up any mess you made, and so many other things. It makes us so proud! Since you came out into this world, you made our lives more fun, entertaining, and crazy (in a good way); and we’re just so thankful at how wonderful our days are with you around.

A Play-Doh Themed Birthday Party

When we asked our eldest daughter if she wanted to celebrate her birthday at school again this year, Caila said “no.” What she wanted was a party at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, and to invite all her classmates from school and friends from the KFC community.

Day 1: 23 March - My Birthday

Mama woke me up at around 4am to greet and remind me that at that same time 35 years ago, I came out into the world screaming my lungs out. She never fails to call me around this time every year. She told me she had prepared several of my favorite viands and invited her siblings, my brother and his family, and my cousins over at our house (in the Philippines) for my birthday. Nakakatuwa because even though we’re far apart, she made an effort to celebrate my birthday.

I always want to go to mass on my special day, but because of the timings and/or lack of time, there are years when I don’t get to do this. Fortunately, because I’m allowed to leave work 1 hour earlier than my colleagues, I was able to arrive at St. Mary’s Church for the 4:30pm mass and give thanks to God for another year.

That night, I celebrated with dinner at Andiamo, Grand Hyatt with my family (Hubby, our two daughters, my sister, my nephew, and Yaya Jovy).

It was our first time to dine there and we enjoyed the delicious food and fresh air outside.

grilled chicken breast

lasagna

mozzarella beef pizza

pizza andiamo

spaghetti ala carbonara

 Sophie was her usual bibbo self, drawing lots of attention from the servers who found her adorable.

After eating, Caila and Sophie saw a duck wandering around the lawn and they would either chase it, or it would chase them. We couldn’t help but laugh at their excited shrieks and giggles. The rainforest-themed landscape in the hotel lobby was a great place for us to take a stroll, enjoy the greenery, watch the fish swim, and take pictures to capture that day.

turning 5 with a hi-5 celebration

Although the celebration wasn’t until 3 days after her actual birthday, I couldn’t let her special day pass without doing something for our eldest daughter. So on the morning of the 27th of February, we made a number 5 pancake, prepared a banner, and stuck it on the wall.

And thanks to my co-n@wies for the reminder, I sent all the information needed to E-Junior more than a month earlier, and on her special day, Caila had a nice surprise when she saw this on our television screen:

She was so, so happy! Unfortunately, I didn’t get to take a picture or video of her face when she saw the greeting, but I could see it really made her day. Even until now, she likes to look at that greeting on Tisay, and show it off to our friends.

That night, our family celebrated with dinner at Texas Roadhouse, along with my sister and Gabe. However, when the servers came to sing her Happy Birthday, Caila just wouldn’t cooperate…because her birthday party is on Sunday pa. She didn’t want her picture taken either. Haaaay! Kids! Go figure!

Sunday finally arrived on the 2nd of March and this was the day that she was looking forward to. As expected, I had been the busy one preparing for that day. Since there are absolutely no Hi-5 themed stuff anywhere in Dubai, I had to make-do with whatever I could find (again…for the second year in a row).

I designed and printed the toppers for the cupcakes almost a month in advance, and whenever I had the free time, I would cut them out and stick them on toothpicks.

Hi-5 cupcake toppers

I had also downloaded song videos of Hi-5 episodes from Youtube, and burned these on CDs for each of the kids’ goodybags. Except for the candies and jellies which we bought the day before, the non-edible stuff and paper goodybags were bought a week earlier from Party Centre, Day to Day, and Daiso.

As for the cupcakes, I made them as soon as we finished having dinner on Saturday night. The little girl wanted vanilla Oreo cupcakes for her classmates, and since it was her birthday after all, that’s what I baked…with cookies and cream frosting…all from scratch. Whew!



one of the extra cupcakes for our consumption

The only thing that I didn’t prepare was the cake. I left that to the expert. When I showed Caila pictures of several Hi-5 cakes that I got from the internet, she sat down with me and explained what she wanted her cake to look like.  After sending the draft and exchanging several messages on Facebook, Tita Rina made the perfect cake for our girl


vanilla flavoured with chocolate ganache filling
all-edible...even JupJup and the Hi-5 logo!

That morning, our little girl wore one of her pink dresses. She told us that whenever her classmates would celebrate their birthdays at school, they were allowed to wear something else instead of their usual uniforms. So that’s what she did. She rode on the bus, excitedly looking forward to her celebration later.

By 9:30am, all of us (Hubby, me, Sophie, and Jovy) headed to the school, and at 9:55am, we were setting up everything in front of the kids in the classroom. It just so happened that almost all of them liked Hi-5, plus the program had just returned on E-Junior a few days ago, so they really appreciated the cake and cupcakes.

the celebrant with her Hi-5 cupcakes and cake

As they began singing Happy Birthday, Caila started cutting the cake. She just put the knife in the cake, then cut, then stuck the knife again in the cake and cut again, over and over. She didn’t or couldn’t wait! Excited lang masyado. After the kids stopped singing, that’s when she stopped cutting to blow the candles.

Right after that, the kids were asked to sit down at their tables while I helped Caila as she handed out the cupcakes to each of them. I’m happy to say the cupcakes were devoured in minutes! The kids and teachers found them really yummy. Hurray!

The entire celebration was over so fast, and before we knew it, it was time for us to pack and leave. We left the goodybags by the door for Caila to give out before they all left later.

family pic

A small celebration, but one that put a big smile on our 5 year old’s face.  All the effort was worth it.

as my eldest daughter turns 5

Dear Caila,

You’re already 5 years old!

I can’t believe that 5 years have passed since I set my eyes on you for the first time. The years have been going by so fast; it’s as if the days are passing like a blur.

Still, I’m thankful that I’m always there to witness your milestones and accomplishments. From the time you were able to roll over from your stomach to your back and vice versa, your first babbles and words, your first steps alone, saying goodbye to diapers, becoming a school girl, performing confidently on-stage, taking on simple responsibilities of being a big sister, helping us with some household chores, learning to read and write, helping me bake, and so many more!

At this stage, you can strongly express what you like and what you don’t. A few months ago when we were talking about your birthday, we sat down and you described to me (with the help of pictures from the internet) how you wanted your cake to look. You incorporated all sorts of designs from several different cakes, making me illustrate on my Note so that the person who would be making your cake would have a clear picture on the outcome you wanted. Fingers crossed that it’ll be perfect when we get it on Saturday.

I know you wanted to celebrate your birthday at school today; but because of the KHDA inspection, it had to be moved to Sunday instead. Don’t worry. This means that you’ll be able to celebrate your birthday longer!

At home we have a calendar that has a box that we can move to mark whatever the date is. And since Sunday, you been looking at it constantly, pointing out to whoever is at home that “There’s 4 days left” until your birthday, and “Only 3 days to go,” then “2 days na lang,” followed by “1 more day,” and finally “It’s my birthday tomorrow! Yay! Yay! Yay!” This morning, you didn’t remind us. You didn’t need to because from the time I woke you up, we were all either singing or greeting you “Happy Birthday.”

Aside from counting down using the calendar, you are learning to follow time. When we tell you it’s time to go to bed when the long hand is at 6 and the short hand is between 8 and 9, you obediently turn off the TV, put away any toys or pillows that are scattered around, and go to our room to sleep. In the mornings when you have school, you know it’s time to go down and wait for your bus when the long hand is at 9. And when Yaya delays in accompanying you out the door and down to the lobby, you become impatient because you feel that you’re late and the bus might leave you.

On top of these accomplishments, you are a very caring and protective Ate to Sophie. On several occasions, I have seen you approach her out of the blue and give her a hug or kiss…for no reason at all. When Sophie approaches you while you’re eating, you automatically feed her with your spoon. When you receive something from someone, if there’s more than 1 of the same item (like biscuits or stickers), you give one to your sister right away.

If you remember, late last month we took Sophie to the doctor and it just so happened you were having your afternoon nap when we left. When you woke up, you looked for Sophie in all the rooms and asked Yaya where she was. Yaya pretended that she didn’t know. After some time, you sent us a voice message telling us in a sad, desperate, and “naiiyak” voice that your sister was missing because you didn’t know where she was even though you looked for her everywhere.

And early this month, Sophie and I had to stay in the hospital for a few days because she was sick. Daddy brought you once to visit, and when it was time to go, you cried because you said you didn’t want to leave your sister and you felt sorry for her. You were crying all the way back home, and it took a long while before you finally stopped.

These instances are enough to show how much you love Sophie, and we couldn’t have asked for a better daughter to be a big sister than you. Your being caring doesn’t stop there. Whenever Daddy and I have to go out and leave the rest of you at home, you don’t cry anymore or beg to come with us. Instead, you tell us “Take care,” or “Ingat,” or “Be careful, ok?” At times when we call, you tell us “Come back home soon, because I miss you.” And when we arrive home, you ask us “Are you so very, very tired?” which is sometimes followed with a “You want me to massage you?” Such words are so sweet to hear, and we’re very thankful that we hear them from you often.

Anak, you are growing up to be such a sweet, intelligent girl who is learning so fast in having her own identity. And for this, I am just so in awe at the person you are becoming.

Daddy and I have so many plans and dreams for you, but of course we want you to make your own plans and dreams. Just know that whatever they may be, we will always support you every step of the way. Because we love you, and we always will...to the moon and back.

Happy birthday, Caila.

I love you sobra, too much, super, to the max!

sophie's rainbow birthday party (the actual party)

In an earlier post, I shared the things we did to make the party fit the theme. However, I wasn’t able to share how the party went. So, here goes…

Since ours was the first event of the day at Chowking, we had enough time to check the set-up and arrange the cakes and cupcakes. Guests began arriving at 10:15am, and by 11:30am, the Chowking host started the program. Sophie’s Ninong Eugz said the opening prayer, everyone sang Happy Birthday, and the games began immediately after.

For the first game, all the kids were each asked to say Happy Birthday Sophieeeeeeee for the longest time possible.

The next game was a team relay, again for the young kids, wherein they had to balance a small object on a spoon in their mouths.

What followed next was a trivia game where 2 teams (men vs. women) had to answer the most questions correctly. The questions were mostly about Sophie and our family; it was fun to know who really knew us and the birthday celebrant. Naturally, since all players were adults, the game was a riot. Puro asaran at kulitan.

with the winners

While waiting for the food buffet to be set-up, the walang kamatayang Bring Me game was played. However, I made sure the items that we asked for were not that common: an insurance card with dental coverage, key-ring with the most keys, mobile phone with the oldest sms, any object that started with the letter S, etc.

Finally, it was time for lunch and Mike Y., another of Sophie’s godfathers, lead the thanksgiving prayer.

During this time, Sophie had fallen asleep, so it was a good time for Hubby and me to eat and mingle with the guests.

When we noticed that most of the guests had had their fill, the host called for another game. This time the kids had to fix up their moms’ hair, and the mom who had the best-looking do (judged by the rest of the guests’ applause) was the winner.

After that game, everyone’s attention was on the birthday celebrant as we all sang Happy Birthday again, helped Sophie blow the candles, say a few words and wishes, and cut the cake.

all of us blowing the candle...except the birthday girl herself

Mama sharing her wishes for Sophie...and the little girl listening closely

Sophie may not be able to remember that day, but as they say, the first birthday is usually for the parents…and I definitely had a good time that day.

sophie's rainbow birthday party (details)

When I decided that Sophie would be having a rainbow-themed party for her first birthday, all I knew was that it would have be colourful, and this could easily be solved by balloons and decorations. As I browsed the internet, I was amazed at all the unique ideas I found to incorporate the actual rainbow theme (and not just colors). And so here are the things I did to make the party over the rainbow…

Her birthday this year fell on a Friday, and since it’s a weekend, I told Hubby that we needed to book the venue months in advance. With the number of friends we would be inviting, Chowking in Al Ghurair was the only choice we had. Their affordable packages (which already included the decorations, host, a few games and prizes) and the big hall sealed the deal for us. The variety of food in their selection were safe picks as well; at least we wouldn’t have to worry if any of our guests wouldn’t be able to stomach the food.

To make sure that the food buffet had a touch of the theme, I prepared the labels myself.  You can see a glimpse of one of the labels in the photo below.

For the cake and cupcakes, I already knew what I wanted them to look like; the only problem was who could actually do them. I sent pictures of the model cake and cupcakes to many cake-makers, but Tita Rina was the only one who assured me that she could actually do the challenging design. All communications were exchanged through messages on Facebook, and on the morning of the party, Hubby and Gabe went to her home to pick up our order, along with the cake stand Tita Rina lent us. The cupcakes looked exactly what I had in mind, but the cake really surpassed my expectations.

The layers were very thick and each color vibrant. A simple design, but perfectly unique just the same. I didn’t have to worry about the taste because they were all so delicious and moist. The layers of the rainbow cake were vanilla-flavored, and the cupcakes were either chocolate or red velvet. The added bonus was the price was very, very reasonable.

Instead of an ordinary guest-book or asking the guests to write messages or wishes on pieces of paper (which majority rarely do, based from experience), we asked them to make their mark on Sophie’s special day by putting their fingerprint on a framed A3 paper with their names. The simple white frame was bought from Ikea, and I got a pack of assorted colored stamp pads from Tchibo.

I’ve been to several events where PartyRock provided the photobooth, and although they’re generally ok, I wasn’t completely satisfied with their backdrops (the background paper where the celebrant’s pictures or event details are printed). So when I booked them for the party, I told them that I would print the backdrops myself. I have to say though, that their understanding and patience was excellent. I was only able to send them Sophie’s photos less than a week before the event. They sent me the sample layout for the photobooth prints a few days later, but it wasn’t until Thursday morning (the day before the party) that I was able to find time to look at it and give my comments. Several messages were exchanged with all sorts of changes I wanted done, until finally I received a layout that I was happy with. And when I apologized for my “kaartehan,” the reply I got was “It’s your right.” Oo nga naman.

PartyRock also supplied our candy buffet. Their original package included the chocolate fountain and 7 varieties of candies and jellies, but they agreed when I asked them to replace the chocolate fountain with 3 more candies. And although the buffet was colourful and pretty by itself, I couldn’t help but add a Candy Buffet poem from a co-n@wie and the internet.

I looked practically everywhere in Dubai for a colourful dress for the birthday girl, but I didn’t find anything that I liked. Then I realized that since everything else would be all sorts of colors, Sophie should stand out…in white. It was at a small stall in Dubai Festival City (sorry, I forgot the name) where I found the perfect white dress that had a pink belt and linings to match her pink shoes and white socks that we bought from Mothercare.

Finally, our attire.  Of course our family needed to be color-coordinated too, but again, it was practically impossible to find nice, decent clothes to fit the rainbow theme. It was only when I realized that if we included the rest of our family (Mama, Ate Ning and Gabe), we could still fit the theme if each of us wore a different colour of the rainbow.

rainbow family

And those are the small things we did to make Sophie's first birthday as colorful and rainbowy as possible.