Babymoon in Cebu

   "Babymoon? What the heck is that?". That's what I told my couple friends when they mentioned Babymoon to us but when they explained what it is, I got so excited that it made me look forward to one more exciting thing during our pregnancy.

Babymoon is defined as

• 1A relaxing or romantic vacation taken by parents-to-be before their baby is born
• 
  A fantastic idea! That gave me so a reason to plan another trip before the baby comes coz we know that we'll have to stay put with nearer trips for maybe about 6 months after the baby is born and another 3 months while we are on our 3rd term.

    So... off we went to Cebu for our relaxing trip. Beach, nice resort, a little city stuff and a lot of just chillin' by the beach... this is how pregnancy should be! :-)

     What made our babymoon interesting for me is that it really marks the start of serious planning and preparing for how we will be as parents.  Of course it also is a fantastic time to be with my husband and it made me fall in love with him all over again. :-)

     Part of the chillin' time is reading the book with Helen Moon, Cherish the First  6 weeks. We are studying how to prepare a routine for our little sunshine. We love talking about how we want things to be, our expectations, our possible challenges and getting ready for the unknown.We really believe that we should be husband and wife first before we are parents so this time spent together is really precious for me and Glenn.

     We may not be ready for every single thing but this vacation helped us get attuned to each others state of mind and readiness.

     While swimming, I had a realization... no one is truly prepared to be a parent but if Mama Mary gave this gift of a little daughter to us, then, she and Papa Jesus must know how to prepare us and that they are doing everything to get us there. The only preparation we can really do is have faith. 

      

Grocery Grab for High Sugar Pregnant women

Part 2 of my grocery finds to keep my sugar manageable....

   6.  Century Corned Tuna and Century Lite Tuna in Veg Oil

    These products have 0 carbs but high in sodium. Some websites say that canned tuna is better for pregnant women as this has lower mercury level.

  7.  Arla Kids Sticks - Cheese

   Perfect for a snack when you're on the road with crackers or on its own.

 8. Wasa crackers

    I normally eat this with cheese or tuna for afternoon snacks. It tastes like cardboard on its own but with some peanut butter, cheese or tuna, this actually is not a bad alternative.

  9.  Fita crackers

   

    If there's one thing I don't leave home without nowadays, it would be these crackers and my Arla cheese sticks. Though each cracker is 2g, it helps a bit ease hunger in the middle of traffic.

10. Kiwi fruit

    Fruits are high in sugar... True! but you still have to have 1/2 a serving of fruits to get the much needed vitamins. Here's one of my fruit choices. I normally have it for afternoon snack.

11.  Grapefruit

  I'm not a big fan of this fruit but its necessary for my baby's nutrition so I close my eyes and eat them. :-)

12.  Green leafy veggies

   Vegetables were not part of our childhood and growing up years. Thus, its a surprise that I'm looking for them now. I've successfully integrated them into my menu. I usually pair a caesar salad (though vinaigrette dressings are better for your sugar count) with grilled chicken. 

13.  Tofu

     Being vegetarian for a year really helped me a lot as I was able to experiment on different kinds of tofu recipes. I have one recipe in mind that I will try this weekend. I'll share it soon.

14.  Gouda cheese

  

   I have a new love affair with sandwiches and its because of the new Rustan's Deli that opened beside our condo building. I'm experimenting on different types of cheese and deli meat in my sandwiches. Great for lunch!!!

15.  Turkey Ham

    With cheese, tomatoes, sugar free/ whole wheat bread... this is part of a great meal.

  I'm still finding more stuff to add to my weekly menu. The more I research, the more I am comforted by the different healthy options that I have. Suddenly, altering my diet is not so bad and I do enjoy the different dishes.

Menu on Day 1

I had to run to the grocery as soon as I found out that I have high sugar since I needed to alter my diet. The goal is to lower down my sugar and carbs intake.

Thus, my grocery cart suddenly had these:

1. Peter Pan Creamy peanut butter

   Since most of what I researched recommended whole wheat bread and peanut butter for breakfast, I checked every Nutritional Information label in each of the bottle I've held and this has lesser Carbs and Sugar than the Reduced Fat version.

    For every 2 tbsp, it only has 6g Total Carbs and 3g of sugar.

     I just use 1tbsp on my sandwich and its pretty good already and cuts my carbs and sugar in half.

2.  Sugar free Wheat Bread from Walter

    I've been having this bread for some time now so I'm happy to know that there are 22g of carbs per 2 slices and 0 sugar.

3.  Multigrain Cheerios

   I got this because it has the lowest carbs content in the cereals section and because it is multigrain. Make sure to use skim milk or low fat milk.

4.  Wholemeal Penne of San Remo

   125 grams of this is about 77g of Carbs but I noticed that I feel full at 65 grams so I cut down my intake in half but still enjoy the past taste.

5.  Brown rice

  There are a lot of options in the market nowadays. Unlike white rice that you cook it one cup of rice to one cup of water, cooking brown rice takes longer and the proportion is 1 cup of rice to 2 cups of water.

 Part 2 later.....

Pregnancy and Menu for High Sugar women

   We are in our 17th week and finally I have a baby bump showing. :-) In addition to getting new clothes and looking for pre-natal yoga and pre-natal massage services, there are a few more things that I have to worry about.

 
 I get it now... pregnancy is not easy! Some breeze thru but mine is just a tiny bit challenging. I was diagnosed with high sugar level.  Thus, I have to alter my diet. I cried for a while as it means that I would not be able to eat white rice, pasta and bread.... most of all, any kind of sweets.

   What's interesting is that God really prepared me for this... All my experiences in preparing menus and my love for cooking helped me in putting together something that would help me maintain my sugar level so that I can make sure that I have a healthy pregnancy.

    Because I want to get gestational diabetes, I have started researching and cutting down on my sugar. With the research that I made, here are some details that helped me.

   A gestational diabetes diet looks something like this:
   -- Don't go over 30-45g of carbs per meal, 15 carbs per snack
   -- Always have protein and/ or fat when you have a carb
   -- 3 meals a day, 3 snacks per day
   -- avoid fruit before lunch

    I'm still in my adjustment phase as I have not completely digested all of the information yet but this is what I have gathered.
   -- Fruits are a high source of sugar so I have to minimize my intake of fruits except for lemon, lime or berries.
   -- Fruit juices are just as high in sugar.
   -- I can still eat carbs as long as they are made of grains. Ex. brown rice, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat and sugar free bread
   --  Choose chicken and fish more often
   --  Protein should be the dominant food in your meal but there should about 1/4 cup of carbs
   --  Monitor your sugar and carbs intake.
   -- Don't skip any meal
   -- Its better to cook your meals and portion it already so that you are sure of what's in the dish and the amount that you will be consuming
 
    I will share my meals as often as I can so that pregnant women going thru the same thing so that they don't feel deprived.

   For monitoring, I use My-Fitness Pal. Its primarily a calorie counter but I find it most useful for now as it has a good database of food choices and there's a barcode scanner that can help in the input of the nutritional information. Just make sure to go the Nutrition section and look at the Total Carbohydrates and Sugar lines.

 

13 weeks

  We're almost done with our first term and I'm so excited to be on our second term!

   Not only am I excited to see my baby bump (which still has not shown til now!), but because I'm so tired of being tired. The morning sickness is a little too hard to get over... Again, why do they call it morning sickness when it does not end in the mornings?!?!?!!?

    Fatigue and always being sleepy has characterized my first term. I always ask Glenn, why kaya are other women luckier and they don't feel anything? His answers always touches my heart... he said, "Its because God wants us to feel early on how it is to be parents.".  And so, I accept that this is God's will for us.

     Its been challenging for me... going thru all of this since I'm not used to having little energy and focus everyday but I know that it will be all worth it.

     Our little sunshine might only be as big as a peach but we already love him/ her to the moon and back. :)

Glenn's Birthday Surprise

     Glenn's 42nd birthday, December 21, 2013, changed our lives forever.  This is the day we found out we were pregnant.  :-)
     
    I would like to write about it so that I keep these memories forever. :-)

   We were already on our 5th day of Simbang Gabi already at that time and my prayer is that God grants us a baby in His own time... and yes, everything was on HIS own time.

    I just have to share this... I had this wild thought and dream in my head, that I will wake Glenn up on his birthday with a positive result on the pregnancy stick to surprise him. I really didn't think it would come true but God really made it happen.

     The night before his birthday, Glenn had work and I had some time to walk around the mall and saw that there's Buy One Take One on pregnancy kits in Watson's.  I knew that I will have my period in December so I wasn't expecting anything. I just wanted to stock up on it also knowing that we are going to try harder to get pregnant in 2014, I hoarded and bought 8.  :-)

      So on December 20 night time, while Glenn was at work and I didn't have anything to do, I tried one of the Pregnancy Tests. I placed too much liquid so I threw it away. I thought I'll just try again the next day. I have lots of them anyway! :-)

      And then it happened, I woke up on his birthday morning and thought I'd give it another try. This time, I saw two lines... I can't believe it and I didn't want to believe it. I woke Glenn up and asked him to look at the stick... of course, he had to look for his glasses. haha! He couldn't believe it either. At this point, I remembered that I threw a pee stick the night before... I rummaged thru the trash and found it.... YUP! there were two lines there. We really could not believe it.... not until we called our Doctor who confirmed that we are pregnant but we need to have a check up to be absolutely sure.

      I guess, God has never ceases to surprise us. He surprised us with our marriage and now, He surprised us with our little sunshine. Again, we believe... IN HIS TIME, not ours.  :-)

     .... And God and Mama Mary even made sure, I gave Glenn my "surprise" birthday gift. :)

   

Motherhood Preparation

 


    Motherhood is a blessed calling. I see it in my Mom and I see it in our friends.  Its not the easiest job on earth but they all say that its rewarding.

  Personally, I am petrified of the idea of being a mother. Sure, I understand that it is the greatest legacy you can leave on this planet. It is also the fulfillment of womanhood. YADA! YADA! YADA! BUT... yes, but... it will take away time from my husband and will drastically change the relaxed life that we are living now. I love my husband to pieces and I still enjoy our quiet time together. I don't know how it will change our lives and I don't know how open I would be about sharing my husband's time for me and vise versa.

  Sure I love the babies of our friends and I love my niece dearly.... but after spending some time with them and returning them to their parents, I relish the fact that Glenn and I will come home to a quiet house. Where the two of us can watch tv in peace and decide to go for ramen or coffee at 1:00 am. Hmm... I think I am enjoying being a wife to Glenn too much. haha!

  On the other hand, there is this feeling that if we don't have a baby now, we might regret it eventually. And yet another fear, what if when we decide to have it baby, there are complications in the pregnancy. Too many fears... too many uncertainties... too many!

   There are days when I am excited to hold our baby in my hands and build our family with my wonderful husband with me in the whole journey. But I don't know if I am ready for more than a day of motherhood.

  Yes, I am selfish and I still want to travel the world and be alone with my husband 24/7 but I do pray and trust that God has bigger plans in store for us.  I do pray for my future children that they be a bunch of joyful and grateful people with loving and caring hearts. I do pray for my husband that he still has the energy to keep up with our running toddlers. I pray for my body that I will be ready to receive God's gift for us, in His perfect timing.

  Some photos from www.morphthing.com of possible faces of our babies. Not bad. I just wish this is a guarantee of what our babies would look like. :-)

                    

7th Montheversary

Sharing with you the great work of Halo Media for our wedding video. :-)




And this surprise SDE from Jed Ray Calara of Image Nation Photography:

Salad Spinner

   Before leaving for Singapore last week, I was all set on going to IKEA and getting a few items for our condo. From their website, I saw that they had a salad spinner at less than P300. After going around the different malls in Manila checking out salad spinners, this one from IKEA is the best bang for the buck. Its also perfect for 2 to 3 servings. The others in Landmark, SM, etc... costs about P500 up. I made sure that I didn't forget to go around the Marketplace area to find it.

   I'm lovin' my new salad spinner! Now that I am enjoying my salad with caramelized walnuts, oranges and raspberry vinaigrette every night, this salad spinner is a perfect addition to my kitchen preparation equipment. For anyone who wants to serve salad at home, I recommend a salad spinner to easily remove the water from the leaves before putting it down on the salad plate. It keeps the leaves from being soggy on the plate and it keeps its crunch for the perfect salad bite.

Wedding Photos - Glenn and Lyshiel from Image Nation Photography

  After almost 7 months, I finally get the chance to blog about our wedding photos. Yes, I am really delinquent in posting these photos. Here are some...



   I'm so excited to share some of our photos by Jed Calara of Image Nation Photography, here's the link:  http://jedraycalara.com/?p=1115. Here's also a link to our on the day slide show, http://vimeo.com/32306952.

 

Mother's Day 2012

 

This year's Mother's Day was extra special because we celebrated it with 4 beautiful women... My Mom - who I have learned to understand and know more about as I get older, my sister - a very new mom of my 1.5 months old niece, Inay - Glenn's 91 year old lola and Mamang- Glenn's mom who was in Baguio for Mother's day (but we managed to stay at her house and spend the whole afternoon and night time there chatting with Glenn's brother and sister-in-law).

 Of course, the day will not be complete if I did not cook for them so I baked herbed chicken and cooked bibimbap for my family. Good thing we brought some chicken home as we also served it to Allen and Mona (Glenn's brother and sis-in-law). I'm glad they enjoyed the meals we prepared. I really get a high for doing that. :-)

  Glenn wanted to give flowers to all the moms so we were able to get flowers and we enjoyed handing it to them. They are really exceptional women!

   As Mother's day 2012 has passed, I have a burning desire in my heart to be ready for the time I would become a mom. One day, I know we would want to have kids and I am claiming in God's name that He will give us that gift. So now, I am making a commitment to being ready for that new journey... being a wife (because it is a continuous journey) and a mom. I will prepare my body for it by exercising regularly, kicking some bad habits and eating healthier food.

   I welcome this new desire that God has put in my heart. I pray that one day, He will give us the gift that He has planned for us.

6 Months and counting....

It's almost 6 months since our wedding day and I cannot be more grateful for all the blessings that have gone our way.  There have been a lot of adjustments for us but the most beautiful thing of it all is that we can talk about anything with love and understanding. I have prayed for so long that my husband is my also my friend and not just a partner in life. Someone I can celebrate with and can be with me when times get tough. Thank you, Lord for granting my heart's desire.

For our first montheversary, I'm trying to recall what we did but with whirl of all the birthdays (mine in November and his in December) plus the Christmas season, I have missed out on the details already which makes me sad. :( The only memory I have is that we bought ourselves Samsonite bags for the start of our adventures. hahaha!

For our second montheversary, we had dinner in New World Hotel and enjoyed a cozy, romantic table and cake prepared for us by the staff of the restaurant.

Our third montheversary, was celebrated with our favorite houseblend in UCC Greenbelt. Then, we walked around Makati area. 

   Slow cooked Osso Buco and  Razon's halo-halo were the highlights of our 4th montheversary celebration. I really wanted to cook something for him that he has not tried so my labor of love, Osso Buco! :-)

      5th montheversary was special. It fell on a Holy Thursday and instead of our normal dinner fanfare, we went to High Street and did the way of the cross. Some of the stations made me tear up as I realize how blessed I am for all the challenging and wonderful things that had come to our lives.

Our 6th montheversary is coming up… I hope he likes my surprise… :-)

        In the past 6 months we have been to Bicol and seen the Mayon Volcano, the Baclayon Church, Misibis Bay. Then, we made new memories in Boracay. Watched Wicked and experienced life in Singapore. Watched Mama Mia and hoping to watch Phantom of the Opera soon. Climbed Mt. Pinatubo and spent relaxing days in Anvaya Cove. 

     We've moved together in our Makati Condo and have pretty much adjusted to living together. Hahaha!  We're getting ready to move to a condo of our own very soon. Cooked and ate wonderful meals and had fantastic conversations while enjoying them. Spent time with friends, made new friends and re-connected with old ones. Starting to set up our future for a happy family. And more importantly, starting the dream of Glenn's Odyotek business.  All in the past 6 months. Whew!

   Everyday I am learning how it is to be a wife. I have read a lot of articles and bought a lot of books but one thing I now understand is this, a relationship with love friendship and respect is the best foundation of a start of a life long journey as husband and wife. :-)

November 5, 2011 - A Beautiful Time of My Life (wedding, honeymoon, birthday, marital bliss)

   Three weeks after that beautiful Saturday in Tagaytay, I am now formally a wife. A wife to a wonderful man, Glenn...

   I still feel like everything is so surreal. Just like any other bride, our wedding was unbelievable.

  Thursday and Friday of that week was rainy. It was raining when Dan and Melody picked me up and drove me to Tagaytay. It was raining that afternoon when we had our bridal shower in T Spa, Tagaytay. It was so great to hear the raindrops while I was having a massage.  I accepted the fact that it might rain on our wedding day but I didn't mind anymore. Everything's going to be just as God planned it to be.

   Everything was happening so quickly. We all had dinner at Cafe Breton that night and suddenly all the girls were in my room trying on their dresses. I felt a sudden surge of happiness sitting with them in the bathroom and seeing all of them there. I am so blessed to have them all in there that weekend. I cannot be more thankful.

  I woke up at 6:00 am while the sun was rising (thank you, Lord for beautiful weather that day) just in time to see my Mom making coffee and about to go out to the balcony. I treasured that chance of hanging out with my Mom before the chaos begins. We really didn't chat about serious stuff but being there with her was one of the best moments of my day.

   By 8 am,  I was scheduled to eat breakfast (Ate Lilian will not like it if I don't. hehehe!). Thankfully, I did because that was only 1 of 1.5 decent meals for the day. :-)

   By 9 am, Mela Jimenez, our make up artist has arrived and the craziness is about to begin.  When everything was happening around me as I sit on the make-up chair, I realized.... wow! Is there a way for me to encapsulate this moment and just absorb everything and remember every single detail?!?!? That's when I remembered what Fr. Dennis said, when you release control, that's when you are most in control.  So i picked up the rosary and started praying. I was so full of gratitude... tears where always in my eyes all the time.

  The only stressful moment of the whole day was when my Mom had to rush back to Paranaque to get our rings since she forgot them... Thank God for a good driver and stickers to enter the different subdivisions going to Tagaytay. hahaha! Thanks, Mom for making sure the rings get to us on time.

  By 1 pm, we were set to move and go to the church. I was so excited, to see Glenn! I haven't seen him the whole day and I can't wait! :-)

  When we got to the church, my parents went down and I stayed in the car. Excitement, anxiety, joy and peace. All of these happening at the same time.

   As I went up the stairs of Chapel on the Hill, I was joking with Jed and Randy to tell me when I should look back so I get a good photo while walking up the stairs. :-) When I reached the start of the aisle though, I saw Glenn... GRABE! Kinilig ako to see him smile when he saw me. I can't wait to hold his hand and kiss him... pero syempre, it had to wait. hahaha! Fr. Dennis even came up to us before the mass started and told us not to hold hands, hindi pa daw time. hahaha!

   Sa ikli ng aisle, I didn't get the chance to think of anything else. hehehe! When he held my hand to go up the altar though, I saw our three priests. That's when I thought to myself, I could not believe this is happening.... We are so BLESSED!!! I cannot stop smiling, I am marrying my bestfriend with our Archbishop Panfilo (our spiritual director), Fr. Dennis Paez (our counsellor) and Fr. Vester Casaclang (Childhood friend) blessing our marriage. All our family and friends were there sharing our joy... is there anything else I can ask for?

  The whole communion and offertory, I was just worshipping and praising God. Its one of the happiest moments of my life. I was floating and not wanting to forget every detail of that mass. I remembered after I opened my eyes while in prayer, I saw our three beloved priests in front of the altar, I asked "Glenn, is this really happening? How can we be so blessed? :-)"

 

FIRST WEDDING EXPO - Weddings and Beyond

We went to our first wedding expo in PICC Forum last Saturday. Its the Weddings and Beyond expo. Its not so bad! I thought we would get overwhelmed with all the suppliers but the only area we got overwhelmed with are the photo and video suppliers.

Now, the question is, should we get a mobile bar or not? :-)

First meeting photographer - Bryan Yap

Tonight I met with Bryan Yap of www.bryanyaparazzi.com. Glenn could not join me since he has a meeting. I enjoyed the meeting with him. I'll review his photos again with Glenn so we can understand further what different styles of wedding photography we like.

We really have not checked out the different styles so maybe that's what we need to look into further. Hmmm... one more new thing to learn. :-)

He asked... I smiled and said YES! :-)

YES!!! We are getting ready to say I do in front of God and our friends.

Wedding preparations are on their way... relaxed and steady. I am what you can say and excited wife but a reluctant bride. Our joy is overflowing and we love sharing the good news to our friends and family. We are just really blessed and loved. God has been really good to us and we have Him and Mama Mary to thank.

I can't wait to wake up beside my husband and have a fun and loving marriage. I love my Babe.

Mini Quiche Lorraine

My pack of puff pastry has been sitting in my freezer for a few months now. I've been planning to make quiches but never had the chance. This weekend, I made it my experiment.

Ate Lilian, Kuya Marlon and Rosie, visited us (minus Glenn though coz he had to set up for Ate Lally's party) and I was so happy to serve them my Quiche Lorraine with freshly ground and brewed coffee. Thank you, Rose for mixing the coffee... pang Starbucks owner ka talaga! :-)

Recipe is from Yummy Magazine May 2010 but I doubled the recipe to make more.

Ingredients:

1 sheet frozen puff pastry (325g), thawed

1/4 cup butter

1 onion sliced

6 strips bacon, chopped

4 eggs

1 cup cream

1 cup grated tasty cheese (such as cheddar)

nutmeg

spinach leaves to serve

balsamic vinegar as sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400F.

2. Lightly grease muffin pans and pie tins

3. Using a rolling pin and sprinkling flour on the puff pastry, flatten the pastry

4. Arrange pastry into prepared pans.

I used 6 cups muffin pan, 4 mini tart pans

5. Fill each with either kidney beans or rice grains.

6. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until pastry puffs a little bit (don't allow it to be golden brown)

7. Remove kidney beans or rice grains. Make sure that nothing is left.

8. Reduce oven to 350F

9. Melt butter in a frying pan on high. Saute onion and bacon until onion is tender.

10. Fill each prepared pastry with an even amount of onion mixture.

11. In a bowl, whisk together eggs and cream. Sprinkle some pepper. Pour into prepared pastry.

12. Sprinke with nutmeg and then cheddar cheese.

13. Bake for 20 mins or until firm and pastry is brown and crispy.

14. Garnish with spinach leaves

15. Use balsamic vinegar as sauce if desired.

Improvements:

1. I'll use kidney beans as weights next time. It was so difficult to remove all the rice grains from the pastry

2. Will bake the pastry puff longer on the ones on tart tins.

3. I won't put water in the pan while I'm pre-baking the pastry to make it puff a bit more

Notes:

1. Don't use too much salt since the bacon, butter and cheddar will give the needed saltiness.

Chicken Schnitzel

Making use of left over whole wheat bread, I cooked some chicken schnitzel. My inspiration... Junior Masterchef Australia. :-) And since my boyfriend wants to eat it with rice and sauce, I made chicken liver adobo on the side.

You can find the original recipe here, For the pinoy version, check below. :-)

Good for two.

Ingredients:

4 pcs. chicken thigh fillet

3 pcs whole wheat bread

3 tbsp parmesan cheese

1 tsp rosemary

salt and pepper

1 egg

2 tbsp milk

1/2 cup plain flour

2 tbsps olive oil

Directions:

1. Process whole wheat bread and parmesan in a food processor until fine crumbs. Add rosemary and season with salt and pepper, process until finely chopped. Transfer to a plate.

2. Cut the chicken thighs horizontally into thin steaks. Place in between 2 sheets of cling film and lightly pound with the flat side of meat mallet to flatten.

3. Whisk egg and milk together in a bowl. Coat one piece of chicken in flour and shake to remove excess. Then dip the chicken into the egg mixture. Then coat the chicken in breadcrumbs, pressing firmly to coat. Repeat with remaining pieces of chicken and crumbing mixtures.

4. Heat olive oil and fry chicken thighs for 4 to 5 minutes each side.

5. Serve with rice or salad.

Little Lemon Meringue Pie

So thankful that I was able to find a Lemon Meringue Pie recipe good for two people. We would not have been able to finish the whole pie. Found this recipe in http://allrecipes.com.

Glenn and I are not big fans of lemony desserts but this was pretty good. :-) Also, the colder it is, the better it tastes. Of course, its best to have it on the same day.

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon shortening
• 1 tablespoon cold butter (no substitutes)
• 1 teaspoon cold water
• FILLING:
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1 egg yolk, beaten
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon butter
• MERINGUE:
• 1 egg white
• 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 2 tablespoons sugar

Directions

1. In a bowl, combine flour and salt; cut in shortening and butter until crumbly. Gradually add water, tossing with a fork until dough forms a ball. Divide in half. Roll each portion into a 5-in. circle. Transfer to two 10-oz. custard cups. Press dough 1-1/8. up sides of cups. Place on a baking sheet. Bake at 425 degrees F for 7-10 minutes or until golden brown

Crust before I placed them in the oven.

2. In a saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch and salt. gradually stir in cold water until smooth. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir 2 minutes more. Remove from the heat. Stir half of hot filling into egg yolk; return all to the pan. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in lemon juice and butter. Pour into pastry shells.

3. In a small mixing bowl, beat egg white and cream of tartar on medium speed until soft peaks form. Spread evenly over hot filling, sealing edges to crust. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until meringue is golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour; refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.

Things to improve on:

1. I would have used smaller custard cups (ramekins) so its not fattening in one meal.

2. Lesser sugar for the meringue

3. Use iodized salt for the crust

** For custard cups, you can get it in Landmark, Makati at P40.00 each

Kickin' it In Korea

I must admit, my friends really have the adventurous spirit in them. It does not matter whether North Korea fired at South Korea and there is an impending war that week, nothing can stop us from having a great time. :-)

I had my doubts at first but as long as there's no travel advisory, off we went! :-) The first few times in the subway, I was a bit jumpy and observing the local reaction to everything. I would even look over the shoulder of train passengers to watch the local news through their mobile tv… hahaha… not that I understood anything… hahaha!

Another crazy adventure for me, Jacky, Kat, Meme and Grace!!! To Seoul, Anyonghase yeo. Til we meet again. :-)

From Incheon airport:

Get a bus ticket inside the airport before going out to catch your bus. We were staying in Banana Packers and our drop off is Anguk station we took bus 6011 in Exit 5. As soon as we got out of the airport, we felt the 0 degrees weather. MAN! It was like a freezer!!!

The bus ride is about an hour to get to Seoul City. The bus station is around the 3rd stop. You will see an SK gas station. Get off there and walk towards the gas station. Make a right and then cross the street on the first stop sign. Walk into a small alley. Banana Backpackers is about 500 meters from the main road.

As soon as we are all settled in, we ordered food for delivery. Not bad. There was sweet and sour park and noodles in sweet black sauce which cost about Won6,500 (around P300 that can be shared).

First day:

Slept in till about 12… had late lunch and money changed.

Just walked around… first time to taste bibimpap in Korea. Yes… Its a challenge. Point and eat. hahaha! that's what we did.

After having money changed, we walked towards the direction of the main road and it led us to Insadong Market. Went around for a bit and then had coffee in a small bakery.

Even if I was still scared about the N. Korea and S. Korea conflict, I braved riding the subway to go to Dongdaedum market. From Anguk station, take the orange line, transfer to the blue line and then go down Dongdaemun station.

I must admit. I was jumpy and paranoid but I braved it! :-)

After Dongdaemun, we went back to the hostel and waited for Melody and had another serving of the black noodles and sweet and sour pork.

Second day:

SNOW DAY!

Started our day with lunch at a nice resto and then we went to Deoksugung Palace. Entrance fee is W1000 and its closed on Mondays.

The National Museum of Modern ARt is there and there was a show of Picasso's work from Albertina, Vienna. The show entrance cost W10000 but I opted to wait outside and explore the grounds. I chanced upon the changing of the guards which was pretty cool.

After our palace visit, we had coffee at Beans and Berries followed by dinner in KFC. Nothing different, just a bulgogi burger… no rice too. True to form, we really have to try out Mc Donald's and KFC in every country we go to. :-)

After dinner, we tried to catch the lights and sound show at Cheonggyecheon but failed this time since its only until 8 pm. while we were walking we felt that there are small snow flakes falling but it was not until we reached, the shops area where it really snowed.

IT WAS OUR FIRST EXPERIENCE OF SNOW and it was so much fun!!!! :-) I enjoyed just having the snow fall on me and although it was cold… it felt so real and I felt so lucky having to experience snow (of course being born and raised in a tropical country, this experience is quite a treat)! Photos galore! :-) The best part of it, I experienced it with Grace, Meme and Jacky! Fantastic time! Since this was a moment to capture, I bought my Seoul Starbucks mug! :-) Memories! :-)

After playing under the snow, we had ice cream in Baskin Robbins (I know, right! :-)) and then went home after.

THIRD DAY:

After starting with an early lunch, we headed to a coffee shop and then to Nandaedum market where you can find good and cheap clothes, shoes, etc. And then Mengdong for more shopping.

Street food trials galore is what I did today. From hotdog with fries waffle (how efficient right?), to crispy rice cake, to crispy sweet rice cake, gyoza that loos like a siopao to red bean cake shaped like fish… I tried them all. :-)

We finally caught the light show… you have to go to the middle of the stream to watch this 5 minute show. Dinner in the same area and again, Baskin Robbins ice cream to conclude Day 3.

FOURTH DAY:

Lotte World day. Admission price: W26,000

I was really really impressed with this place. Its no Disneyland but its obviously way way better than Enchanted Kingdom. hahaha! My favorite ride of all is the Pharaoh's Fury... the line going to the ride felt like a museum. Its suer galing!

We had chatting while in line. I think that's the best part of traveling with great friends. You have non-stop conversations about everything under the sun.

FIFTH DAY:

Namsol Hanok Village day. Its nice to be able to see the traditional houses but to be honest, there's nothing much here. Its a good park and good for an afternoon stroll.

I don't remember the sequence of events anymore... hahaha! but I do remember going to Itaewon Market and having a night out in Myeong Dong. We also went to a couple of palaces but its really nothing breathtaking. I think if you see one, then, it'll be enough for your whole trip.

A trip to DMZ was not advisable at that time unless we wanted to be part of the American-S. Korean exercises. hehehe!

Others:

Hostel: Banana Backpackers in Seoul - Nice, clean and affordable. For 8 days there, I only paid around Php 6,000.00. Not bad eh! :)

Mode of transport: Bus from airport to hostel

Train all around

Favorite meals: Street Food - chapchae noodles wrapped in nori… oh!!!! everything actually! hahaha!

There's this restaurant in Insadong Market (it has a small fountain in front - I really wish I can remember the name but just like everything else in Korea, i don't remember any names! hahaha!) which serves the yummiest Kalbi Jim I've tasted. Its pricey but really yummy. We went there twice.

Other tips:

1. Get a Hi Seoul Card. You can get this in any convenience stores and have replenish the used up cash in any subway stations. This is useful most especially if you intend to ride the train all the time

2. There are so many stalls selling clothes, bags and other stuff. They can be seen on every subway station. :-)

3. If you're going in November, bring winter clothes (especially if you are in a tropical country). Or buy shoes and clothes there. :-)

4. Bring shoes that are insulated in the foot are and above the calf area. Ugs type shoes are recommended.

5. The people will bump into you in the subway and will not apologize. Get used to it.

6. They still do not speak english well so get ready to point point in restos and have "surprise" food served.