Ibyang
Ibyang

Charmed Life of a Mrs

The “My Pilipinas” Moleskine Notebook

It was only two weeks after the “My Pilipinas” Moleskine Notebook was launched that I got the nerve to ask my mom if she can buy me one. I was kind of hesitant to ask her because she might negatively say “What kind of expensive notebook is that?”. But when I learned that my uncle’s going to Manila to visit, I can’t help but request her to buy me one since she also asked what I want from the Phils.

So I sheepishly asked her, “Mom, there’s this notebook that I want. It’s called a Moleskine notebook and it has this Philippine map drawn on the front page with the words “My Pilipinas”. It’s a collaboration of Moleskine, National Bookstore and Collezione C2–you know the one that makes shirts with the Philippine map? Anyway, the Moleksine is my favorite notebook and I really really like it, plus it would be nice to have one that has a Pilipinas map on it. Can you please buy me one?”
Oh diba? Ang haba ng explanation. Take note, that I didn’t initially mention the cost of the notebook hehe.
To which my mom replied, “Okay, where can I buy one?’ So I told her, “National Bookstore”.
But of course, I had to mention how much it is so she know what she’s getting herself into.
To my surprise, she just said, “Oh well, you’ve always liked expensive notebooks even when you were little.” Hehe. So my mom knows me well.
Then came a follow-up request of, “Mom, can you buy me one tomorrow? Because it was launched two weeks ago and they said they only made 4,800 pieces…so baka maubos na.”
I know, demanding. I even had to ask my plurkmates on where else my parents can find “My Pilipinas” Moleskines just incase they ran out of stock in NB Megamall (that’s where my Mom was headed to when we talked).
So the following day, my parents trooped down to Megamall and thank goodness, according to my Mom, there were still a lot of “My Pilipinas” Moleskines at NB Megamall. The moment she texted me that she got me one, I’m one happy, relieved camper. Yay!

I’m so glad I got my “My Pilipinas” Moleskine last week. Thanks Mom and Dad!!!!! I now have a second Moleskine waiting to be used. 

I was a bit disappointed that it wasn’t made in hardcover but seeing the print of the Philippine map was good enough for me–makes me feel proud that Moleskine made a special edition for the Philippines.

The “My Pilipinas” Moleskine comes in two sizes: pocket size @ P995.00 and large size @ P1,480.00, both in plain and ruled versions. Available in selected National Bookstore branches and Collezione C2 branches.

READ MORE

Holy Week and Easter Spent with Family

There are some occasions that I exclusively spend with family and relatives, one of those are Holy Week and Easter, for the simple reason that my clan usually have some activities planned during this time and it is tradition that we celebrate the Easter festivities together.

It is of normal occurrence that my Grandma’s birthday falls on the week of Holy Week. On Holy Monday, we celebrated her 81st birthday . 

On the morning of Good Friday, we were at the airport to pick up my uncle who vacationed in the Phils for a few days.

From the airport, we drove back to their place where my Husband and I spent the whole day catching up with our relatives as we enjoyed eating Baked Salmon, Ginataang Hipon with Kalabasa for lunch and dinner and homemade Turon for afternoon snack.

Black Saturday, since our goal is to have a more relaxing weekend with less household and cooking chores, we decided to have breakfast at one of our favorite cafes. We arrived at the cafe early to avoid the morning crowd and to have a more peaceful breakfast. We just shared a slice of toasted banana bread as we sipped our cups of Choffee.

Back at home for lunch, I cooked half a kilo of Green King Prawns in butter and garlic, dipped in Calamansi sauce. It was fresh and delicious, with a taste of sweetness.
For dinner, we had Blue Swimmer Crabs, again dipped in Calamansi sauce. Another winner. It’s so fat, we were so full after devouring them.

On Easter Sunday, we all trooped down to church to attend mass, then went straight to Prospect Reservoir for our Easter Lunch party.
Every year, someone wears the Easter bunny costume and we have our photos taken with the “bunny”. 

Other than chit chat, laugh and eat, we also played Bingo!

We went home happy and well-spent with lots of chocolate Easter eggs and bunnies in tow.
 

Photos by Chris and Ivy Sanchez, Copyright 2010
Canon 7D with 17-85mm lens and Canon 400D with Fujinon 55mm lens.

READ MORE

Reflective “Me” Time on Maundy Thursday

Here in Australia, we still have work on Maundy Thursday but from where I work, we were given a free half-day if we go to work on Thursday. I left work as soon as I finished my morning tasks and met up with the Husband for lunch. For a change, I wanted to eat fastfood coz I craved for Hungry Jack’s onion rings.



After lunch, we walked towards QVB checked out this funky store called Bristol and Brooks where you can find designer gifts and amusing, cool stuff for the home


After a few minutes of walking along George Street, the Husband went back to work so I decided to hang out at Hyde Park. I especially brought along my Canon 400D with the Fujinon 55mm lens for some test shots at the park.

I took photos of flowers…

of trees….


of park benches…
of people sleeping on benches….

and the park.
 

I’m amazed at how powerful and sharp the vintage Fujinon lens is. I love it.


 
Stayed at the park for a while. Walked around and then at one point, sat in one of benches and just watched people pass by. Listened for the sounds of nature and life around me and most of all reflect. No matter how hurried some people were around me that time, I felt a certain peace coming out of me…of my heart.

 

Before I went home, I continued my “me” time at a nearby Starbucks for a cup of Cafe Mocha and a slice of New York Cheesecake to celebrate one of my recent achievements at work (which happened the day before).



It was one lovely afternoon of great weather. It may not be the ideal, quiet Maundy Thursday that I usually celebrate in the Phils, but nevertheless, my quality “me” time was filled with serenity, joy and gratitude for the life I have and the life I’m living.

All photos by Ibyang Sanchez, Copyright 2010.
Canon 400D and Fujinon 55mm lens.


READ MORE

Book: Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Instead of writing how good a read this is, let me tell you my journey towards finding this book and how the story of Elizabeth Gilbert made an impact in my life.
Eat, pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
 

How I found this book. I found this at a time when I felt a little tired of reading fiction books. It was also at that time when I thought, “Since I can’t travel to all the places I want to go to, I will just read about it in books!” I had a phase when I kept buying Lonely Planet guidebooks in order “to travel” but I got tired of it the way I got tired of reading fiction. So I browsed thru some more at Borders and found autobiographies in their Travel section. I was in book haven when I saw tons of travel autobiographies–the answer to what I was looking for. The book “Eat Pray Love” caught my eye because it was about pleasures, spirituality and love. At the time I was craving to read about people’s travels, I also craved for some womanly wisdom on life as I was at a period of transitions (I just got married) and so I bought it because the book is not only about travel in the literal sense of the word but most importantly it was about a woman’s travel to finding her life and being happy again.

How it changed me. Before I read this book: I’m aware of things that give me pleasure, I know how to have fun; I have a strong faith–still growing in terms of my faith but nevertheless, my spirituality is intact; I’m able to manage problems, frustrations and difficulties; I have a stable support of friends and family; I’m content with my career; I’m inlove and have just gotten married to the love of my life; and most of all, given that I enjoy a busy life and I’m always surrounded by people I love, I welcome moments of solitude when I can just sit still and reflect. However, I felt there was a missing link to my everyday living. I’m inspired and blessed but I needed to make all the elements in my life work to the best of me. When I read this book, I found the answer: BALANCE.

Let me share the perfect quote from the book about Balance:

 “To find the balance you want, this is what you must become. You must keep your feet grounded so firmly on the earth that it’s like you have 4 legs instead of 2. That way, you can stay in the world. But you must stop looking at the world through your head. You must look through your heart, instead. That way, you will know God.”

That’s why every time I’m faced with challenges or I’m having difficulty on the many tasks I juggle, I stop, breathe, clear my head and find the answer/s thru my heart instead. Nowadays, that’s how I figure out what’s REALLY IMPORTANT in that very moment I’m in. With balance, I’m able to find my centre easily when I’m getting out of focus, and able to maintain my equilibrium in my day-to-day living.

I’m very very very excited to see the movie. As in! I can’t wait for it to be shown and see the book come to life. It will be shown on 14 October 2010 here in Australia. For your respective country’s release dates, please check it out here.

If you have read “Eat Pray Love” and want to know what happened in the lives of Elizabeth Gilbert and Felipe (the man she met in Bali), read about their journey to embracing marriage (again) in “Committed“.

READ MORE

Recipe: Tuna and Olives Pasta Bake

If you think my Chili Spaghetti recipe is easy, this is easier, I swear.

I’m the kind of wifey that gets turned off with recipes with so many ingredients and procedures. I sometimes cook complicated dishes on special occasions but on everyday living, I keep the fuss in cooking to a minimum.

One of my philosophies in life is to “simplify things” and that is also how I manage my time in the kitchen. Some recipes that come my way, I would probably disregard some ingredients if there are too many. Sometimes I’d find an alternative if they are not available in our pantry. Cooking is supposed to be fun and easy. If I find a dish too tedious to prepare and cook, I’d probably just dine out and order it from a restaurant.
This recipe is a product of my love for tuna, red pasta sauce, olives and basil. Sometimes, you just have to put together some of your favorites into one dish in order to create something easy, healthy and delicious.

 

What you need:

300 grams cooked pasta (in my case I used macaroni)
500 grams tomato sauce or pasta sauce
1 big can of Tuna
125 grams stuffed Green Olives
A dash of Basil, Pepper and Salt

1/2 cup shredded Tasty Cheese/Cheddar Cheese

What you need to do:

1. Pre-heat oven to 100 degrees.
2. In a pasta dish, gently stir in the cooked pasta, pasta sauce and green olives.
3. Add Basil, Pepper and Salt to taste.
4. Scatter over the Tasty Cheese/Cheddar Cheese.
5. Place pasta dish inside oven to bake at 150 degrees for 10 minutes or till cheese is golden.

Serve with french bread or salad.

Nutrional Benefits:

Tuna – high in omega-3 fatty acids
Olives – source of Vitamin E, oleic acid and protein
Basil – source of beta-carotene

READ MORE