{Baking} Only The Best

Hey folks! Been doing some baking lately as a promise (which I fervently hope I can keep) to my kids. Since they are chocoholics I embarked on finding the perfect, very easy to follow, no messy kitchen recipe that would yield moist & chewy chocolate chip cookies. After searching and trying out several recipes from the Food Network, I finally found one and it surely didn't come from any of their recipes. It's my friend's which she developed on her own. It's a total winner with my kiddos. My proof? I baked 2 dozen cookies on a Friday afternoon. By Sunday morning, the last cookie was devoured and requests for more was all I heard the following week.

Today, I finally baked some more.

And since it's a keeper I had to add it to my "Most Requested Recipes" (MRR) album which contains all the recipes of the favorite dishes/food of my family. I will share it with you another time for it deserves a separate post.

Here are some of the elements in "Maan's Yummy Chocochip Cookies" recipe card..

01.14.11 | Enduring Friendships

Last Friday, hubby and I attended the annual post-Christmas & post-New Year dinner party of his college girlfriends. Now, before your minds start wondering...they are a bunch of loud, naughty, funny & loving women whom he's been friends with for a number of years. They aptly call themselves "The Malditz", a shortened form of the word maldita which means wicked.

Of all the photos taken that evening, this to me sums up the kind of relationship they have and what they are all about...friendship, family, love, support, fun & acceptance.

There is strength & unity in diversity.

Note: The charm bracelets are from Une Belle. Thank you for your beautiful Christmas gifts, Lavinia.

{Take Cover}

Oh wow! I know, I know! It's been sooooo long since I've written anything in my blogaroo. Believe me. I've missed all of you as well. But you see, something happened with my laptop that I thought it will be immune to since I'm the only one who uses it.

Yep! You guessed right. VIRUS!!!

How did it happen? Well, my daughter borrowed my USB for school and silly me didn't think of scanning it for any infections first. BOOM! In a blink of an eye all my files were corrupted. Just imagine my reaction when I was told that my laptop had to be reformatted...tears*tears*tears. Why? Because very very silly me never ever took the time to make any back up files (and to think I even mentioned in my last post that hubby bought an external memory just for this purpose). Hayayay!

Here are the two lessons I learned in the 2nd week of the first month of the new year:

1. Be diligent in backing up files (i.e. letters, documents, photos , et al.) no matter how tedious it may seem.
2. Take proper precautions. No one is immune to viruses...computer and people alike.

I hope this never happens to any of you. Not only is it costly, but it can really try your patience as well.

Looking Forward

How's everybody doing? Ready for 2011? Can't believe a new decade is about to unfold. How exciting is that? Well, I am most definitely ready for all the things to come -- good & bad -- because I come equipped with my new Canon Selphy CP800. It's hubby's Christmas gift.


Isn't he something?! Well, even without the Selphy he is just amazing, I tell ya.

Now, along with my handy dandy and very user friendly Canon IXY Digital 820 IS, I will be able to document my 2011 more efficiently.

You see, ever since we entered the digital world I've developed this bad habit of taking lots (tons is more like it since I had to get an external memory to store them in) of pictures, uploading them in my laptop, maybe sharing some to family and friends via Facebook, but never have any of them printed. Of course I always mean to, but I suppose procastination in this matter is also another bad habit of mine...hahaha.

So, expect more scrapbooking shares from me this coming year which by the way is how I got into card making in the first place. I do hope I can inspire you to sort and organize your photos and chronicle your life's journey as well.

Happy New Year everyone! Be happy because life is good!!!

'Tis The Season

A very good morning to everyone! Woke up at 4 am today to attend the final Misa de Gallo in our village. Feels really good to have completed the 9 consecutive dawn masses, a Novena to Mama Mary, the mother of our Savior. Now, I am most definitely ready for Christmas.

So, before it gets crazy busy in our home I would like to wish all of you, my blog friends, a very Merry Christmas. Thank you also for your comments and suggestions. I enjoy reading them. Knowing that my creations are appreciated by many all over the world really makes me happy. You guys are just awesome!


Here's my last Christmas offering for the year 2010. I made them especially for my friends. I sprayed some shimmer mist in the cardstock to make them more elegant and Christmassy. Too bad the photo didn't capture their twinkle and glimmer. Sigh!


My inspiration for this piece was the gift I received from a friend. She gave me some moist and chewy Food for the Gods that were bundled up in red Japanese paper and gold mesh then tied up with raffia, paper & organza riboons. It was so pretty that I was tempted not to open it. Hahahaha!!!


Well, that's all for now. Enjoy your time with your families and friends. Life is good!

Merry Bundles

Hey blog peeps! A couple more sleeps and Christmas will be here. That means it's crunch time for all you folks who are not yet done with your Christmas shopping. And I say "Good luck!" because it's a jungle out there nowadays.

Yup! Yup! Traffic is at its worse. Finding good parking is a bummer. Check out counters are a constant neverending lines. Sorry for sounding like a sourpuss. Am just keeping it real.

My point is that in the midst of all this holiday madness try not to lose your cool. It's so easy to snap at the saleslady who is totally ignorant of the products she's selling or curse the hell out at the imbecile guy who took your parking space. I've done both and believe me it doesn't help and is soooo not worth it It'll just ruin your day. So, just take a deep breath, smile and walk away.

Now, here's something merry to smile about.


It's Dasher on centerstage.


I got the idea for this project from Melissa Phillips. Visit her blog and be inspired as well.


Look at all the pretty Christmas bundles I made. All the Christmas paper scraps from previous projects were put to good use. Gotta love that!

Neanderthal No More

Men are often depicted as untidy, unorganized and unappreciative of the finer things in life. However, many of you will agree with me that most of the male population nowadays do not subscribe to this kind of living any longer. On the contrary, they have become as vain as the women. Just look at all the ads on the telly on all sorts of skin and body products that are specifically designed for them. Mind boggling indeed!

I figured this change in their self image should transcend in their work life. Hence, I came up with a notepad with stripes and argyle design.


It is very useful and yet attractively masculine enough to be seen atop any man's desk.


A nice and practical gift for the men in your life for any occasion.