Ibyang
Ibyang

Charmed Life of a Mrs

Toffee Nut Latte Afternoon

I don’t want a lot for Christmas
There’s just one thing I need
I don’t care about the presents
Underneath the Christmas tree
I just want you for my own
More than you could ever know
Make my wish come true
All I want for Christmas is…
You.*

For some reason, everytime Christmas is just around the corner, I always order a cup of Toffee Nut Latte at Starbucks. Drinking Toffee Nut Latte reminds me of the first time it got introduced to the Philippines as a Christmas season special (it was originally introduced as a winter seasonal drink but in some countries, it became part of the regular menu). It reminds me of late nights at Starbucks with friends after some Christmas party we’ve attended. It reminds me Christmas shopping with my ex-boyfriend (now husband) that would end at Starbucks to make an inventory of what we’ve accomplished for the day or simply savor the Christmas spirit around us.

Two weeks ago, I had my first Toffee Nut Latte for the year. And boy have I missed it so. Its toffee-nut syrup that tastes like combined hazelnut and vanilla, topped with whipped cream and a dash of crunchy toffee nuts brought joy to my senses.

This afternoon, since I’m feeling stressed at work and looking forward to a very busy weekend, I decided to celebrate the end of my workweek (taking a day-off tomorrow) by hanging out at Starbucks and de-stress with a cup of Toffee Nut Latte. I thought I should take a breather in between work and home responsibilities before plunging into wifely duties. Was able to have a good hour of “me” time.

Five minutes before I left the cafe, I started my wifely duties by reviewing my grocery/shopping list. When I knew that everything’s all good (and that husband’s on his way to our meeting place), I have one last sip of my one of my favorite coffees and head out of the cafe, rejuvenated and ready to face my weekend.

* All I Want For Christmas, song by Mariah Carey…is the song that plays on my mind whenever I think of my Toffee Nut Latte.

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How To Get Along With “Monday”

I used to have a chronic illness called “Monday-itis”. A few years back, I’m one of those people who avoid contact with “people” in the office on a Monday. Not so long ago, I was one of those employees who suddenly feels sick on Sunday night knowing that the following day is the start of the workweek.

When I was a trainer in the Philippines, I had to get over my Monday-itis because my work entails that on any given day “I have to be happy and I have to show my trainees I love what I do.” And because I really love what I do, I decided to get rid of my “Monday-itis” and came up with some strategies to get over Monday sickness.

Acceptance is the key. It really just starts with accepting that the weekend is over and that Monday will always be inevitable. Life is a cycle—and we all know that.

Be grateful that Monday happened. It is another day, another gift of life.

Be ready for Monday. Prepare for it. Get your Monday clothes, your bag, shoes et al, ready on Sunday night before retiring to bed, so that when you get up in the morning, all you have to do is shower because all you need in order to get out your door is ready. I religiously do this (I do this every night actually) and to make things easier the following morning, I also get our “baons” ready for the next day.

Make a list of things to do at work on Monday. On Friday afternoons before I leave work, I make it a point to write down my Things-To-Do List for Monday. In that way, when I’m back at the office and my head’s still floating from a weekend hang-over, I just look at my list and there I find my center once again.

Take it easy on a Monday (if possible). As you can see on the photo above, I only start with my top three things-to-do as I don’t want to overwhelm myself with so much work on the first day of the workweek. My to-do list on a Monday can only go up to five tasks. I give myself some room for being a bit slow—based on my work patterns, I take my time at work on Mondays (because I don’t want to get stressed early in the week). I also avoid scheduling or confirming meetings on Mondays, I schedule my meetings on a Tuesday.

Start your work-week with a positive affirmation. I love affirmations because it is a great way to pick-up your mood or remind you of something positive. I used to share Affirmations before. Sometimes my affirmations are inspired by people I’ve met or known via the blogosphere. I’ve stopped doing them for awhile but I plan to share some again soon.

If Monday has feelings, it would be very hurt. Put your shoes in Monday’s shoes, how would you feel if everybody hates you? Be kind to Monday…and be kind to your lovely face—frowning causes pre-mature wrinkles!

Smile. It’s only Monday. It won’t hurt trying to be happy on the first day of the work-week.

We all have a choice on how we will face the day, whether to be happy or grumpy on the first day of the workweek. As for me, I have realized early on that we should greet each day with a big smile, grateful for a new start of the week.

May we all have happy Mondays all the time!

[photo source]

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Afternoon Delights

Since I had a very hectic week last week, I set aside time for relaxation and doing something that I haven’t done in long while. 

Saturday Afternoon of Cheese and Wine with the Husband

Husband and I had a busy Saturday doing grocery shopping and household chores so in the afternoon, we had wine and cheese on our verandah before having dinner. We talked of how blessed we were to have finally found a place of our own. We talked of the good old days when we’d sit infront of our house in Taytay and dream of living in another country. Now, we’re living exactly what we dreamt about three years ago.

Sunday Afternoon of Watercolor Paint and Brushes

Sunday morning was spent cooking and cleaning so in the afternoon, I chilled out by watching an episode of Heroes, blogging and by painting (!). I don’t have the talent to really paint or draw but 
I love doing it because it makes me happy. I find it funny that even if I’m this old, I still paint like a kid.

Hope you had a lovely weekend!

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A Great Way To End A Hectic Week

Good friends and delicious food–a great way to end a hectic week.

Last Friday, on my way to a pre-dinner meet-up with friends, I found myself incidentally side by side with Jackie at Paddy’s Market who was also window-shopping for Christmas gifts.

At 5:00pm, Hilda and I met up with our long lost friend Indra at Passion Flower. We’re so happy that Indra’s back in Sydney (he’s back from his UK travel), it’s been ages since we’ve seen him.

Chloe joined us in Passion Flower too! After months of silence, Chloe is back!!! 🙂

After dessert (baligtad ang start ng kainan namin), we went to Pepper Lunch to meet up with the whole gang: Evan, Ara, Tom and May.

I was finally able to meet May!!!! She’s a schoolmate from La Consolacion. Small world talaga! Who would have thought we’d meet here thru Hilda? Her sister and I were classmates when we were in High School.

After-dinner drinks was at the 3 Wise Monkeys. We just a glass of whatever we were having before we went home.

The boylets

The girlalus

It so happened that Friday was Halloween so the city of Sydney was sooo alive with people wearing costumes. Felt like we’re celebrating the Halloween too.

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3rd Year Aussie-versary

I had mixed emotions yesterday when I celebrated my 3rd year anniversary as a migrant here in Australia. On my third year, I’m happy of the big achievements I’ve made (like bringing the husband here and being able to find our first home) however, it was also this year that a part of me regretted coming here. There were some things that happened this year that made me say “Had I known this would happen, I would’ve stayed in Manila.” And since something like that occured, it also made me think again if I was meant to be here.

It was this year that I applied for my Australian Citizenship…it took awhile for me to lodge my application as I had to think again and again if I’m really going to do it. Sometimes even if I’m a bit undecided, I still do things as they are presented infront of me.

So I took the Australian Citizenship exam. I was pressured to pass (other than the fact that I hate failure because it means time being wasted–that’s just me) because I’m surrounded by relatives who work for the government, one of whom even works at the Immigration. Not to mention that I am also a government employee myself. Nakakahiya kung hindi ako makapasa. The funny thing was, when I arrived at the venue for testing, the boyfriend of my cuzin (who works at the Immigration too) was at the reception area welcoming those who were scheduled for oath-taking. Ano ba??? The moment I saw him I said, “So I really have to pass now because you’re here!!”

So that was my Australian Citizenship exam story. I really studied, took down notes and remembered all the names, places and dates that needed to be remembered. I passed with a perfect score. The registration took longer than answering the test (it was fairly easy).

I filed my Australian Citizenship application in July. It takes awhile these days to get an answer back as there are many people applying compared to years ago when the Immigration were the ones encouraging people to apply for citizenship. The approval came in last week, in time for my 3rd year mark. It’s all good. I guess I’m really doing it now–say “I do” to Australia soon. Now I’m only waiting for another letter saying when my oath-taking will be.

We sort of celebrated yesterday by having dinner at Hyde Park. The Night Noodle Festival started this week so we opted to feed ourselves cheap Asian Cuisine at the park.

Some expensive/exclusive Chinese “resto” at the park. We didn’t eat here. We just lined up at one of the stalls and had dinner near the fountain at Hyde Park.

They had dragon dances for entertainment. Very very festive. I almost wanted to shout “Kung Hei Fat Choi!” hehe

Our Yum-Cha dinner: Fried Dim Sum, Pork Buns and Prawn Dumplings.

Very oily Hookien Noodles 🙂

Me in my “ngarag” look.

Chris

Our friends Louie, Luanne and Teena who brought us so much laughter by asking “jolog” questions.

With all the good and the bad, I’m staying and in general terms, I am happy still. I will admit that I’ve fallen inlove with this country already, plus the friends that we have here had made it more home. And believe it or not, the husband likes it here more than I do, so wherever he is, that’s where I will be. Home is where the heart is…home is where he is.

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