Welcome, 2015!

Happy New Year! | Manigong Bagong Taon! | Feliz Año Nuevo!

The year 2015 has finally come and we are all excited what this Year of the Green Sheep has in store for us.  But first, let us review our lives in 2014 and be thankful for all the blessings and things that happened to us and our loved ones. Not all may have been good and happy, but still take them and learn from those experiences. 

Let's count our blessings! Some people may think they did not get any but all of us did. Try to recall those times that made you happy. And I meant not just when you got a gift from someone.  Think about those really simple things and instances when you were very tired from school or work, and someone offered you a seat while on the train or bus; or when a friendly stranger said hello or smiled at you one gloomy morning, or when someone in the work/school/home gave compliments on your job/art work /cooking skills. The gift of family and friends around you are enough blessings too, aren't they? 

And it should not just you getting the blessings, but you being the blessing to others! I think that's an even greater achievement, don't you think? When you have helped someone to do his/her homework, or when you volunteered your help in an organization that caters to older people, or sick children, or building houses for the poor, or when you helped an elderly cross the street or walk up the stairs.

Maybe you'd think I'm being idealistic about life, or that I can easily be happy with these "blessings" because I already have all the things I wanted in my life now. But no, I still dream of doing and achieving a lot of things. I believe that dreams or aspirations are the ones that boost us to strive hard and to do better. Without dreams, a person will be content with what he/she has even though he/she can still do and BE more!

I, too, sometimes think my life (as a stay-home mom) is not that happy or exciting because I miss working and going out with friends. But then, I think of other moms - working moms- who'd like to be in my position -- taking care of their baby/ies, cooking for the family, and just having more time for and with the family.  It is just a matter of looking at things in another perspective that we realize our blessings and the things that would make us really happy.

We should likewise try harder to be a better person! One cannot give so much to other people if he/she is not well, capable and healthy.  So, for a better me, I chose to jot down resolutions that I must do or achieve this year to improve my health & stamina, my mind, my cooking, crafting, and social skills, and just be a better wife, mom, and woman! I hope that by the end of this year, I have attained or done most of the things I wrote down. Crossing my fingers to that~

Let's all claim 2015 as our year and welcome it with positivity, happiness, and lots of love!

xox,

RDD

Pepero Day 2014

Late post about Pepero Day~

So it's that day again.. when koreans buy chocolates and sweets for their loved ones. It's Pepero Day!

When i was in Seoul in 2010, I only saw a few flavors of Pepero chocolate sticks like the plain, peanut, and almond (my favorite!) but now (2014), they have grown to 8 varieties (or more?) such as white chocolate, tiramisu cheese, strawberry, melon, and double chocolate to name a few. I saw them at Lotte Super two weeks ago and took the picture below. 

I was able to try the tiramisu cheese flavor on Pepero Day, and it was good!

Have you tried any of the new flavors lately?

the "chef" in me

When I was still living with my parents, I knew that I love to cook.  But somehow I didn't really cooked a "real" meal back then. When I say "real" here, it means not just those fried egg, fish, etc.  But Filipino viands like adobo, kare-kare and sinigang.

So imagine my surprise and sheer happiness when my cooking gets a thumbs up not just from my husband (mind you!), but also from other relatives and friends.  Although I'm still in the hit-or-miss stage (I haven't really memorized the menus by heart), and still turn to internet for cooking demos and ingredients, I'm going there, and hopefully soon, I can bake too! It's just interesting to know that I still have this inner skill/talent in the culinary arts which I only thought of doing during my younger years.

I've thought of sharing this unexpected, joyous moment with you, especially to those people who have given up or out off on interests/activities that they enjoyed doing.  Don't give up easily, and as cliche-ic as it may sound: Try and try until you succeed!

Here are photos of some of my favorite Filipino dishes (pork adobo, chicken tinola, and pancit) that I've done when we were still staying in NYC, and pregnant at that time with baby LE :)

I regret though that I was not able to cook Guatemalan food while in my husband's house in Guatemala when I can easily take a peek at the cookbook (see photo below) given to me by my BFF there, Anel.  As for our next destination (hubby's next work post), I'll try to do Korean dishes which we are both used to since we stayed in Seoul for a little over a year for our MA degrees.  Another post will be dedicated on that topic, as well as how we've met there! I also have a cookbook on Korean dishes (as pictured below; that's written both in Korean and Filipino) so that'd be of great help to me. I'll update you on my K dishes later :)

¡besitos!

RDD

Spanish 101

¡Hola! Que tal?
Hello! How are you?

I've been trying so hard to learn and re-learn the Spanish language. Re-learning because I've started the basic course in early 2013 in NYC, and then gone through it again in August 2013 in Guatemala -- but just for a week since I had a health scare when I was Antigua during my 7th month pregnancy. I dunno if it's the "mommy brain" that keeps me from not improving my lingo skills, or it's just me lacking the initiative (and the time) to hone it. And I really thought I had a knack for foreign languages. Ugh!

I've learned the Korean language or Hangeul 한글 when I was working for a Korean gov't agency in Manila, and when I went to Seoul to have my master's degree, btw. 

Maybe this TEDx talk can help me realize what I've been doing wrong in learning a new language(?). Check out this link from Benny of the famed Fluent in 3 months blog and book: http://fi3mplus.com/tedx/

So what do you think about Benny's strategy of speaking from day 1?

Hope it helps all of us who are struggling to learn a foreign lingo. Best of luck to us! 

Go for it! 화이팅! ¡Animo! ^^

¡Besitos!

RDD