Any idea how much it cost us Marcus’ enrollment, school supplies, books and uniform? It was in whopping 6-digit! That’s how much Gary and I value education. We are willing to give the best that we can and even sacrifice some just to be able to enroll our children in a good school. One thing that frightens me though is the thought that my children will think that we are rich when in fact we’re not. This fear heightened when I attended the New Parents’ Orientation. I was with parents who were either foreigners or coming from a well-off family. I was not insecured, but my son could be with these wealthy children around. How will I explain to my son that he’s already lucky being given the chance to be enrolled in that school and living the life as these people do is another story. If these parents can give their children P500 or more daily as allowance, we can’t and we won’t. How can we convince Marcus to get the most of what that school provides in terms of learning when all he could possibly see and hear is that his classmates, even buddies, are fetched by expensive SUVs, provided with up-to-date toys and gadgets, lives in Forbes or Dasma and travels to different countries every vacation. I can’t help but ask, have we really made the right decision? Well, I am hopeful. With me and Gary around to monitor our son’s every move, I think we’ll be able to guide him and instill the values that we would want to impart. Besides, once in a while we give our children what they want and let them experience good things in life just as long as they are responsible enough to do the things expected from them. Above all, we continuously seek God’s help in all our decisions and in everything that we do. So for new parents out there… start saving now!

The last time I heard about it in the news, the approximate winning amount for lotto is P180 million and though I don’t buy lotto tickets, it just occurred to me what would it be like winning the jackpot. My son would always ask me what I plan to do just in case I won millions of pesos and without giving it much thought I would always give him this answer, “I’ll buy whatever I want.” He would then ask me with a wide grin, “Aren’t you going to give me some?” I can imagine my son day dreaming about the toys, books, psp games and a lot more that he plans to buy just in case his mom won millions. And that gave me an idea of making my own wish list just in case I won the P180 million jackpot price.

Here’s my list:

1. I’ll buy my parents a condominium unit - P5M

2. We’ll build our dream house in Pangasinan where we already bought a land - P10M

3. We’ll settle the remaining payments that has to be made in our condo - P2M

4. I’ll buy Gary his dream car (The Hummer) - P5M (I really don’t have any idea how much it costs but maybe P5M is enough… hehe)

5. Hello Dra. Belo (hahha!) - P1M (This is not a one-time visit though…)

6. I’ll buy myself an SUV - P2M

7. Budget for Around the World Travel - P10M (Do you think this is enough?)

8. Shopping, shopping, shopping - P5M

- watch out LV and RL stores for my bags!
- I’ll buy a new celphone (haha… babaw)
- I’ll let my kids get all their dream toys
- more watch for Gary
- La Coste and RL Shirts in all colors… haha!
- Books!
- Laptop each for my kids
etc. etc.

9. Charity (For Children who are sick especially of Cancer) - P5M

10. A million each for my parents, siblings and In-laws - P10M

11. I’ll buy our ancestral home in Cagayan de Oro (they are selling it now) - P5M (Is it?)

This is getting more and more exciting…

12. I’ll deposit P10M each for my children’s savings account - P30M

13. I’ll buy a parlor and fast food franchise - P10M

14. We’ll get a town house in Mahogany Place in Taguig - P10M (including home furniture and interior design)

15. Another Church Wedding - P1M

16. Balato - hmmm… bahala na magkano. (haha!) But for sure my yayas will get their share.

The rest will still be on investments and savings. Huh! I just realized it’s tiring to be too rich, but I am not complaining.

Last year I celebrated my 30th birthday and it was really worth celebrating because of milestones I have set for myself and successfully achieved, not to mention the blessings that God has showered us with - big and small alike. And now, celebrating my 31st birthday, I would just want to make a list of all the major things that happened to me while being 30.

1. I left International Container Terminal Services Inc. (the last company I was in) to become a full time mother and wife.
2. Few weeks after I resigned I learned that I was pregnant. (And six months after, I learned that we are having a girl this time)
3. While being jobless and pregnant, I was reviewing for CISA (Certified Information Systems Audit) Certification. I finished the review but I postponed the exam.
4. I started getting busy blogging for money… and inviting friends to write reviews as well.
5. I finally learned how to drive.
6. We paid all our credit card dues and other liabilities in full, except for our condo which we still have to pay for monthly.
7. We bought a land in Pangasinan where we could build our dream house in the future.

Looking back, it was indeed not a boring year for me. Being jobless and all, I realized that I - together with God and my family - still had a fruitful year. It is really true that dreaming together as a couple could make wonders. It did work for us and I thank my husband for being a great dreamer dragging me where we are right now and where we will be in the future… heheh.

Let me do a restaurant review this time.

Last week my family and I decided to have dinner at Serendra since we haven’t tried eating there as a family. Well, I have tried Conti’s, Duo and Mary Grace already so I was hoping none of those will be my husband’s choice. I was somewhat hoping we could try Polu Kai Grill but I was actually open to any of his suggestions. Luckily, it was also his choice, without me saying anything or giving out clues. Hehe…

So we ordered the following:
(1) Seafood bucket which includes lobster tails, fish fillets and fried calamari served with tartar sauce.
(2) Giant Squid Steak
(3) Aloha Rib and Chicken, and
(4) Hawaiian Keiki Pizza for Zach

I don’t know if it’s pure luck or this restaurant just serves all good food because I have to say I loved everything we ordered. The squid were soft and easy to chew, while the ribs were juicy and very tasty. The chicken though was not as fabulous as the rest but still good, so maybe you can order just the ribs instead. The iced tea tastes good and not the usual Nestea flavored served in other restaurants. The place is not intimidating and is really good for bonding with family and friends. I must say I would want to go back to this restaurant and try the other food on their menu. I suggest you do the same.