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The Second Man Who Became Part of Our Family

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    My eldest daughter, Charmaine just got married, the last of my kids to do so. And her husband, Michael Magsaysay, became the second man to become part of our family. ChaMike, as they are popularly known, became a couple months ahead of Georgina and Erich. But it took them several years to finally tie the knot. I find Mike to be a very charming man, pleasant, polite, attractive, affectionate. I thank God for giving this man to my daughter.      Like Erich, he talked to us first before he proposed to Cham. He called me up to say he's going to pick us up and have dinner somewhere. It was in Lola Cafe where he asked our permission, no not actually asked but told us that he will be proposing in Australia. Mixed feelings again, happy for my daughter and afraid, or rather sad, thinking that the time has come that it will be the two of us, Tommy and me, again in this world.  Taken at Lola Cafe where Mike told us that he will propose to Cham. ...

Update on My 60 Before 60

    Just turned 61 on January 15, 2016 and here's the update on my 60 before 60 :) Ok I know this was supposed to be before I turn 60 but I am grateful and proud of myself that I did much of the things here though not all. Well, no worries because I commissioned myself to finish before 70, God willing.        Memorize verses from the Bible. ~   memorizing... still memorizing ... still memorizing (this will take a lifetime, I suppose)         Read the entire Bible. ~   reading... still reading... still reading       Learn how to incorporate Bible verses in my prayers. ~  practicing... still practicing... s till practicing       Learn how to pray sincerely. ~  learning... still learning... getting there :)       Pray confidently in public.         Pray for others without being conscious.  ...

My Paleo Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

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    I've been craving for my Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies for so long a time now since I decided to try the Paleo diet. And for this reason I have attempted to try several recipes from the net that are considered Paleo friendly. But then again, I still cannot get that specific taste that I miss from the chocolate chip cookies that we are familiar with.     My favorite recipe before was the one I got from Better Homes and Gardens and since then I've been using that recipe at home, in my defunct internet cafe and gifts for my loved ones. Everybody craved for my cookies and they were sold like hotcakes. But as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end (but better things are yet to come).    Until I stumbled on this and voila! I tweaked a little and here goes.. A combination of imported and local ingredients      Most of these ingredients I bought at Healthy Option and the locally produced ones, like the dark chocolate and...

Believing It's Not Over till It's Over

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    There is this weird feeling that I get depressed when it's raining, I don't know why. A few days ago, it was raining very hard (there was this tropical storm Egay) and I was all alone. Things kept on creeping in my mind,  questions like what am I here for now that my kids are all grown up and on their own, what do I have to do next, now that I think I have passed through that stage wherein I have exhausted myself earning a living.    I was talking to God, exposing my heart out, asking Him if it's okay to think that I want to go home and be with Him because I'm finished with my obligation with the family. That night (which I usually do before going to bed) I continued to read Chapter Fourteen of this book by my favorite author, Stormie Omartian, Just Enough Light for the Step I'm On.      The title of the chapter I was reading happened to be Believing It's Not Over till It's Over. My Heavenly Father is listening! It says in this chapt...

Pork Binagoongan with Ampalaya

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    One of the dishes I always have in mind when I have bagoong (fermented small shrimp) on hand is Pork Binagoongan. My mom always cook bagoong whenever we visit her for us to bring home. We love her bagoong so much that it takes only a few weeks to finish a big jar. We serve it side by side with Karekare, we use it as dip for steamed vegetables, use it to season Pinakbet and other Sauteed mixed vegetables and as dip for Manggang Hilaw (unripe mangoes). The list goes on and on...     Today, I'm sharing the recipe for Pork Binagoongan with Ampalaya and I'm using the last morsel of bagoong from the jar.   Pork Binagoongan With Ampalaya Pork Binagoongan with Ampalaya Half a kilo of pork belly strips, sliced Water enough to cover belly 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 medium sized onion, sliced 3 Tbsp. bagoong 1 medium size ampalaya, sliced into 1/2" thick 4 pcs. finger chili, sliced into 3 Place pork belly in a wok and add enough water to cover pork. Let boil...

Paleo Food for the Gods

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    One of the goodies I wanted to bake before going paleo was Food for the Gods. I have not been baking my recipes for all sorts of goodies for a long time now and I thought of improvising my recipes and make it paleo just to satisfy my cravings. And this is the result, of which I want to share.     Here's the recipe for my paleofied Food for the Gods...   Paleo Food for the Gods Ingredients: 1/2 cup clarified butter 1 cup minus 2 Tbsp. coconut sugar 2 Tbsp. honey 4 eggs 1 cup rice flour 2 Tbsp. tapioca flour 1 tsp. baking powder a pinch of sea salt 1/2 cup dates, chopped 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped Preheat oven to 350degF Cream butter and sugar together. Add honey. Beat in eggs one at a time. Fold in the flour, baking powder and sea salt. Mix till no trace of flour is seen. Add the dates and walnuts. Place in a greased baking dish 7" x 11". Bake for 30 minutes.     Try this rec...

Art in Island

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    On May 1, 2015 Labor Day, Tommy and me with Cham, Mike and Gael went to an interactive art museum in Cubao, Art in Island.  We brought along my assistant, Ronalyn. We divided ourselves into 2 groups, Tommy, Ronalyn and I went together while Cham, Mike and Gael formed themselves in one group.     To know more about Art in Island, Cham described well about this in her blog  here . These are the photos I took: